cheating by example

Adultery is not illegal. It may ruin homes, marriages, friendships and lives, but it is not against the law. However, adultery does create its own unique impact, even in the legal system. What other explanation is there for world-wide recognition of the name “Monica Lewinsky”?

Sadly enough, people commit adultery everyday, but when the President of the United States is accused of having an affair with one of his young female aides, the air of scandal holds something more – uncertainty, perhaps? People, namely constituents, begin to wonder about the character of the representative that they have elected. We (consciously and/or subconsciously) expect our leaders to be beyond reproach, and when the uprightness of those we have put into power is called into question, there is an uproar that is both public and private. One takes place in the media, and one takes place in our hearts and minds.

Thankfully, the accusations, scandal, and impeachment of President Clinton are years behind us now, but similar situations still occur. Most recently, Eliot Spitzer, the governor of New York, resigned on charges of patronizing a prostitution ring. Spitzer gained fame as a man seeking to cleanse Wall Street of corporate corruption, but that career is now over as of May 12. In a televised apology to New York and the rest of the nation, Spitzer said, “I have acted in a way that violates my obligation to my family and violates my or any sense of right and wrong…I apologize first and most importantly to my family. I apologize to the public to whom I promised better…I have disappointed and failed to live up to the standard I expected of myself.” The public to whom he “promised better” also expected better, which brings us to the question of what exactly it was that they were expecting in the first place.

Politicians are not elected on the basis of charisma and experience alone. Moral judgment, integrity, strength of character, and a hard-working optimism are also points on the checklist of the average American. Does morality have a role in the public arena? Amidst many debates about the separation of church and state, this may be the beginning of yet another passionate discussion. But the expectations of the American public –religious and non-religious – are a testimony to the sway that morality still holds. In Eliot Spitzer’s case, the public finds standards that are unacceptable, and, to his credit, he acknowledges just that. Let’s break it down.

First of all, prostitution is against the law. For a public official to ignore the laws he is elected to protect is strike one. Secondly, the clandestine nature of the entire affair shows a willingness to deceive – a disturbing quality in any person, especially the governor of New York. Strike two. Thirdly, politicians who engage in secrecy and breaking the law open themselves up to blackmail and other kinds of vulnerability. Strike three. Although I could go on and on with the consequences of corrupted morals, we are out of strikes. Spitzer is out.

The ethical standards of America’s leaders are essential components in the building up or breaking down of our system of government and way of life. Integrity is important, and we should require the kind of leadership that will get out there and hit a home run for the nation.

March 18, 2008
(aricle for The Review, Laurel, MS, newspaper)