By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO – Sometime before the Bill Clinton impeachment trial, the nation decided that a politician’s sexual conduct—in or out of marriage—wasn’t of our concern. Even the Republicans who were leading the charge to force Clinton out of the White House weren’t saying that it was because he had sex with that woman, Monica Lewinsky. They said it was because he had lied about it under oath. Receiving adulterous fellatio is not an impeachable offense; perjury is.
Now comes a married congressman with the unfortunate last name of Weiner, who has been exposed sending photos of himself, bare-chested in one, in underwear in another, to several women via his Twitter account. Once again we have heard calls for an errant politician’s resignation. Once again, we have heard the politician refuse to resign. We hear that the Jewish politician’s Muslim wife Huma Abedin — like Hillary — will stand by her man, and this surely cannot be an easy task for her.
So should Anthony Weiner resign as a Democratic congressman from New York?
Although he lied about the incident—initially saying that he didn’t send the photos; that, instead, someone had “hacked” his account—Weiner eventually told the truth at an emotional news conference. Anthony Weiner’s lies, unlike President Clinton’s, weren’t under oath. They just were on national television in front of the news media. So opponents don’t even have on him the perjury that they had on Clinton.
Such would seem to suggest that, unless new and more damaging information should surface in the Congressional Ethics investigation of Weiner sought by Weiner’s fellow Democrat, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, that Weiner will survive this scandal at least until the next election. And given the way the public’s attention moves on, ever so quickly, it is possible that while constituents may not forget about Weiner’s indiscretions, they may forget how embarrassing it all was.
Eric Cantor, the House Majority Leader, almost immediately called for Weiner to step down, proving that there’s absolutely no across-the-aisle camaraderie between the two Jewish members of Congress. They might have agreed during their entire careers on the importance of keeping Israel safe and secure, but it’s on the social issues, not those of foreign policy, by which politicians define their political friends and their enemies.
Republicans want to present themselves—and their candidates for President—as models of probity, morality, and old-fashioned American values. Chastising and censuring the Democrat Weiner therefore was an easy thing to do for Republican Cantor. At the same time, being fallible, the Republicans who line up behind Cantor on this issue will have to hope and pray that none of their party is subsequently caught up in similar sleaziness. No game in politics tends to play better before the cameras than hoisting a sanctimonious congressman on his own petard.
*
In this kind of political discussion – the ‘who’s ahead’ factor – we lose sight of what a shonda it is for a congressman to behave the way Weiner has. Call me old fashioned, but I’d like to be able to hold as role models for my grandchildren the people who are members of Congress, California governors, and presidents of the United States. To be honest, I’d like them to behave better than the rest of us ordinary people.
I feel this way not only about politicians, but also about celebrities of all stripes. I hate to see sports stars being busted for steroids, Hollywood stars being arrested for jewelry theft, and worldwide monetary stars for sexual assault. How difficult it is to find true exemplars for our grandchildren, and how especially disappointing it is when the transgressor, like Weiner, is a member of our Jewish community. It seems concepts of decency and propriety have become so discounted that even our elected leaders cause us embarrassment and shame.
Should Weiner resign? I hope that instead of the media asking the question, Weiner will pose it to himself. Not in a political way, like “should I stay in office for a while, take the heat, and hope it will all blow over?” Not in a self-justifying way, like “haven’t I done good things while in office? Shouldn’t people be willing to forgive my private behavior?” I hope instead that Weiner will ask himself the question, “now that I have made this mess, what can I do to restore Americans’ faith in their leaders? Would my quitting acknowledge that there are standards that leaders should be held to, and that I fell short of them? What is the honorable thing to do? How can I be a mensch?”
*
Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted at donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com
Good article Don, but no Harrison conclusive position on Weiner’s decision. I do not think he should resign. I think he is an effective congressman, Jewish or otherwise. Now more than ever he has to keep that nose to the grindstone. I like what you say about making examples for our grandchildren but life is what you make it and I think Weiner can possibly (?) do a turnaround and perform effectively in government serviice. I was sure he was going to be N>Y Mayor but not now.