I "vote" for voters being gullible

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Is political redemption always possible?
By Mary Zahran, June 19, 2013

"There are no second acts in American lives." - F. Scott Fitzgerald

Depending on your point of view, F. Scott Fitzgerald greatly underestimated either the belief that Americans have in personal redemption or their gullibility as voters: There are indeed second acts in American lives, as Mark Sanford's election to Congress proves only too well.

Sanford, the former governor of South Carolina, was the central figure four years ago in a sex scandal that was strange even by modern political standards. Telling his staff that he would be hiking on the Appalachian Trail for several days, he traveled instead to Argentina to visit his "soul mate," a woman whom he had befriended several years earlier. His subsequent failure to communicate with his staff raised questions regarding his whereabouts, and some even wondered who exactly was running the state during his mysterious absence.

Returning to South Carolina, Sanford held a rambling press conference in which he admitted to an extramarital affair and acknowledged that he had "let down a lot of people." While he remained in office and completed his second term in 2012, his wife (who apparently was just his spouse and the mother of his four sons, but not his "soul mate") divorced him.

Performing on the campaign trail as only a reformed sinner can, Sanford was voted back into office last month by the very people he had "let down" just a short time before. Let us hope that neither the siren song of yet another "soul mate" nor the rustic allure of the Appalachian Trail calls him away from his duties in Washington.

Sanford is not the only high-profile public official to return to politics after an embarrassing scandal.

Second chances

Former Congressman Anthony Weiner has announced his candidacy for the mayoral race in New York City. It wasn't an actual affair that caused trouble for Weiner; it was a hi-tech blunder. In 2011, while serving in the House of Representatives, he was caught sending sexually explicit texts and photos of himself to several women. Initially denying these allegations and suggesting instead that someone had hacked into his accounts to undermine his political career, he eventually admitted his guilt and resigned from office in June of 2011.

While Weiner forfeited his seat in Congress, his wife - pregnant at the time the scandal broke - stood by him and they remain married. Whether or not the voters will be as supportive as his wife remains to be seen. At an Israel Day Parade, he was booed by some onlookers as he marched, but many others who were interviewed expressed their desire to give him a second chance. We will have to wait until November to find out how many voters share that sentiment.

Edwards comeback?

Even John Edwards has resurfaced. In May of 2012, he went on trial charged with six counts of campaign finance fraud stemming from his attempt to hide his pregnant mistress during his 2008 presidential bid. He was acquitted of one count, and the judge declared a mistrial when jurors could not agree on a verdict for the remaining five. Speaking on the courthouse steps after his acquittal, Edwards, effusively humble and contrite, hinted at a possible return to public service in the future.

Earlier this month, CNN reported that Edwards plans to open a new law firm in Raleigh. More recently, he delivered a keynote address titled "Historic Trials of the Century" to a group of lawyers at a private business retreat in Orlando. While these two actions do not signal his return to politics, they do suggest that he would like to maintain a public profile.

Edwards is almost certainly watching Sanford and Weiner closely as they attempt to stage comebacks after embarrassing scandals. So far, only Sanford has won an election, and only time will tell if he deserves the confidence that voters have shown by sending him to Congress. Weiner will have to wait until November to find out if voters have renewed their faith in him.

So the questions remain: Are there second acts in American lives? Is political redemption always possible? The answers depend on the politician, the scandal, and the constituents. Sen. Edward Kennedy survived Chappaquiddick in 1969, and that scandal involved a young woman's death. Sen. Gary Hart's presidential hopes were destroyed in 1987 by a single photograph taken aboard a yacht named "Monkey Business" in which a young woman named Donna Rice sat on Hart's lap.

There is one clear advantage to having a scandal-plagued candidate on the ballot: You know what this person is capable of doing in the future based on past behavior. So if you don't mind having a public official who abandons his duties as governor while chasing a woman, who sends pictures of himself dressed only in his underwear to random females, or who hides his pregnant mistress while he campaigns for the presidency, then you can cast your vote with confidence.

And then you can sit back and wait for the second act to unfold.
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