The Governor of South Carolina.

[IndioGirl55 32]

That's right - this is the USA and we can say what we believe unlike Iran today!

And LBT is a specific place where we are free to express our opinions. And that's a very good thing!

You're cool. You should jump in and post more often.

LOL - I do every now and then when I read something that I have a strong opinion about - but really not up to all the cattiness - personal attacks that do go on here on the rants thread.

I personally believe that each person is entitled to their opinion and that doesn't make the other person stupid or dumb - and we are never ever going to get someone who is right winged to agree with a more moderate point of view..

I find it more beneficial to use my time trying to help other bander's with their food issues rather than their political ones :0) - I think I have a better chance at convincing someone not to eat that big mac than I do convincing a conservative to have a little compassion for those less fortunate :0)...

[BJean 16]

LMAO - as milk almost shoots out my nose.

[Cleo's Mom 257]

Well, well, well, Mark Sanford is telling more each day. Now he tells us he "crossed the line" with several other women but didn't cross the line to sex. Sounds like the Bill Clinton defense that the conservatives loved to mock. And he is trying to paint his affair with the Argentinian woman as some Shakespearian tragic love story. Soul mates who were meant to be - only kept apart by the minor inconvenience of his being married. But he's taking the high road (LOL), he's going to try to fall in love with his wife again. Good luck on that one. I'd throw him out on his hypocritical behind! He should resign because he used state money for his trysts and left the state without anyone in charge for 5 days.

[BJean 16]

Too dumb to take advantage of the spotlight being diverted, I guess. Like I said, with him it's all about HIM.

[KartMan 58]

Well, well, well, Mark Sanford is telling more each day. Now he tells us he "crossed the line" with several other women but didn't cross the line to sex. Sounds like the Bill Clinton defense that the conservatives loved to mock. And he is trying to paint his affair with the Argentinian woman as some Shakespearian tragic love story. Soul mates who were meant to be - only kept apart by the minor inconvenience of his being married. But he's taking the high road (LOL), he's going to try to fall in love with his wife again. Good luck on that one. I'd throw him out on his hypocritical behind! He should resign because he used state money for his trysts and left the state without anyone in charge for 5 days.

As I said before, this should not be about the affair(s), that is between him and his wife. I don’t take a conservative or liberal approach on these things. If you abuse your power, you should not have the privilege of serving the people. Elected office is a privilege and not a right. Once in office, you should be held to the highest standards in carrying out your duties. From what I have read, the Governor abused his power by taking the trip using taxpayer dollars and he didn’t communicate his absence to the proper channels. What would have happened had there been a disaster in his state? Does he not realize that things like hurricanes (and his state is in the storm belt), terrorist activity (like the Oklahoma City bombing), or a legislative crisis require the presence of the Governor or his duly appointed representative on hand? I know what would have happened, the catastrophe would have been made that much worse because he would have not been available and there was no chain of command to make the important decisions.

What should happen from here? He should man up and resign, that would show me that he has the character that he so often pontificates on. If he doesn’t resign, the AG should charge him to the full extent of the law and the legislature should throw him out. If the state doesn’t boot him out legally, the voters should send him a clear message when he is up for reelection and make sure he doesn’t win any other office. If the voters put him back in office, well then they get what they deserve.

One thing I am certainly happy about is that he had this implosion before his rising star took him to national office. Now we know that he makes colossally bad personal choices that make him unfit for office.

[BJean 16]

Thousands of men in the highest and most powerful offices in this country have affairs. That obviously does not make them unqualified to do their jobs. They may not be men that you'd like to invite over for dinner or to be a role model for your children, but they can do their jobs well and sometimes in a very stellar way.

In this country, we verbally place such a high importance on sexual morals, it has made even the shortest and most inconsequential affair take on great value and it creates a potential for blackmail.

I am reminded of the old school communist threat: take advantage of a person who is powerful and who can be blackmailed so that it compromises their choices and their ability to do their job. Make them spy for you.

In more recent history - post cold war - greed has become the most prominent problem with blackmailing or luring powerful people into committing acts that are contrary to our national interests or the best interests of their company.

Best case scenario, every man and woman would stay true to his spouse. There would be no divorces that harm American families and mostly our children. But alas, that's just not ever going to be in the cards.

The best we can hope for is that people don't become obsessed like some of the men whose activities have been brought out in the open lately. Elliot Spitzer's addicition to hookers, for instance, and Sanford's obsession with this Argentinean woman to such an extent that he left the country without making sure that his serious obligations were taken care of.

Love and sexual urges are some of the most powerful of our natural instincts - and for some people power is a strong aphrodisiac. Combine the two and you can understand why people (not just men) go astray. However, contrary to what some of you believe, these can be forgivable transgressions. People are weak, people sin. If they are good people, and it can happen to good people, they can atone for their sins and be forgiven; forgiven by their families who love them, forgiven by God who loves them.

