They have tried to alert the public on the gravity of the issue, but the press easily plays it off and changes the subject. The strategy of pointing at the Dems and hollering 'where's the outrage?' is a proven loser. It is not for the general populace to rise up and defend Republican committee members when they get snookered.
It is up to the Republicans to simply screw certain Dems as hard as they can and force the Dems to raise the issue to the public when the pain gets too much. The Dems have no problem upsetting the 'gentleman's club' atmosphere when it gets them mileage. The Dems will be begging for gentlemanly rules when this is dealt with properly.