Bad taste award
I don’t find anything funny about the Sanford affair. It’s the mom in me thinking about four handsome boys on Father’s Day weekend abandoned by their stupid, selfish father, who was busy tanning with his mistress in Argentina. Heart-breaking. Yes. Nauseating. Yes. Maddening. Yes. Funny? No.
Cruel derision crude humor are to be expected of the Left.
But can Beltway conservatives Republicans keep their cracks to themselves? Today’s bad taste award goes to Grover Norquist:
“It’s not helpful,” said Grover Norquist, the president of Americans for Tax Reform. “This is a guy who clearly could have been in the running as a serious presidential candidate with a serious record of cutting taxes and cutting spending.” But Norquist tempered his gloom with a joke. “It does indicate that men who oppose federal spending at the local level are irresistible to women.”
Just what we need: Beltway conservatives Republicans showing how tone-deaf and insensitive they are for the sake of a self-aggrandizing soundbite.
Gag.
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Trackbacks
- Nationalized Healthcare and Reagan tells jokes about the Soviet Union « Jim Blazsik
- The Other McCain: Mary Jo Kopechne could not be reached for comment
- When Republicans Don’t Take the High Road (updated) « Frugal Café Blog Zone
- The American Spectator : AmSpecBlog : A Farcical Affair
- Yes, Sex Sells: Media Gives More Attention to Sanford’s Affair Than Illegal Firing of Inspector General Getting Too Close to Truth Behind Obama’s Cronies « Frugal Café Blog Zone
- Jules Crittenden » His Inner Kerry
- Mark Sanford Affair: Below the Belt and the Border II | Conservative Political Report
- Conyers, the wife of Dem U.S. Rep. John Conyers pleads Guilty of Bribery « Goodtimepolitics
- UPDATED: South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford admits affair! Top 10 Democrat Sex Scandals « Goodtimepolitics
- When Will Mark Sanford’s Sorrowful Mid-life Crisis Press Coverage Come to an End? « Frugal Café Blog Zone
- Sarah Palin Candid about Her Surprise Resignation: Bipartisan Reformer, Conservative, Not a Lame Duck « Frugal Café Blog Zone
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The coarsening of the culture continues.
I’m sure Jenny Sanford really appreciated that joke. Not.
arr..arr….arr…
I am going to go out on a limb here and predict that there will be many tasteless jokes about this.
Don’t climb too far out there! That’s just crazy talk!
He’s cracking jokes about a family falling apart and thinks it’s funny?
Norquist really seems to like to hear himself talk. This is a problem of the DC chattering class be they leftards or not.
And this is one reason why I don’t watch television any longer. I am tired of self-serving idiots like this who simply cannot stop talking even when it is painfully obvious to everyone that they have nothing to say worth listening to.
Just my two cents for whatever it’s worth.
Good point, WarTip.
Well, it wasn’t funny anyway. Adultery has nothing to do with being ‘irresistible’.
This shows again that Republicans should not be imitating Democrats – whether in bad behavior, bad policy or in bad jokes. Does Norquist plan to make a Palin joke next?
Funny? Not. Imagine the disaster if this hit the fan when he had become a serious contender for the GOP nomination.
Career: history
Family: destroyed
Reputation: sewerage
Credibility: 0
A friend in our church in Florida years ago was a state senator. He told us for every politician who gets caught in adultry, there are at least ten more you will never hear about.
The sin is the treachery to his wife and children, and violating sacred vows. It seems in our warped culture, the sin is getting caught. (i.e. being stupid about it) Everybody does it, right? Wrong.
We have a right to expect and demand a higher standard from elected officials. And as Michelle pointed out yesterday, if someone doesn’t keep a sacred marriage vow, how can we expect him to keep his oath of office? They are not two seperate issues, as the Clitonian national disgrace contended. It is called integrity. Character flaws effect every area of the person.
I sincerely hope for his children’s sake he can reconcile his marriage, but needs to look into another career. Jenny is one classy and extraordinary woman. God bless her and her children.
