"This leadership, which has been so terribly wrong on so many policies," she said, "now seems willing to cover up events to protect its members."

It doesn't yet appear that the Foley scandal will have much effect in Connecticut's Fourth Congressional District, where a poll released this week shows Shays leading Farrell among likely voters by 4 percentage points.

Privately, Farrell campaign advisers say they don't want to make political hay out of a situation in which children appear to be victims. But with the new poll also showing 16 percent of district voters still undecided, the Foley scandal still expanding, and Farrell and Shays heading into a marathon of 11 debates in 15 days, expect the challenger to continue her strategy of aggressively linking Shays with the Republican leadership.

—Silla Brush