[Theory] Scandal and the public
Scandals and politics are very familiar bed fellows. But there are certain scandals that incite more fervor and indignation from the public than others. I contend that sex scandals are more damaging to a career than money/drugs/corruption.
My supporting evidence:
-This administration. Every scandal short of a sex scandal, but still in power...
-Clinton. A couple of BJ's brought him down hard, but 'Whitewater,' 'Travelgate,' had less of a sting
-Gary Hart. Prostitutes or something ended his career
-Marion Barry. Did some coke while in office. Ran for DC council, won.
What is it? Our puritanical heritage? Sex and sexuality being a huge taboo to really talk about or acknowledge? Or is it the media coverage? Does the most effective media - right wingers - win? If Bush were to get some ass in the Oval Office, would it be the same?
4 comments:
I believe Gary Hart was suspected in the murder of his mistress/aide...
From Wikipedia:
Hart officially declared his candidacy on April 17. Rumors began circulating nearly immediately that Hart was having an extramarital affair. In an interview that appeared in the New York Times in late April, Hart responded to the rumors by daring the press corps: "Follow me around. I don't care. I'm serious. If anybody wants to put a tail on me, go ahead. They'll be very bored." After an anonymous tip, two reporters from the Miami Herald took up Hart's challenge and observed an attractive young woman coming out of Hart's Washington, D.C., townhouse on the evening of May 2. The Herald published the story on Sunday, May 3, and the scandal spread rapidly through the national media. Hart and his allies attacked the Herald for rushing the story into print, claiming that it had unfairly judged the situation without finding out the true facts. Hart claimed that the reporters had not watched both entrances to his home and could not have seen when the young woman entered and left the building. Hart was dogged with questions regarding his views on marital infidelity. In public, his wife, Lee, supported him, claiming the relationship with the young woman was innocent. A poll of voters in New Hampshire for the New Hampshire Primary showed that Hart's support had dropped in half, from 32% to 17%, placing him suddenly ten points behind Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis.
On May 5, the Herald received a further tip that Hart had spent a night in Bimini on a sailboat called the Monkey Business with a woman who was not his wife. The Herald obtained photographs of Hart aboard the Monkey Business with then-29-year-old model Donna Rice, sitting in over-50 year-old Hart's lap. The photographs were subsequently published in the National Enquirer. On May 8, 1987, a week after the Donna Rice story broke, Hart dropped out of the race. At a press conference, he lashed out at the media, saying ""I said that I bend, but I don't break, and believe me, I'm not broken." A Gallup Poll found that nearly two-thirds (64%) of the U.S. respondents it surveyed thought the media treatment of Hart was "unfair." A little over half (53%) responded that marital infidelity had little to do with a president's ability to govern.
You might be thinking of Gary Condit, GeistX.
What is it? Our puritanical heritage?
I think so. This nation has a long history of having a fairly immature relationship with sexuality. While many try very hard to push sexuality beneath the surface, the same people also can't seem to stop obsessing over it. Repression breeds obsession (and kink if Dan Savage is to be believed). This is, as far as I can tell, a very vocal minority making much ado over very little (at least in the grand scheme of things). "Won't somebody please think of the children!" ala Helen Lovejoy.
Sex and sexuality being a huge taboo to really talk about or acknowledge? Or is it the media coverage?
It used to be 'If it bleeds, it leads.', Now it seems to be 'If it jiggles, it leads.'
Personally, I would think things like financial corruption, cronyism, starting a war of aggression, getting thousands of people killed, screwing the poor, the sick, well, pretty much anyone who isn't rich and a supporter of the K Street Project, lying to the American people repeatedly, lying to congress, being an alcoholic or a drug addict, or transforming our country into a corporatist bordello, or driving the debt to a level that my grandchildren will never be able to pay back, or something like that would be of more concern to the body politic, but I guess the only thing that interests the body politic is the BODY of certain people as they interact with politicians.
Moralizing is the weapon of choice in political fights.
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