March 11, 2008

Eliot and Hillary.

In happier times. He was — is? — her superdelegate. Notice the body language in that video. She's leaning toward him, but he looks as though he's trying to avoid her. He's twisted away from her even as he's supposed to be showing his support. That's odd.

What effect will Eliot's disgrace have on Hillary — and more generally on the Democrats? It will make any sex scandals affecting Republicans harder to use. Hillary, of course, has always had her sexually errant husband, and Eliot's problems might remind us of Bill's. But how does that affect what we think about her? Perhaps we'll be reminded of the old reasons to feel sympathetic toward her. Or, cutting the other way, we may get squeamish about putting Bill back in the White House.

34 comments:

Freder Frederson said...

Or maybe it will have no effect at all. Why on earth should it?

You are really grasping here. Were there any carrots or onion rings in the video?

Anonymous said...
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Peter V. Bella said...

Perhaps we'll be reminded of the old reasons to feel sympathetic toward her.


Though she is a tragic figure, I never felt much sympathy for her. If she would have left her husband years ago, there would have been sympathy. If she would have left him after the Lewinsky scandal she could have been heroic. She made pathetic and immoral excuses to stay with him; he was the road to power. Period. It is hard to sympathize with that.

Bob said...

Maybe if Hillary manages to steal the nomination from Obama she can select Silda Spitzer as her running mate for the Scorned Woman Sympathy Ticket 2008.

Michael said...

Please start calling him "Spitzer." Every time you post something about "Elliot," I think you've finally discovered my blog. It's really sort of freaking me out. ;)

chuck b. said...

Do Republicans have sex scandals?

I thought they had mere "human failings" instead.

Peter V. Bella said...

elliot said...
Please start calling him "Spitzer." Every time you post something about "Elliot," I think you've finally discovered my blog. It's really sort of freaking me out. ;)



OK, fella, come clean. Were you the Elliot on those tapes? Were you the patron of the Emperor's club? What are you guilty of? We have ways of making you talk Elliot. Is Elliot Spitzer being confused with you?

former law student said...

The governor spells it with one 'l'.

Bill never paid for it in his life (not counting the cost of defending impeachment and the bimbo eruptions.)

The Republicans haven't had a good hetero sex scandal for a while. The Mark Foley texting of congressional pages and the restroom sex seeking Larry Craig scandals have both died down.

Elliott A said...

He is a disgrace to the name! Wealthy, liberal and powerful people do not feel the rules apply to them. The damage to Hillary is that when people see these failings in Spitzer, they are projected onto her, as on of the same "class". How can these people possibly care about the regular folks they claim to be fighting for? They never do something because it is right, just because it elevates themselves. Spitzer the crusader didn't care who he ruined on his path to glory. Nor did Hillary. It is sad that people can't see through these bottomfeeders and not elect them in the first place.

Michael said...

"What are you guilty of? "

So much that I can't even begin to list it all here. ;)

Freder Frederson said...

The Republicans haven't had a good hetero sex scandal for a while.

You forgot David Vitter. He got caught in exactly the same situation (and gave the same self-serving speech) and yet he is still in the Senate.

Peter V. Bella said...

elliot said...
"What are you guilty of? "

So much that I can't even begin to list it all here. ;)



OK, like the Feds, we will cut you a deal. Just put up a confession to a few things and we will not humiliate you in public. Resign from your position. Oh, and here is a law firm you can use. They charge seven hundred an hour. You see we wantg you broke too.

titusinfirstposition said...

If and when Spitzer resigns I think people will ask when Vitter is going to resign?

I thought it was the republicans who always kick their losers out and democrats keep them. That's what the wingnuts always say.

Bob said...

titusinfirstposition said: I thought it was the republicans who always kick their losers out and democrats keep them. That's what the wingnuts always say.

After Clinton decided not to follow Nixon's example regarding how thoroughly disgraced Presidents should conduct themselves, the rules were obviously changed. Shamelessness is the new rule.

The Drill SGT said...

The MSM will continue to generally cover for the Dem's, regardless of today's hysteria. Exhibit 1:

ABC does a slide show of 13 recent political sex scandals. 7 GOP and 6 Dems. Fair?

well they identify 6/7 of the GOP as GOP

but when it comes to the 6 Dems? Only 1 gets labeled as a democrat.

all the others are "party who?"

rhhardin said...

There's only one L in this Eliot, if you believe the NYT. I'd put two L's and two T's myself, but then I like Tschebyscheff, offered as the longest option by Hamming in _Numerical Methods for Scientists and Engineers_.

R. Emmett Tyrrell had the right idea too. I'm sure he had a special experience learning to write his name that few of us have.

Mark CA said...

I think the $4300 payment is potentially even more damaging than the sex allegations in regular voters' minds.

Here's a pol who was standing up for the little guy, and after all of his retoric, he blows $4300 to get his jollies (including paying for hooker to travel from NY to Washington, etc.) It's the hypocrisy of it that will smear other politicians, particularly the sanctimonious ones.

By the way, he apparently was running a credit, and one wonders how does the guy with a family and kids to support, making about $180K governor's salary (not much in NY) blows $3-4K at a time on a hooker (and a room at the Mayfair Hotel isn't cheap either), and not for the first time? Who's funding this expensive habit, and what does he owe them?

Peter V. Bella said...

