The word is out: Nudists aren't good at concealing anything, certainly not their support for Kevin Yoder, the skinny-dipping congressman.
The Kansas conservative found few supporters after Politico exposed this week that he swam naked in Israel's Sea of Galilee while on a congressional trip last summer.
A nudist organization based in Florida came to the Republican's rescue and said Yoder had nothing to shame.
"Obviously, Congressman Yoder is a typical American who enjoys skinny-dipping, like over 50 million other Americans," said a statement from the American Association for Nude Recreation. The group cited a survey that said 25% of Americans have skinny-dipped among members of the opposite sex.
To the AANR, there was nothing wrong with Yoder's decision to undress.
"Congressman Yoder's mistake was picking a spot to go skinny-dipping that is illegal under Israeli law," the statement said. "Alternatively, he should have gone to Tel-Baruch beach north of Tel-Aviv, which has a long history of topless and nude sunbathing. Then instead of being in hot water, he'd have been in refreshing nudist waters."
The trip to Israel was a fact-finding mission that included about 80 members of the House, The New York Times said.
Other lawmakers joined Yoder in the Sea of Galilee -- where the Bible said Jesus walked on water -- but no one else made a splash by removing all their clothes, according to reports.
The FBI probed the trip, looking into how members documented their expenses. The House party leadership also dealt with Yoder last year. and this week he apologized to the public.
As embarrassing as this week's scandal is for Yoder, he joins the pantheon of other politicians known for flashing a little skin.