We should be concerned with the basic morality of the person. I don't think we can legislate morality, I don't think it is any of our business who people choose to sleep with or how they conduct their marriages. But I do think that basic moral values are important because of the honest ability of a person to do his job without committing a crime.

I have a problem with any behavior that compromises one's job, particularly if it is a elected job. And anytime, ANYTIME, anyone uses resources that do not belong to them for personal gain, such as enabling them to carry on an affair, then it is wrong and they have to reimburse the company, or the government, as the case may be and that should be followed up with putting them on some kind of probatation or depending on the circumstances, fired from the job.

I am of the opinion that no one, and I mean no one, should steal so much as a stamp from their comapny to be used for personal business . We seem to be so obsessed with the sexual behavior of people in the public eye, we've forgotten about the morality of being an honest and loyal employee. Most people would think nothing of stealing a stamp or an envelope from their employer. But people are outraged if their think that one employee might be sleeping with another. I am outraged if I learn of any employee stealing anything on the job, be it an envelope or a hundred bucks out of petty cash.

Oh I know, you'll say that there's a big difference between taking an envelope and taking a hundred bucks out of petty cash, but I say that people can justify anything and if you can justify taking a few small material things from your employer, it isn't too much of a stretch that given the right opportunity, you would take the petty cash or milions.

What Spitzer and Sanford and many many others have shown us is that they can justfiy their felonious behavior. I think their over-blown egos and their need to have affairs with other women is a weakness and it might compromise their ability to do their job, but it only is against the law if they used public funds or the power of their office in the commission of their dirty deeds.

Let's face it, it isn't agains public law to have sexual encounters outside your marriage, but Bernie Maddoff is going down the river for a very, very long time.

[BJean 16]

Kartman I enjoyed your post. I think that the hypocrisy that so many of these public men show who preach personal morality from their high posts, is deplorable. They allow themselves to commit the bad moral behavior that they angrily condemn others for. That's why right now I believe we're hearing so much outrage toward them in the media.

[KartMan 58]

It seems to me that the lesson in this is that neither party has a lock on “family values” and they should not try to use those issues for political gain. We have clearly seen that both parties have plenty of members that stray from home, and it’s not even a recent thing. Affairs by politicians go way back. There are reports that Washington had a mistress, Eleanor Roosevelt was rumored to have lovers, JFK – well we know he was a ladies man, Newt cheated on his dying wife, Bill Clinton, Elliott Spitzer, the Colorado Governor, George Bush senior had some rumors, blah, blah, blah. (Interesting article http://www.geocities.com/jacksonthor/knowrsex.html)

It still amazes me that some of the most vocal people on it turn out to be guilty of it too. I remember Rush calling Ted Kennedy a philanderer, he even had a special jingle for him (I used to listen to Rush when I was younger I guess you could say I’m a “Born Again Liberal”). Not to mention that Clinton’s escapades are partly the reason Rush is so big now (no pun intended). All the while that Rush was condemning Kennedy and Clinton, Newt and Henry Hyde were doing the same thing while wearing the Republican banner. Infidelity is a trait that crosses party lines on a regular basis. Rush himself has been divorced 3 times and there have been rumors that he travels outside the country on “sexcations”.

Also, its not just a male thing. I mentioned Eleanor Roosevelt above. Nancy Reagan was said to have an affair with Frank Sinatra. Former Rep. Helen Chenoweth (R-Idaho), who admitted in 1998 that she had a six-year relationship with her former business partner before she took office. Rep. Mary Fallin (R-Okla.), who is running for governor of her state in 2010, faced allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a state trooper while she was lieutenant governor. I think one reason that we hear of less women doing these things is there are less women in public office than men. But don’t forget that for every powerful man that is having an affair, he is having it with a woman who is just as guilty as he is (er, uh – well except for Larry Craig and Mark Foley).

[BJean 16]

...milk....nose....spurt...!!! ROFLMAO

All points well taken, kartman!

That kind of behavior is human sexual behavior - not exclusively male behavior or behavior committed by only one political party. It is human behavior that people in many countries do not flip out about. In many places it is behavior that although it is certainly given some boundaries, it is generally expected and accepted.

It is for these reasons that many Democrats did not feel that it was in the best interests of the country for the Republican dominated Congress to hound Bill Clinton from the moment he ran for president until the moment they caught him with his pants down in the oval office. The Republicans do not play fair when it comes to this topic. But no one said that politics is fair, eh?

So now they must reap what they sow.

[BJean 16]

As a "born again" Democrat Kartman, in danger of repeating myself, I actually saw and heard Rush Limbaugh say that Sanford was the Republican's hope to finally have their John Kennedy.

