House Speaker Dennis Hastert had two words for the instant message exchanges between the now former Rep. Mark Foley of Florida and a young congressional page: "Vile and Repulsive."

Outrage is certainly in order.

Last week, Foley resigned after ABC reported that he engaged in sexually-charged messages with a former page.

A thorough investigation to see exactly what federal laws were broken must ensue.

Legal analysts point out that there are many complications with this case, namely the fact that Foley's messages, while lewd and graphic, were not direct solicitations for sex with a minor, nor was there physical contact. Also complicated are jurisdictional issues among Washington, D.C., the federal system and the home states of pages.

There's also the chance that other congressmen who knew about the messages could face prosecution — as they should, given the severity of the issue. Last weekend, House Republican majority leader John Boehner of Ohio and others in the party acknowledged they've known about Foley's e-mails with a 16-year-old Louisiana boy for months. The fact that they didn't act in a timely manner is reprehensible.

Foley, who served as the chairman of the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus, should have been forced to resign immediately. Instead, he issued his resignation last week, only after learning that ABC had obtained more explicit messages from other pages.

The public deserves a thorough, independent investigation by the Department of Justice.