Hello? Media? It doesn’t matter how many times Governor Mark “I am ashamed” Sanford had “romantic” encounters with his South American paramour. It doesn’t matter that he even had “romantic” encounters. Where he spends his naked time is his own deal.
Where he spends his time as Governor of South Carolina is what matters. Lying to his staff and family and the media as to his whereabouts, being utterly unreachable by anyone, is dereliction of duty and that is what should be the focus of our contempt.
[This is not to say that we can't have a good laugh and do some serious finger-pointing at the utter hypocrisy of Mark's viewing Clinton's pecadilloes as grounds for impeachment and then refusing to step down himself for identical infractions.]
At the very least, Governor, let your Lieutenant Gov know how to reach you in case of an emergency.
Right now, though, as Justin Timberlake might say, you are thinking inside the box.
Precisely right on all counts: (1) your biz if you want to fool around, (2) dereliction of duties, and (3) total hypocrisy.
I love the hypocrisy bit though. “The sanctity of marriage,” mantra uttered by the religious right seems woefully unimportant to them when it comes to reality.
I think it was Jon Stewart who said “Conservative in mind, liberal in dick.”
That sort of describes the problem I had with Bill Clinton. It wasn’t just that that he had an affair, but where he had it. By cheating on his wife – in the Oval Office – I perceived that as a huge insult to the position of POTUS as well as to We, The People.
I concede that Clinton’s business was also a poor choice and quite an embarrassment for this Democrat.
But he, nor our party, ever laid claim to the “moral compass” of America. The Republicans are embarrassing because they’re two-faced liars.
Forkboy, do the Democrats need to make that claim though? And does NOT making it excuse them from cheating on their spouses and give them a Get Out Of Jail Free! card?
“I never said I wouldn’t cheat on my wife. Where’s the problem?”
IMO all of our political leaders have a reputation to uphold, whether they like it or not. I liken it to my POV of tourists visiting another country. Far too often tourists think of themselves as nothing but a visitor in a foreign land, but what they fail to realize is they’re so much more than that; they are, in effect, ambassadors to their country and they should behave accordingly lest they bring disrespect on their country.
As an Australian-American I regret to report that in the Land Down Under Americans have a reputation as being Loud-mouthed Yanks. (Note: Yank as used by Aussies is NOT short for Yankee. It is an all encompassing term whether you’re from the North or the South.) This is because most American tourists that Aussies encounter are exactly that: loud-mouthed, braggarts who constantly talk about how great America is while belittling their host country. “So this is the famous Sydney Harbor Bridge, huh? Kind of small, isn’t it?”
Just as tourists are more than mere tourists, so too are politicians more than politicians; they are the leaders of our country, they are in the public spotlight, both here and abroad, and as such they ALL should behave accordingly while treating the position to which they’ve been elected with the utmost respect. Unfortunately they are as neglectful of this as many tourists are of their foreign ambassador role.
And if politicians treat their spouses so cavalierly, how are they inclined to respond to their constituents?
@Capn John: I do not argue with the idea that all husbands and wives should be true to their spouses, but there is a difference in our country in how our political parties treat such an issue.
Republicans in our nation, particularly those who are further right of centre than most, actually lay claim to representing the moral compass of America. They claim that they and only they (through their evangelicalism) know, understand and behave in a moral and righteous fashion. Democrats, on the whole, do not make such assertions.
We have seen the repeated failure of individual Republicans (in the political arena) to live up to the very proclamations they espouse, which is what I find to be incredibly hypocritical/two-faced.
How can one claim that homosexuality is sinful, wrong and that homosexuals should be treated as less than equals in modern society, while sending sexts to Congressional pages, as did Mark Foley?
How can one berate and seek impeachment of our former president, Clinton, while at the very same time be engaged in an extra-marital affair, as was Newt Gingrich?
How can you claim to be a voice of God, standing before the throngs, claiming to be holy, righteous and KNOW the will of God, but engage in an extra-marital affair with a prostitute, as did both Jim Bakker Jimmy Swaggart?
Having an affair is wrong regardless of your political leanings, but the principal problem here is that our Republican Right wrap themselves up in the Bible and claim to be the moral salvation of our otherwise “liberal” and “elitist” ways, and yet they fall from grace day after day after day with little to no real shame. They are only ashamed that they were caught.
@kpod: I thought we were supposed to be screwed by politicians