The governor of New Jersey, James E. McGreevey, resigns, admitting to having had an affair with a man. While his wife might not be too thrilled, I don't see why this means McGreevey has to resign. President Clinton had affairs and didn't step down from office, though some would surely have liked it if he had. NYC's former mayor, Rudy Giuliani, had essentially two wives while in office--the official one and the one he was having an affair with, whom he took, I believe, to official events, and who is now his wife--and yet did not resign, although he did withdraw from the senate race. Is hetero adultery that much more forgivable than the gay variety?
I don't see why he must resign -- but I understand why he might think he needs to.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who used a wholesome, All-American image, it is, in a sense, a violation of trust to say....'I'm this other guy'.
Mostly, I think, he likely felt he didn't need the hassle of trying to govern with this cloud hanging over him. He's circling the wagons instead.
I feel terrible for him. But it's certainly understandable.
Understandable, yes, but unfortunate. Imagine if he'd admitted to screwing up in his personal life, but decided to make a point of letting his constituents know that his political life was a separate matter.
ReplyDeleteHmm. I hadn't even realized NJ had a governor before this. Maybe he was just so terrible at being governor, and so uninterested in his job that he gave the "I had a gay affair" explanation just to get out of the job. Probably not, though.
ReplyDeleteWhen Dylan says 'apparently' he means 'I just saw this on Southern Appeal' (or Instapundit, Prof. Bainbridge, etc.)
ReplyDeleteMcGreevey isn't great, to be sure.
But let's hold off on the speculation until everything settles a bit.
Spencer,
ReplyDeleteAgain with Bainbridge? You seem a bit...preoccupied.
Bobo,
The NJ governor isn't THAT hot, except maybe by politician standards.
"The timing of the governor's coming out was apparently driven by the potential lawsuit, and the timing of his resignation - Nov. 15 - was driven by a desire to avoid an interim election...."
ReplyDelete"In the murky politics surrounding him, being gay may be the least complicated issue Mr. McGreevey could address - and that may explain why he did not delve into the other troubles in his speech."--NYT editorial.
So he DID come out, in a sense, just to get out of a jam. Not that there's anything wrong with that.
No no no. Not 'again with Bainbridge.' Dylan happens to be a Prof B. fan. The idea that Bainbridge was a 'terrible governeor' is simply a PB-like assertion. I.e., w/out any substantiation.
ReplyDeleteJust because I promised to never rail against him again doesn't mean I can't mention him in the appropriate context.
Oh. And I mis-spoke. I meant when Dylan says 'supposedly' not 'apparently'.
ReplyDeleteDifferent contexts. I assumed, too, that there was some blackmail thing going on.
But the idea that he's a terrible governor...ahh, not so sure about.