“Republican” is an odd descriptor for Grover Norquist. Try something that fits better…try “opportunistic” or “guy who pretends to be a republican but then turns on the people who believe in him.”
Oh wait…that would describe half of our leadership; I guess Grover IS a Republican.
Am I to understand that some of these trips were on taxpayers dime? That’s what I just saw on a CNN feed. (not my fault the tv in the caff at work is set to CNN)
If so the MSM is not going to let this go away anytime soon. Just adding more pain to his wife and kids. But hey, what’s a little collateral damage if you can rub the opposition’s nose in it?
Not only that but it doesn’t hurt to do a little preemptive culling of the opposition either.
NY governor Patterson’s affair was sleazier…and probably illegal
why no cries for his head on a pike?
Lets just get rid of him and all the lying, immoral criminals like him. How is this country ever going to recover when crooks like this are in office dragging things even lower?
Again like Letterman, apology not accepted.
immoral criminals like him.
what was his crime?
i don’t know how many of the posters here who are so enraged consider themselves Christians. sorry to say the’re not acting that way…
judge not, etc.
Agreed.
As does the apparent journey of the GOP into irrelevant Whigdom.
Sad..but, might this possibly, at the same time, be a good thing for conservatives?
That’s obviously a rhetorical question.
We can only hope. The alternatives are not pleasant to think about.
That’s obviously a rhetorical question.
‘course… not only is he a D-biy, but it would be RAAAAACIST to impinge his moral standing…
You mean men who oppose federal spending aren’t attractive to women?
Dang, that was the only chance I had….
He made a bad joke. We all do that.
Not ready to condem him over that.
Come on people. temper your outrage. The guy apologized, his wife is giving him a second chance, SC voters will decide his fate.
And remember our nominee for president last election was not exactly a choir boy.
NY governor Spitzer, I believe.
Nope, only to barney frank
Correct – he did not commit a crime.
An immoral act by cheating on, his wife, yes.
But a crime, no.
That is your opinion.
So tired of hearing that trotted out and used as a scolding.
I don’t believe we are judging this man in the sense of whether his soul should be condemned for eternity with no chance of forgiveness.
We are criticizing what he did in the sense that it was a terribly nasty and humiliating insult to his wife and family.
What good are moral principles if their trangression is reflexively and nonchalantly excused with “Judge not…”, “Everyone is human”, “What, you never did something like this?”, etc?
According to Newsmax.com, Sen. John (he served in Vietnam) Kerry had this to say:
Speaking to some business and civic leaders he had invited to Washington, Kerry quipped: “Too bad if a governor had to go missing it couldn’t have been the governor of Alaska. You know, Sarah Palin.”
Oh, that’s classy, isn’t it?
IMHO:
This Norquist comment is light compared to what I’d expect from the Repubs.
Sorry to say but his comment is indicative of one of the things wrong with the Repubs. With a few exceptions, Democrats seem to stick together regardless of the immoral or criminal action committed by one of their brethren. That goes for most of the politicians, pundits, bloggers and voters. There’s much more cohesion in that party than in the Republican party.
Republican politicians should just keep their mouths shut when one of their brethren acts like an idiot.
My opinion. He should not resign. Let the next elections decide his fate.
Judgment involves condemnation, and belongs to the Lord. Discernment of character is another issue. I believe he has forfeited his priviledge of holding public office, unless we no longer demand integrity and veracity as necessary values in our leaders. I think (hope) the folks here still do, and always will. If not, it’s Galt time.
max – that’s a pretty silly statement. Yes – judge not -but then the same book says cast out all sorts of bad actors. So if you are not to judge, how can you decide?
I’ll let you in on a little tip – to understand any “passage”, you have to read it in it’s entirety. Taking a single sentence out and stating that’s what the bible says, will almost invariably lead you to exactly the wrong conclusion.
So – we don’t have to judge Sanford, but we certainly are told to judge his behavior.
oh for crying out loud. This is the typical cry from someone who has only a Westernized (modernized) “experience” of Christianity – anything that feels good and makes you smile. So weak. We have the obligation to judge a person’s actions, that doesn’t equate to judging a person’s soul! When will you lukies get it? I get so tired of this.
