Opinion: Why Ensign didn’t face what Weiner did
By Jon Ralston, Las Vegas Sun
So when a creepy congressman who has a sexting disorder becomes a distraction and liability, fretting Democrats line up to defenestrate him. But when an even creepier senator has an affair with a staffer, reveals himself to be a world-class hypocrite and importunes supplicants to hire the cuckold, Republicans say nothing.
Because proportionality is so often lost in politics, especially in the 24/7 Web world where every gesture and expression is analyzed in microscopic detail, the differences between Anthony Weiner, who seems headed for resignation, and John Ensign, who has fled the capital ahead of an expulsion, are lost.
It is nothing short of remarkable to see members of both parties, actually, calling for Weiner’s head — Republicans feeling obvious schadenfreude and Democrats fearing electoral carnage. Contrast this with the reaction, especially by GOP leaders to Ensign, who lasted almost two years after he confessed to an affair with a staffer who was the wife of one of his top aides and who was his wife’s best friend.
On the creepiness scale, Weiner is Pee-wee Herman to Ensign’s Bob Packwood. And as much as both men have dishonored Capitol Hill — no mean feat — their treatment by their colleagues, especially their partisan allies, is noteworthy for its moral bankruptcy. Democrats are not so outraged by Weiner’s behavior as they are about his changing the media horde’s focus from their attempts to terrify seniors over Medicare and Social Security “reforms.” His sin was not texting provocative pictures of himself, but interfering in the narrative the Democrats have been constructing to try to win back both houses of Congress.
Sexting disorder? Thanks Jon Ralston, eminent, world renown psychiatrist. Give me a break. It is not a disease but simply a lack of reasonable self-control
I believe that the point of the article was not to provide a phychiatric diagnosis but, rather, to point out that one politician who acted like an idiot was treated differently than another politician who acted like an idiot. Why would one person who did not demonstrate self-control be treated differently than another person who did not demonstrate self-control? Were there different circumstances?
One situation involved very questionable payment, possibly criminal, of money to individuals and the other involved texting of lewd pictures. One situation involved the hiring of the husband of the aide. I am unaware of this sort of behavior by the other idiot. And what of David Vitters?
Were there different circumstances?
Ensign had an affair with a staffer and may have tried to cover it up with money. Ensign was also part of a national movement to ‘protect marriage’ (by denying homosexual couple the right to marry). All while disregarding his own marriage.
Wiener was sexting with porn stars. And isn’t that their job? To act as an out let for the excess sexual energy in society? The only problem I see is that he might have used government computers or take those pictures on government property. The Wiener case did not have that element of hypocrisy, the signature GOP icing on the cake. That is to say Wiener didn’t have the whole package.
A certain type of person seeks political office, and power. They also tend to be less faithful and prone to sex scandals. And certain types of women are attracted to men of power. It is kind of an unstoppable force.
lol…don’t tell Weiner he doesn’t have the whole package ;)