Weinergate and Other Political Scandals
'Weinergate' as it's been called is the 12th major sex scandal to break within the U.S. government since the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal made national headlines in the mid-to-late 1990s. Last night on her show, Rachel Maddow made comparisons between them all, including the latest issues with Rep. Anthony Weiner.
Something came to mind while I was watching this, that either I just wasn't paying attention before or just didn't remember all those events pointed out being reported by the media. But I had to wonder, are people being so cavalier about the Anthony Weiner scandal because of the fact that Clinton basically got off on a pass?
Consider the fact that Rep. Weiner violated the first point of the U.S. House of Representatives Code of Conduct:
A Member, officer, or employee of the House of Representatives shall conduct himself at all times in a manner which shall reflect creditably on the House of Representatives.
These rules are set forth and enforced by the House Ethics Committee. The Democratic party is already calling on them to conduct an ethics investigation against Weiner. I considered that maybe this was Nancy Pelosi's way of saving face for all the indiscretions John Edwards was able to get away with while he was a U.S. Senator, but I digress (just slightly).
Rep. Anthony Weiner may not (or may have - he's lied before) have had any physical contact with any of these women but they're coming forward and revealing that he contacted them while he was supposed to be working for his constituents. One of them confessed that he sent them a message right before the vote on Obamacare saying he was "off to class." This is definitely an issue of code of conduct violation. The question Rachel Maddow asks is a valid one - would your opinion of Rep. Weiner's actions change if it's revealed that he could face prosecution for what he did?
Click to viewSomething came to mind while I was watching this, that either I just wasn't paying attention before or just didn't remember all those events pointed out being reported by the media. But I had to wonder, are people being so cavalier about the Anthony Weiner scandal because of the fact that Clinton basically got off on a pass?
Consider the fact that Rep. Weiner violated the first point of the U.S. House of Representatives Code of Conduct:
A Member, officer, or employee of the House of Representatives shall conduct himself at all times in a manner which shall reflect creditably on the House of Representatives.
These rules are set forth and enforced by the House Ethics Committee. The Democratic party is already calling on them to conduct an ethics investigation against Weiner. I considered that maybe this was Nancy Pelosi's way of saving face for all the indiscretions John Edwards was able to get away with while he was a U.S. Senator, but I digress (just slightly).
Rep. Anthony Weiner may not (or may have - he's lied before) have had any physical contact with any of these women but they're coming forward and revealing that he contacted them while he was supposed to be working for his constituents. One of them confessed that he sent them a message right before the vote on Obamacare saying he was "off to class." This is definitely an issue of code of conduct violation. The question Rachel Maddow asks is a valid one - would your opinion of Rep. Weiner's actions change if it's revealed that he could face prosecution for what he did?