Yes do that and you will have a party of one.
Lets see how many of you have coveted your neighbor’s property. You are all out. Gluttons, you too. And pack your bags if you are jealous of anyone or work on Sundays.
Hey Max, are you judging some of the posters? (Christian or not)
Just askin…not judgin..
Tony Montana: In this country, you gotta make the money first. Then when you get the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, then you get the women.
By the way – the reason for the death penalty in ancient days (they used stones) was to protect society. For example, we have pediophiles in this country to the point we fear for our children’s safety constantly. It’s a fact that no such cure for this evil exists. It’s also a fact that many pediophiles were molested as children. It is also a fact that pedophiles generally molest at least 75 children before they are caught. What does this tell us. This tells us by not removing this wickeness from society, we are creating more and more pediophiles all the time. What is so hard to understand about this. When people who were wicked were stoned it was so their wickeness would not prevail on society. This has absolutely nothing to do with judgement! It’s common sense!
Actually, in the Republic of Nevada and in the military, adultery is a felony offense. I do not know what the laws are in other states, republics or commonwealths but in some places, he did commit a crime.
If someone wishes to lead, it should be a position above the common people … implying at least that they should be held to a higher standard than the “common” man. I do not want a judge that is sympathetic to drug-users because they suffer from an addiction themselves, I want a judge who will judge impartially based solely on the law.
If someone in my Church were in a position of authority and abused that position, it may not be my place to judge but it would be my place to be certain that they no longer had a position of authority open for their abuse would it not?
That is who they are-bitter, angry, hateful people-others pain seems to be their only relief from bitterness.
The deaths of Ronald Reagan, Pat Nixon, Charleston Heston all brought derision and laughter from the Left including the trolls on this blog as did Governor Palin’s daughter from the nomination to that crude, vulgar man on CBS Late Night-shameless. Bill Maher seems to be the model for the humor of the Left. And any damn fool who wishes to “reach out” to such is as guilty as they are.
But I come up with some crude humor about BitterMamaBama so to repent I will say the Manual of Arms 10 times this morning.
[shame-pain-bitter remorse]
Point taken, but I have to disagree. Silence is tacit approval. It was the “joke” that was off base here. Publicly dissaproving of reprehensible behaviour is not only acceptable, but necessary.
Then the woman starts reading books and learning how to talk in public.
Then the woman challenges the guy with her new found intellect.
Then the guy dumps the woman because he didn’t really want that kind of girl.
Then the guy gets another woman.
Then…
Exactly!
I’ve felt for decades that the loss of shame has been one of the major reasons for the descent of our society, nation, culture, etc. into the sewer.
In ancient days, cures did not exist for most communicable diseases. This “common sense” logic would lead to many dreadful decisions.
That’s not how I handle approval/disapproval. It depends on the people I’m with. For instance, with kids. It’s best for parents to have a united front in front of the kids (and argue different opinions out of ear shot). Now, if one of the parents is telling their kids to cheat on their spouses…..!!
Then the next thing you know, they’re getting drivers licenses and voting! It’s all downhill after that! Ooh! Did I say that out loud?
Idiot.
He should know better then to use David Letterman’s writers.
I didn’t see Norquist’s jibe as anything to get worked up about. Sanford is an idiot. And idiots get made fun of, it’s their lot in life.
Men faced with the temptation that Sanford was faced with fall into 3 groups:
- The noble, who acknowledge the temptation but who have the conscience and the strength of character to think of their wives and children, and of the consequences to them, and who for their sakes foresake the temptation;
- The less noble, who’d take the shot at a target of opportunity if they could but don’t because the logistics involved in pulling it off are too daunting and/or the perceived risks of getting caught too great; and
- The idiots, who recklessly go where the less noble fear to tread: “Have an affair with a woman in a foreign country, which would require me to “disappear” for days and not hours? I can do that! Vanish for a week and not have anyone wonder where the governor went? I can do that! Write all sorts of incriminating emails and not realize or not care that they can be obtained by the media? I can do that! Be a Republican with presidential aspirations and not think that this is a ticking time-bomb just waiting to blow up in my face? I can do that….”
