Why Anthony Weiner Should Not Resign

I’ll be the first to admit – I have enjoyed almost every facet of the ‘Weinergate’ scandal! From the lewd photos, to the bad puns on Late Night television, to watching reporters and news anchors struggle to keep a straight face when discussing it – I’ve been having A LOT of fun! However, I feel bad about that. At the center of the jokes and innuendo is a person, Congressman Anthony Weiner, who, up until now, has been a very effective legislator. He is wildly popular in his NYC based district, and according to a lot of New York political insiders, was considered a frontrunner for Mayor of New York City in 2013.

People from all sides are now calling on Congressman Weiner to resign. It’s being said that his behavior is unbecoming of a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. It’s being said that since he initially lied about the scandal, he can no longer be trusted. Democrats are getting rid of campaign contributions associated with Weiner, saying the scandal has made the money ‘tainted.’ There is more than likely going to be a House Ethics Investigation into the matter.

I think Congressman Weiner shouldn’t have to resign over this, and there are plenty of examples why I believe this. First and foremost: David Vitter.

Senator David Vitter (R-LA) was caught up in 2 separate sex scandals back in 2007. The most well known scandal involved Vitter's phone number being included in a published list of phone records of Pamela Martin and Associates, a high end escort service owned and run by Deborah Jeane Palfrey, also known as the "D.C. Madam". The lesser known scandal happened days later when Jeanette Maier, the "Canal Street Madam", alleged that Vitter was a customer on more than one occasion in the 1990s, when Maier was identified by federal prosecutors as operating a $300 per hour brothel.

It should be noted that David Vitter got into national politics in the first place because his predecessor in the House of Representatives, Bob Livingston, had to resign due to an adultery scandal.

Despite the fact that David Vitter admitted to hiring prostitutes, he still currently serves in the U.S. Senate. Republican lawmakers did not call out for his resignation. He wasn’t even censured by the Senate. And, no criminal charges were brought against him.

I believe the reason Senator Vitter was left alone has everything to do with politics and nothing to do with morality. Had Senator Vitter resigned or been kicked out after this scandal broke, the Governor of Louisiana would’ve been able to appoint a replacement for him until a special election could be held. At the time, Kathleen Blanco, a Democrat, was Governor, and would almost certainly have appointed a Democrat to the Senate seat, adding on to the Democrats’ recently attained Senate majority after the 2006 elections.

There have been many sex scandals that have rocked politicians of both sides of the political spectrum, though it seems Republicans get caught up in these things more often.

Former Congressmen Mark Foley (R-FL) was caught sending sexually explicit text messages to underage male Congressional Pages. Former Governor Elliot Spitzer (D-NY) was caught up in the same D.C. Madame scandal that got Senator Vitter. Former Senator Larry Craig (R-ID) got caught soliciting sex from an undercover cop in a bathroom at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. Former Senator John Ensign (R-NV) admitted to an affair with the wife of one of his campaign staffers, which lead to a much larger lobbying and financial scandal.

Of the four scandals mentioned above, none are currently in office. However, Republicans behaved very differently in regards to scandals by their own members than they did for scandals of their political rivals. Republican leaders initially tried to cover up the Mark Foley scandal, which later investigations would conclude had been going on for nearly 10 years, involving dozens of Pages, and complaints about Mr. Foley were well known to the leadership. Only after this information came to light did Republican lawmakers demand Foley resign. Larry Craig didn’t resign, and no Republican lawmakers asked him to. He finished his term and then retired – benefits intact. Republican lawmakers also initially avoided even discussing John Ensign’s scandal. No one called for his resignation, nor did he offer to resign, until the ethics investigation recommended handing over the evidence against the financial side of his scandal to the U.S. Department of Justice. At that point, the Senate Ethics Committee had enough evidence against Mr. Ensign that they could recommend he be expelled from the Senate. John Ensign resigned the next day.

To me, I find it hypocritical of Republican lawmakers to be calling for Congressman Weiner’s resignation when they don’t hold the same standards for their own members. I believe, as long as David Vitter is still in Congress, Anthony Weiner should be as well. David Vitter admitted to breaking the law. Congressman Weiner, though his behavior is disturbing, has not broken the law. If we look at these two cases in terms of how extreme the behavior is – Vitter hired prostitutes and Weiner sent dirty pictures of himself – I think Vitter should be in jail and Weiner should have his Twitter account taken away!

I know that recently, former Congressman Christopher Lee (R-NY) immediately resigned when it was discovered he had sent shirtless pictures of himself to women via Craigslist. Republicans called for him to step down, and he did. However, some political pundits have suggested that Lee’s seat was in a “safe” Republican district and would have little to no effect on the balance of power in Congress if he were to resign. Also, the Republicans were rolling out the Ryan Budget Plan to the nation, and wanted to keep the news cycle focused on that.

As it turned out, Democrat Kathy Hochul won the seat in a special election. Many conservative political blogs are now wondering if it was a good idea to have Congressman Lee step down.

Hypocrisy is something I cannot stand for in anyone – myself included. When a Democratic lawmaker does something wrong, the party generally will call for that person’s resignation. There was no such outcry for President Clinton, which, again, I think had more to do with politics than morality, which I find deplorable. But, overall, the Democrats have been fairly consistent with calling for lawmakers of their party to step down when they get caught up in scandal.

Republicans, on the other hand, seem to more fiercely protect their scandal-plagued members unless criminal charges are inevitable. During the Vitter scandal, the Republicans “prayed” for Vitter, and touted “forgiveness” as a wonderful virtue. Rush Limbaugh initially blamed the Larry Craig scandal on a vast “Left-wing Conspiracy” created to discredit a “true American Patriot.”

And, don’t get me started on the “Family Values” hypocrisy of these guys! Vitter, Ensign, Craig, and Foley – they all touted their strong “Family Values” as a virtue of theirs. They were morally superior and pure, therefore perfectly suited to represent you in Congress. What their constituents ended up getting was a Prostitute Lover, an Adulterer, a Bathroom Cruiser, and a Pedophile. Some Family Values!

Anthony Weiner has done something incredibly stupid. It’s a shame that his family will go through this. It had seemed that, despite his unintentionally humorous last name, he was taken seriously as a lawmaker. He became a champion of liberal causes, and became a darling of the more progressive side of the Democratic Party. Now, that is gone, and it will take a lot of work to get it back.

But, for now, make fun of him. Make all the Weiner jokes you want. Circulate the lewd photos all across the internet. He deserves it for making such a dumb mistake. But, he should be allowed to keep his job. The rest of this is between him, his constituents, his wife, and his twitter followers.