Governors Involved In Extramarital Affairs

The old saying that politics makes for strange bedfellows couldn’t be more applicable than to the office of Governor. The last two decades has shown us that much. While Rod Blagojevich was embroiled in his own scandal, involving corruption and the selling of President Obama’s vacated senate seat in a low reserve auction on eBay, he probably would have fared better to have just cheated on his wife. He’d probably still be governor that way.

And with Sarah Palin resigning as Alaska’s Governor, one dare not speculate as to why she did it for fear of prosecution. Though, I suspect she is positioning herself to become the self proclaimed “Maverick of Pop” in the wake of Michael Jackson’s passing.

But back to the point here, adultery. It seems as if the act of extramarital affairs is no longer seen as a symptom of being a Governor but more likely a requirement. Here’s a brief list of some famous scandals from the last 20 years punctuated by the progenitor of the act.

Mark Sanford – Last Tango in Appalachia
It’s ok, though, his wife knew about it. Yet, playing the board game of Scotland Yard with Sanford filling in for Mr. X. seems to be a little out of the realm of being fine with the rest of the state, considering he slipped security detail, had a cover story about hiking the Appalachian Trail, and then high tailed it out of the country over Father’s Day weekend. But, he’s still in charge.

Elliot Spitzer – Now serving, client number 9
His downfall was as ironic as his name considering his scandalous affair with a high priced escort named…oh who cares to remember. Elected on a platform of fighting solicitation and corruption, ole Spitzer got caught in a sting operation to take down a prostitution ring involving famous clients.

James McGreevey – The Gay One
OK, even I admit that was out of line and crass. And by making that statement I am not asking for clemency from those who would find that tag reprehensible. However, from a stance of being satirical, his position in the media spotlight was geared more towards his being gay than the fact that he had an extramarital affair. In political pop cultural, the fact that he admitted to being gay trumps cheating on his spouse and family, and apparently appointing someone to the position of homeland security adviser, who lacks qualifications, experience, and U.S. citizenship.

Bill Clinton – Definitively Defining Tail Tagging while Flaunting Fallacies during Congressional Censuring
Clinton may go down in history in a few different ways. There’s Somalia, Kosovo, Whitewater, among others, but none will be so remembered as his being impeached, not for having an affair while being Governor of Arkansas or even President of the United States, but for lying about it in a deposition. Travelgate and Whitewater were window dressing to the whole thing. There was thought to be an abuse of power involving an intern, there was a cigar, a stained dress, and recorded conversations. There was an actual request for clarification on the definition of the word “is.” Guess who had the last laugh through all this?

Earl Long – The Last of the Red Hot Poppas
That was Uncle Earl’s term, not mine. Whether you choose to believe the outlandish behavior that has been attributed to Governor Earl Long, you have to admit, he had his fair share of fun. The subject of the movie Blaze puts Earl Long into a decadent light, cavorting with a stripper named Blaze Starr. Yet, he managed to fill the post of Louisiana Governor three times before dying of a fatal heart attack. Go with a smile, I guess.


Isn't it amazing to live in a country where elected officials are asked to define marriage when they obviously don't understand the definition themselves.