BOB SCHIEFFER, the esteemed CBS News anchor, last Sunday morning was doing what he does most Sunday mornings.

He was hosting “Face the Nation.” And his guests were Republican Congressmen Ray Lahood of Illinois and Tom Davis of Virginia.

And, in view of the sex scandal of former U.S. Congressman Mark Foley, the questions, beyond the political repercussions, were about the GOP’s indulgence of the abhorrent sexual misconduct of one of its own.

Schieffer even noted that “moral values” are at issue, here.

A good line of questioning.

After all, at that point, “I had no idea,” no longer seemed a credible response.

Apparently, lots of folks, including Speaker of the House and fellow Republican Dennis Hastert, had long known about Foley’s sexual deviance.

Yes, a darned good line of questioning.

Heck, if the issue is whether people in high and very public positions should indulge the misconduct of cronies in high, public positions, one might be moved to ask whether the esteemed Mr. Schieffer is in need of some serious self-inspection.

After all, Schieffer has become a patty-caking, laughs-swapping, semi-regular on Don Imus’s nationally syndicated, radio and TV simulcasted “Imus in the Morning.” For many years, the show has heavily relied on excessively crude and vulgar sexual content to attract and sustain its audience.

Of course, when Schieffer and many other prominent and highly respected national figures are heard speaking with Imus, the content of the exchanges becomes highly sanitized and respectable, as befitting Schieffer’s standing. The low talk – often as low as it gets – is heard before and after folks such as Schieffer are heard in mutual admiration, cross-promotional sessions with Imus.

A recent politics-focused chat among Imus and his fulltime sidekicks concluded that Jeanine Pirro, candidate for Attorney General of New York State, has the perfect lips with which to perform oral sex. And that’s as delicate as we can paraphrase and still, perhaps, make the point.

Of course, Mr. Schieffer wasn’t on the Imus show at that point. That’s the kind of thing that’s so often heard just before and right after big shots, such as he, come on.

So we’re moved to ask:

How can Schieffer indulge such behavior? How does he lend his name and support to such a man and his conduct?

If it’s true that Schieffer never knew that side of Imus, such an answer doesn’t wash with what most everyone has known, and for years.

We’re sure that other nationally prominent news people and Imus show regulars NBC’s Brian Williams and Tim Russert, to name two, have similar questions about GOP leadership indulging the sexual misconduct of Congressman Foley. After all, few any longer believe that men of such position had no idea.

And the same can be asked of prominent national newsmen about their indulgence of Don Imus. Or is it that, despite their frequent appearances, they had no idea?