One can empathize with the man’s family, and at the same time accept that Sanford is a gold-standard moron who is richly deserving to be the butt of publicly-expressed derision, if not for his faithlessness then for his fecklessness.
…known…
Third party.
We’ve needed it for years and we certainly need it now.
Aids, Herpes … there are more but I have never had any experience with any of them because I believe in fidelity but those are two I know about offhand from what I have read.
You are correct though, a look through the Mosaic Law will reveal many laws based on what we may consider to be basic hygiene and avoiding health hazards. Many of the “penalties” are there strictly in order to prevent the spread of any resulting diseases.
Then they tell you who they voted for which just canceled out your vote.
And that’s after you come home from a hard day’s work and dinner’s not even on the table!
Thanks, now you really got me started.
I say beggars can’t be choosers. And as voters, we are begging for politicians who are worth a damn to do their job. I think we can all agree that Rudy Giuliani, for example, was a great politician, and it would be a crying shame if the city of New York was deprived of his service because of what he had going on in his bedroom.
It’s incredible that conservatives have this litany of orthodoxy where not only do you have to be anti-tax, pro-life, pro-death penalty, pro-school choice, pro-war, anti-regulation, anti-gay, anti-welfare, and all the rest — but you also have to be a boy scout! You would have an easier time finding people who drive minivans, smoke parliaments, and wear blue on Tuesdays than you would finding an elected official who meets your “true conservative” test.
And folks ask why I’m an independent? By and large, I find both Republicans and Democrats desperately wanting.
Yes that Judge Not has been used by all sorts of evil doers to excuse their actions. Please note the Governor did NOT use it. He admitted his sin-if he asks for forgiveness he will be forgiven- but that does NOT mean he does not suffer the social and political consequences of his actions. If a bank robber admits his sin and asks forgiveness we are to forgive him-he is still going to jail and probably will not get a job as a bank guard.
But for those who do not have the Holy Spirit is IS a hard teaching–we are asking them to accept things they are not ready to accept- but I believe an awful lot of them are more mocking than bewildered.
Apples and oranges. It is the prevailing opinion of many in the psychriatic field that no cure for such behavior exsists. Regardless, I’m not as concerned so much for pediophile as I am for the health of our children. I don’t think removing these people from society is a “bad decision.”
RSS said a bunch of stuff.
Okay, so they don’t have to be a boy scout, I’ll give you that. But where do you draw a line?
Should letting your boyfriend run a brothel out of your apartment disqualify you? Should not paying your taxes disqualify you? How about taking bribes?
Then she has the audacity to say after you bring that to her attention,
Ok, she’s outta there.
Of course not, that would take all the Democrats.
Seriously, I think that doing something immoral but not illegal and having nothing to do with your job is a no-brainer for something that should not disqualify you.
On June 25th, 2009 at 1:56 pm, GladzKravtz said:
dinner’s not even on the table!
Then she has the audacity to say after you bring that to her attention,
Well what have you done for me lately?
Ok, she’s outta there.
I think you have a point (Can’t believe I’m saying this to RSS) but there should be standards of decency that are not crossed by decent people, especially the leaders.
It’s incredible that you believe that all conservatives fit into each of these poorly worded definitions. Not everything is so polarized as pro or anti. However, I understand that it’s easier for someone to try and place your political opposition into such views so that they can loft generalizations (yes, both sides do this).
For most, it’s less a concern of needing to know everything that happens in the bedroom as much as it is a testament to the individuals ability to remain faithful to his vows and loyal to his spouse.
If a man is willing to lie to his wife and cheat on his promise, how can you trust such a man not to do the same to constituents he does not know?
Yes, there are few saints, but it should not be asking so much for a man to remain faithful to his wife. If nothing else, it might be a statement to the type of person that is attracted to the power of office.
Hey Max, are you judging some of the posters? (Christian or not)
Just askin…not judgin..
Oh c’mon Gladyz…that’s a bit reductio et absurdium ain’t it? i just think that people shouldn’t throw stones unless they are without sin themselves. they can answer that question for themselves.