By the way, he apparently was running a credit, and one wonders how does the guy with a family and kids to support, making about $180K governor's salary (not much in NY) blows $3-4K at a time on a hooker (and a room at the Mayfair Hotel isn't cheap either), and not for the first time? Who's funding this expensive habit, and what does he owe them?



He is a rich kid.

dick said...

You are still trying to make it about the prostitution. It is not. It is about the financial misdeeds of Spitzer. Vitters used a prosty but paid with his own money. Spitzer is caught making financial transactions that were illegal. Big difference. What the democrats are trying to do is push it off as being about only the prostitute and then they can portray poor Ms Spitzer, the bereaved wife, caused by her husband's rampant libido. She is bereaved because the schmuck played around with the bucks and got caught.

EnigmatiCore said...

Mark,

Spitzer comes from a very wealthy lineage.

Beth said...

dick, Vitter wasn't playing with $20 hookers on a street corner. He had to have spent thousands upon thousands of dollars over the years, all on the salary of a state congressman then a U.S. senator. In the meantime, he and his wife had children and moved to a home in Old Metairie, one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the New Orleans area.

The hooker money came from somewhere, and local speculation is that he used campaign funds.

They've both broken the law. They're both raging hypocrites. Shades of what exact law each broke is as interesting as parsing what one means by "is." If the people of New York demand it, Spitzer will probably have to resign. It's to our shame that the people of Louisiana let our sleazy hypocrite continue to embarrass us in the Senate.

Trooper York said...

"It's to our shame that the people of Louisiana let our sleazy hypocrite continue to embarrass us in the Senate."

New York and New Orleans live in parallel universes. We have both had sleazy hypocrites. You had Earl Long and we had Jimmie Walker. You had Edwin Edwards and we have Charley Rangel. When Frank Costello and Dandy Phil Kastel had to move the slots out of New York they moved them to New Orleans. We are sides of the same coin. It's just that youse guy's is more charming, so to speak.

Peter V. Bella said...

trooper york...
We have both had sleazy hypocrites. You had Earl Long and we had Jimmie Walker.


None of them held a canlde to Bath House John Coughlin and Hinky Dink McKenna in Chicago.

Beth said...

Trooper, you're a soulmate.

I'm always proud to have New Orleans held up in the pantheon of great cities like Chicago and New York. We'll continue to hold up our end of the political sleaze spectrum, with the occasional nod at reform. I wonder why it is it bad politics tend to be found where there's great food, music and literature?

Beth said...

Oh, MCG -- Chicago has wonderful names! Hinky Dinky? That's as good as the Kingfish.

dick said...

Beth,

If you can prove that he tapped campaign funds, then I would agree with you. You have not and I don't see how you can. Therefore I think I will stick by my original posting.

Prove that Vitter used money he should not have for this purpose and that he spent the kind of money you say he did and I will then agree with you. Until then it is sound and fury signifying nothing.

Trooper York said...

Well it's the fact that both cities have large immigrant populations. The Italians, Irish, Jews and southern blacks have all combined in a rich stew to give us a gumbo of music, art, food and the best politics money can buy. That's what it's all about. If want to be boring and safe, move out to the Protestants out in Nebraska or dare I say, Wisconsin.

dick said...

Beth,

Winesburg, Ohio or Columbus, Ohio with James Thurber? Elmira, NY or Hartford, CN with Mark Twain? Good food and rotten politics?

Trooper York said...

One of the most over looked cultural influences in New York is the migration of southern blacks to New York City during and right after WWII. They gave us soul music, soul food and dances like we had never seen before. It's the mix of cultures that makes a city great. You will always have friends from another race, another country, another frame of reference. It's when well can all sit and drink and eat together and tell each other to fuck yourself, and then America will be that shining city on the hill.

(Of course we will let the Mexicans shine it because they don't get minimum wage).

Revenant said...

Who's funding this expensive habit, and what does he owe them?

Spitzer's family is filthy rich. That's how he got elected in the first place, actually -- multimillion-dollar "loans" from his father that mysteriously never had to be paid back.

Revenant said...

One of the most over looked cultural influences in New York is the migration of southern blacks to New York City during and right after WWII.

Isn't the date on that pretty wildly off? The northern migration had been going on since Reconstruction, and the "Harlem Renaissance" took place in the 1920s and 30s.

Peter V. Bella said...

It's when well can all sit and drink and eat together and tell each other to fuck yourself, and then America will be that shining city on the hill.



Hey, that's a great idea trooper. Let's start right now. Trooper, I love like a brother, let's get together for dinner and drinks sometime next time I'm in NYC.

Now go fuck yourself.

Trooper York said...

Right you are Middle Class guy, lets hoist a few and by the way blow it out your brawt eating, Bear rooting, beer swilling, cigar smoking freaking Chi town ass. All the best, your pal Trooper.

Trooper York said...

Rev you are right that the migration began much earlier but the trickles became a flood during the war and during the civil rights struggles. White flight began for a reason, people were moving up North as mobility really increased after the war. This was a lot more prevalent in places like Detroit than New York, but it happen in NYC too. Maybe my information is anecdotal, since I don't believe in academic studies, but rely on my own eyes and ears. I remember in the sixties, a lot of guys were Bamas, just up from down South. But what the freak do I know, I just live life, I don't study it in school.