Lawmakers bothered by Condit's interview

Gephardt, right, said Condit was not as truthful as he should have been.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- House Democratic Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Missouri, and Rep. Cal Dooley, D-California, expressed their unhappiness with Rep. Gary Condit's interview with Connie Chung.

In his strongest statements to date on Condit, Gephardt on Friday called Thursday's interview "disappointing" and said Condit's lack of condor was "disturbing" and "wrong."

"I think the most important thing in life and certainly politics is credibility, and I think, you know, if you want to be credible you have to be straightforward and I think that was damaged and I am sorry about that."

VIDEO Listen to the entire Condit interview with affiliate KOVR/SBG (part 1) (August 24) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) Condit interview with affiliate KOVR/SBG (part 2) (August 24) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   MORE STORIES Californians react to Condit interview   Connie Chung 'shocked'   Condit addresses re-election     EXTRA INFORMATION Transcript: Gary Condit interview   Key players   Timeline   Profile: Gary Condit     RESOURCES On the Scene: Bill Schneider: Condit letter offers no apologies for behavior   Message Board: The case of the missing intern

Gephardt said he had known Condit for some 12 years and that over that time he'd known him to be truthful, but he told reporters that last night he was not as truthful as he should have been.

Dooley echoed some of the same concerns in a written statement, saying Condit had not lived up to his responsibility to be forthcoming and that "instead he chose evasion."

"I had hoped that he would be willing to acknowledge the impropriety of his behavior over the last few months, but he was not ... Gary Condit owes his constituents and the Levys much more than he gave them last night," Dooley's statement said.

Asked about Condit's political future, a spokesman for Gephardt said the leader believes that's "between Condit and his constituents."

When asked if he would advise Condit to drop out of the 2002 House race, Gephardt told reporters he planned to talk with colleagues about Condit's position, and had not yet been able to do so.

Gephardt is in his St. Louis district, and attended an editorial board meeting at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Friday morning. He spoke with television reporters as he was leaving that meeting.

Gephardt told the paper that he will talk with Democratic colleagues about possible action against Condit, which could include asking him to give up his seat on the House Intelligence Committee.

"It all adds to the general perception that politics are no good and politicians are a bunch of bums," he told the St. Louis paper.

A key aide to one of California's two Democratic senators offered an even harsher assessment of Condit's performance after viewing it Thursday night -- calling it "maddening."

"He's not being forthcoming, saying he wants to protect his family's privacy. So, why do the interview?" the senatorial aide said. "We were expecting something more."

A former member of the Democratic House leadership offered a less negative assessment: "I don't think Gary helped himself. I don't know how much he hurt himself, though. This is just the beginning of the process." He noted Condit has several interviews coming up with local news media, including the Modesto Bee, which has called for his resignation.

This Democrat said Condit "could be in trouble" if the Levy family objects to Condit using them as the reason for not talking about his relationship with missing former intern Chandra Levy.

-- CNN's Kate Snow and Jonathan Karl contributed to this report