Author: Michael Darling
It’s very rare to find a politician who seems to be a legitimate, good guy and not just another corrupt hypocrite looking for power. When I first heard about former New York governor Eliot Spitzer, I considered him to be one of the noble few.
In his previous position as New York’s Attorney General, Spitzer was well known for attacking Wall Street crooks and other large-scale targets like prostitution rings. He became a small hero of mine when he launched an attack on major record labels that were caught bribing radio stations and DJs to play their songs. As a music lover, I all but beatified Spitzer for putting an end to the prioritization of these labels’ terrible songs while quality artists were getting the shaft.
When Spitzer was elected as the Empire State’s Governor I felt a bit of pride. Yes, even though I am a Californian, I couldn’t help but feel good for my man Eliot. I felt a bit of envy that New York now had a governor who would fight corruption and actually stay true to that classic campaign cliché-“I will clean up [insert state capital name here].” Sure, having a one-time action hero in Sacramento is nice, but Spitzer appeared to be the fabled white knight that could defeat the forces of evil and make the world a better place. Spitzer looked like the perfect politician-one who would not only stay true to his word, but one who was also energetic and willing to appear as a judge when Stephen Colbert had a guitar battle with the Decemberists. Spitzer was the dream politico.
But, as we all discovered last week, there’s a reason why that dream politician is so rare. There’s a saying I pull out at applicable times-“He who is without vice is without virtue.” It’s a nice little warning that those who appear to be the most saint-like usually have a skeleton or two in their closet. In Spitzer’s case, it was a few prostitutes.
When the news broke on Mar. 10, I hoped that it was a mistake. It seemed out of character for him. He was supposed to break up prostitution rings, not get involved in them. But then came the now-traditional apology masked as a press conference, and it became clear to me that this knight’s armor was cracking from self-inflicted wounds. Of course, the presence of his shamed, silent wife was the final nail in Spitzer’s coffin. I felt betrayed that Spitzer would do this to his constituents and his out-of-state fans, not to mention his wife. The latest political hope had been revealed as just another fraud.
I had to wonder how something like this could happen. Time and time again, prominent politicians are caught doing the very things they speak out against. Homophobic Idaho Senator Larry Craig was caught soliciting sex in a men’s bathroom. Representative Mark Foley was the head of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children until he was caught hitting on underage congressional pages and sending them sexually charged instant messages. Even former Colorado Senator Gary Hart was discovered having an affair after he said he had nothing to hide and challenged the press to follow him around during his presidential campaign. We, as a people, need to keep our elected officials in check so they can no longer get away with these hypocritical actions.
So farewell, Eliot Spitzer. Now your name can be added to the list of disgraced politicians who thought they could get away with the very actions they publicly decry. Meanwhile, the American people will grow more cynical of political figures as the search for that great white knight starts to seem less worthwhile.
Michael Darling is a sophomore History major. He can be reached at mdarling@oxy.edu.
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