Big time LOL! Thx, needed the laughs.
What I hear you saying is that character is meaningless to you. Being a good leader/politician is merely academic? Has you ever given any thought as to how the country that had some of the greatest universities, seminaries, scientists, and philosophers could have become what it did?
Power corrupts, and education merely makes corrupt people more sophisticated in their depravity. Leaders must have good character.
Oh, and for the record, I’m an Eagle Scout.
Maybe the voters should raise their standards?
Anti-tax – Taxes would not be necessary at the level they are if the federal government actually worked as the Constitution limits it.
Pro-life – It’s a moral thing. If it has to be explained it would be difficult to understand.
Anti-regulation – Regulation gives us such great options like forcing banks to provide loans for anyone with a pulse and then decry the very same banks when the housing market reacts … regulation brought about some great times for the mob during prohibition and of course, government regulations in many other countries has had similar impacts where people (read: organized crime) have been able to establish a black market economy by circumventing the regulations … also free market in action but that is a different story …
anti-gay? Huh? Why? Where did that come from? I live where a very large portion of the population is gay. The difference here is they do not expect you to understand, worry about it or try to say you have to love them or appreciate them because they are gay. I do not care what they are, there are good and bad people in all walks of life. My friends are my friends first and foremost, no matter what their color, creed or orientation may be.
Anti-welfare – Everybody may need help from time to time but when you have multiple generations choosing welfare as a career choice should be indicative that there is a problem somewhere.
And all the rest? Not sure what that is.
Elected? Thomas Jefferson was elected, Ronald Reagan was elected, there were many others as well.
I was unable to get Maurice Washington to run for national office but I did ask. It was not difficult to find this Nevada State Senator as he was in his office … located in his church.
Couldn’t be more correct.
usa_usa: So, pedophilia is a communicable disease? If so, one way to prevent its spread is to remove the carrier from the environment, i.e., the pedophile
Well, first Sanford is the chief executive of a state and went AWOL, which has something to do with his job.
Second, personal integrity can’t be isolated to one oath, and not another. If character is not important for a public official, you are right. I would rather vehemently dissagree.
Sorry, hit the send button to soon with a lap full of puppy.
Pro Death Penalty – If someone comes into my home to hurt me or my family in any way, financially or physically, they are an instant candidate for the death penalty. My right to life depends on my ability to defend my life and the lives of those in my home and family. Would the fact that Jeffery Dahmer was obviously mentally disturbed lessen his danger to society as a whole? Is it necessary to understand his behavior? Is it necessary to let him roam free in society so that we can “better understand” him? Look at crime rates in Texas during Bush’s administration there. Oddly enough, when the death penalty was liberally enforced (No pun intended) there was a substantial decrease in crime rates.
Pro-school choice – Tests showed that the school vouchers in DC actually worked. Can you give me a viable reason why my children (or anybody else’s) should not receive the best education possible?
Did I miss any?
If you guys want choir boys, boys scouts and straight as arrow politicians, good luck. Let me know when one makes past the primaries.
You don’t get that far in life without bending and breaking rules. Good ones just never get caught with their hand in the cookie jar.
I read the above a couple of times (and not to figure out what that reductio absurdium stuff was) to be sure I understand where you are coming from.
Say what?
I’m a sinner (hopefully most of it in my past). Being aware of my sins has helped me to guide my children in the opposite/different direction. Throwing stones with the right intentions (nerf balls?) just might help someone else.
I believe you are reducing the “throwing stones” analogy to a point where everyone turns their head at any wrong doing. I do not believe that was the point.
It my view, it’s more about loving the sinner but hating the sin. That doesn’t give justification for sins to be ignored.
Dignity and trust are important aspects to a government office, are they not? If a man diminishes his dignity with shameful behavior and breaks his trust with his spouse, it says something about his virtue.
I believe it’s sad when our culture has come to a point where cheating on your spouse has become so commonplace that so many people believe it has nothing to do with the overall character of the person doing it. As if we can all compartmentalize our values to being “family only” here and “politician only” there.