The irony in that silly, silly comment is that Rush Limbaugh has for his whole career criticized John Kennedy - and all the Kennedys for that matter. So why would the Republicans want some of that?

Republicans! You can't live with 'em and you can't live without 'em.

[Cleo's Mom 257]

What I have a problem with are those who are so sanctimonious and holier than thou and condemn anyone who would do drugs, have affairs or -horrors! - want to enter into a same sex marriage and therefore threaten traditional marriage - all the while doing the very things they are condemning. Yeah, same sex marriages threaten traditional marriage while I guess infidelity doesn't. And those who do this pontificating are largely the born-again christian right who are largely republicans.

Do you remember the line up of republicans running for president and how many marriages, divorces and infidelities they had among them compared to the democrats running? I guess that's why you didn't hear about family values during this campaign.

And BJean - yeah I can live without them. LOL!

[BJean 16]

Aw but Cleo'sMom, without the Republicans around to make us look good, would we seem as brilliant and highly moral as we do by comparison?

[inri09 0]

I think he should step down and it has nothing to do with liberal vs conservative. Even if it was "just and affair", many have stayed in office after having affairs.

However, the way he is talking to the press about it makes me question his ability to think straight. How can he ever regain credibility? It sounds like he's using the press as his counselor under the guise of being totally open and honest. To suggest he's going to try to fall back in love with his wife, even though his soul mate lives in another country, isn't going to help mend his marriage. The more he talks, the more he becomes an ongoing joke and he will not have the ability to lead in a meaningful way.

[BJean 16]

inri09, good point. The man is so obsessed with himself right now, I'm not sure he knows what State he's in, much less how to run one. In the press, he is being a heartless bastard to his family. One doesn't say those things in public knowing they're going to hurt the people who love you. Perhaps he is trying to run them off so he can emigrate to Argentina. I say don't let the proverbial door hit you in the butt, mister.

[plain 12]

How about Rush Limbaugh's claim that he could have been the Republican's John Kennedy?

I guess Rush's comment turned out to be true, lol. Now if this Argentinian women "overdoses", Sanford really will be the repub's JFK.

I've heard shrinks say that when a person has an affair they are completely self-possessed and not thinking about others. His performance at his news conference was really all about him, even when he was saying he owed his wife and boys an apology. It was actually all about him and how it was making him feel

Man, I was thinking the same thing when I heard his press conference. What a narcissist!!

Democrats can't be lumped into a clump of folks who lie about affairs or even have them.

Uh, BJean....you tend to lump republicans and conservatives together all the time.

I have very little faith that ANY of them are anything but liars, cheats, and scumbags.

Me too. Sometimes I wonder if the job taints the person, or if the turds are attracted to the job....I suspect both.

Cleo's Mom, I have been biting my tongue to keep from saying what you posted. I'm glad that it was you. I get tired of being ennundated with negative hateful posts when I tell it like it really is.

The only reason I call you out on stuff is because you're capable of more, BJean. I tend to let Cleo's Mom go because she tends to just rant. Hey, it's her opinion......but some people are so far indoctrinated that I don't even bother with arguing.

I personally think that what goes on between a man & his wife is their business - it doesn't mean that the person can't do their job...

Well, I see your point.....but I disagree. Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, but I expect public servants to be held to basic standards. If you want to sleep with some chick from Argentina, then divorce your damn wife!!

But what pisses me off is that he spent tax payers dollars to visit his gf.. Heck he should have done it on his own time and spend it own $$$. Then I really could have cared less about the whole situation... But that he wrote the trip off as a business expense to the tax payers is WRONG..

Not just wrong, but illegal!!

and we are never ever going to get someone who is right winged to agree with a more moderate point of view..

Oh...well then, I take back when I agreed with you! Now if you'll excuse me, I have to take my "money bath" before I go downtown and spit on the homeless.

Well, well, well, Mark Sanford is telling more each day. Now he tells us he "crossed the line" with several other women but didn't cross the line to sex

Why the hell is this dude even sharing these details with us? Resign and move on with your life, man.

One thing I am certainly happy about is that he had this implosion before his rising star took him to national office. Now we know that he makes colossally bad personal choices that make him unfit for office.

Yeah, I guess that's the jist of what I was trying to say when I posted that fidelity DOES matter to me.

I have a problem with any behavior that compromises one's job, particularly if it is a elected job. And anytime, ANYTIME, anyone uses resources that do not belong to them for personal gain, such as enabling them to carry on an affair, then it is wrong and they have to reimburse the company, or the government, as the case may be and that should be followed up with putting them on some kind of probatation or depending on the circumstances, fired from the job.

I agree. That's why I thought the Clinton affair was such a big deal. Clinton should have just "manned up", admitted what he did, and took his medicine. Sanford should do the same thing (without going into all the freaking details!! "I would play Barry White...then I'd order two Vodka martinis, followed by a sensual massage")