I dont know. That is what Misscheryl (#38) seems to saying as the reason for justifying common sense death penalty in ancient times.
Now there’s the answer in a nutshell. Don’t aspire to decency…lower the bar. And that is why we have so many social ills today. If everybody does it, it’s ok.
If you’re right that cheating on your wife = cheating on your constituents, then there must be some kind of correlation among politicians who have been caught with their pants down. But what common denominator would you find among Giuliani, Sanford, Vitter, Spitzer, McCain, Clinton, JFK, Gary Hart, Ensign, Mark Foley, and Larry Craig? I don’t think you can make a blanket generalization that they are all (or even mostly) corrupt politicians. And then you have guys like Blago, DeLay, and Jefferson who abused their power to no end, but as far as we know were model family men.
usa – your reading comprehension sucks.
Isn’t it more probable that said person doing something immoral but not illegal, be more easily coerced or extorted into doing something illegal trying to protect the secrecy of their immoral behaviour? If you don’t have integrity, how pliable will you be to the wrong constituent?
Are you actually advocating executing children who are molested?
I would love to see some support for this “fact.”
are you kidding me with that question?
Blago was just a victim of good-hair-hating people.
As far as sanford, better we find this out now, than when he’s running for president.
as far as people making jokes..well he’s a public figure, and its to be expected…if he didn’t want his family subjected to it, he should have stayed in private industry.
RSS – next time one of your children are molested, ask the counselor! I’m sure they can bring you up to speed on the facts.
The Governor of South Carolina, the Republican party, and the conservative movement richly deserve whatever derision they get. These are the people who run on “family values” and personal integrity. It reflects the mores of the conservative movement: they’re willing to lie and cheat.
Governor Sanford was willing to turn away Federal funds to burnish his reputation in the conservative movement. Republican Senators are treating Judge Sotomayor in ways they said were despicable just two years ago. These guys are just as dishonest in their public lives as in their private lives.
No need for thanks, the beer will suffice.
Ok Mischeryl. My Bad. I thought you suggested it was communicable beacuse of this line in #38.
Exactly.
BINGO!
That is one of the key points of this topic.
Again, exactly.
Yep.
#1) Many pediophiles were molested as children.
#2) Because we have pediophiles running our streets, they are doing what????
#3) molesting children…which in turn does what
#4) creates more pediophiles!
1. Casting stones? I don’t hear anyone asking for the death penalty.
2. Scripture does not teach that people should turn a blind eye to sin. Christians are called to identify sin for what it is.
3. Seems to me that Sanford had plenty of people in his life who knew what was happening, but were afraid of, dare I say, “judging”.
I didn’t make a blanket generalization or even the immediate correlation that all politicians that cheat on their wives also cheat their constituents. My point is that if they are capable of the former, they damage their credibility to the latter.
There certainly may be good politicians who are poor husbands; however, trust is a commodity for a politician. To assume that their morality on marital fidelity is completely distinct from their political morality also seems foolish.
Do I think they should be removed from office? I think that’s for their constituency to decide.
I also mentioned in a previous post that this could also be an issue of the type of people attracted to public office.
So, lgm, I guess it’s better to just not espouse any morals or values, eh? Then there’s no problem when you don’t measure up? What a completely stupid, freakin’, “progressive” thing to say.
Could you type this with a straight face? If so, you might truly be blinded by your partisanship if you believe there is some moral high ground to be had here for Democratic governors and the Democratic party.
Or do you believe that since Rod Blagojevich was faithful to Patty he was above lying and cheating?
Also, this part is just funny:
You don’t believe that Democrats run on personal integrity?
Let’s play…. jeopardy…/cue music
Dwight D. Eisehhower
Franklin Roosevelt
JFK
Ronald Reagan
Who are: Former Presidents who broke their marriage vows and would therefore not be former Presidents if numerous MM posters had their druthers…
(btw, this is just a short list, there are doubtless many more… um, say, Thomas Jefferson… it’s fairly well established that RR cheated on Jane Wyman with numerous Hollywood starlets…)
This Stanford guy is way different than regular conservatives – the Stanfod guy is into WOMEN!