Society Sexual
Peccadilloes of US Politics
by Elayne Clift
Call it "an
affair to remember", in English, "une liaison dangereuse", if
you're French, or as the Dutch say, "pinching the cat in the dark".
Whatever the nomenclature, adulterous affairs are nothing new in the
western culture. But never have they been more prominent or public among
American politicians than in recent years, and none has created more of
a stir than that of Eliot Spitzer, the now former Governor of New York
(NY), whose involvement with a high-priced prostitution ring
reverberated around the world.
Spitzer was NY State Attorney General before becoming Governor. He made
his name fighting corporate corruption, and busting prostitution rings.
That's why the revelation that for years he had allegedly been
transferring substantial sums of money from his personal accounts in
order to pay for very expensive call-girls came as a shock to those with
high hopes for his political future as well as the general public.
Spitzer's downfall was swift and sad, most especially for his
unsuspecting wife and three teenage daughters. But it was not
unprecedented.
American men in high places have been shocking their constituents and
loyal supporters for years. It is well known that Franklin Delano
Roosevelt had a much-loved mistress, and that John F. Kennedy had
extra-marital affairs. In fact, hardly an American president has escaped
rumors of extracurricular activity while in the White House. And, of
course, Bill Clinton was famous for "not [having] sex with that woman"
during the Monica Lewinsky scandal. This year's presidential aspirants
have their own share of sexual history.
The former governor of New York, Rudy Guiliani, married the woman with
whom he had a much-publicized affair and John McCain, the Republican
nominee, courted his wife Cindy, while still married to his first wife.
Among others, presidential candidate Gary Hart met his comeuppance in
the 1970s when he was "outed" for his affair, and for the overt
self-sabotage inherent in its discovery. (Both Spitzer and Clinton also
exhibited a penchant for getting caught.) Then there are the lesser
politicians like Kwame Kilpatrick, Mayor of Detroit, who was caught in a
sex scandal recently, or Mike Allen, a former Ohio prosecutor who
dropped his plans to run for re-election when his adulterous affair was
revealed. One of the biggest shockers recently occurred when Senator
Larry Craig (R-Idaho) was arrested for soliciting gay sex in an airport
men's room. And then there was the recent case of the Governor of New
Jersey, Jim McGreevey, who revealed his homosexuality with his (now ex)
wife Dina at his side. Later allegations included the fact that the
governor and his wife had earlier engaged in a 'menage a trois'.
Such behavior isn't exclusive to Americans. Recently, Russian tabloid 'Moskovsky
Korrespondent' published a story claiming that President Vladimir Putin
had left his wife for 24-year-old former Olympic gymnast Alina Kabayeva.
However, Putin categorically denied claims made by the tabloid that he
was planning to marry former rhythmic gymnast who is currently the State
Duma Deputy. Now, the owner of the tabloid - Artyom Artyomov of National
Media Company - has suspended its publications, while its
editor-in-chief, Grigory Nekhoroshev, has resigned in the wake of the
'unsubstantiated' report.
Then, there is the incidence of Tehran's chief of police, who resigned
after being caught in 'delicto flagrante' in a local brothel. In
Germany, a prominent labor leader was jailed for accepting millions in
bonuses, which he allegedly spent on prostitutes. On a less tawdry note,
France has a rich history of politician's peccadilloes. Francois
Mitterand was well known to have two families simultaneously and current
President Nicolas Sarkozy left his open marriage to marry his present
wife, Carla, a supermodel and songstress.
But, perhaps because they don't share the European heritage of royal
families in which loveless political marriages were augmented by
affairs, Americans obsess over adultery. With their Puritan roots and
secret passion for scandal, they endlessly dissect the sordid stories
that swirl around politicians. As one social commentator put it in a
recent editorial quoted by 'The New Yorker Magazine', "Eliot Spitzer...
was hounded into resignation by a Puritanism and mean-spiritedness that
are quintessentially American."
Others might argue that the American obsession with sex scandals
emanates from a more compassionate perspective. Since the Spitzer story
broke, the press has printed copious articles and editorials in support
of long-suffering wives, and has sought to understand the psychology
behind a syndrome that seems to be pervasive among powerful men in high
political places.
Here is columnist Katha Pollitt writing in 'The Nation': "Just once I'd
like to see a male politician caught in a sex scandal stand up there at
the press conference all by himself. ...saying the words, 'I could never
live with myself if I let [my wife] humiliate [her]self in public to
help my career.'" Or as Eugene Robinson, a writer in 'The Washington
Post' put it, "You look at [Mrs. Spitzer's] lifeless eyes and her
expressionless mouth and you think: Look what he's done to that poor
woman."
However, the essential question in everyone's mind is why do so many
highly successful men, and in particular politicians, commit adultery?
Is it male prerogative, political power, or a sense of entitlement and
immunity? Is there a syndrome that makes men at the pinnacle take risks,
betray their families and disappoint their followers? Professionals and
pundits suggest various answers.
Michael Gigante, a clinical psychologist in Brattleboro, Vermont, posits
that men like Spitzer et al are "experimenting with and testing
themselves in relation to the great power they are vested with." Their
behavior, he says, "is adolescent-like. Normally, as we go through
adolescence, struggling with and coming into relationship with our
power, we also develop a false sense of invulnerability, until we get
hurt enough. So in a way, these men are not engaging in risk-taking
behavior because they see themselves as invulnerable, even though they
may know at some level that this isn't true." Gigante adds that "sex is
an outlet and a symbol of power, what Henry Kissinger once called 'the
ultimate aphrodisiac.'"
The male psyche, he concludes, is conditioned to
struggle with power.
"Ultimately the mature male comes to understand
that power is an internal experience - power to be in charge of one's
personal experience rather than power to be in control of
external forces."
Whatever the cause of adultery in high places, Americans have typically
created an industry around it. Sometimes called "the marriage-industrial
complex," couples therapists, support groups, seminars and healing
weekends are thriving in the U.S. Many of these groups are led by
so-called "reformed cheaters" in partnership with their spouses. The
website 'Surviving Infideliy.com' caters to couples striving for healing
and continuity, largely through truth-telling. As one critic put it
recently in 'The New York Times', "We Americans are particularly
preoccupied with honesty. We're the only country that peddles the idea
that 'it's not the sex, it's the lying.' America is also the only place
that has a one-strike rule on fidelity: if someone cheats, the marriage
is kaput."
One thing seems clear: In a country like the U.S. where nearly half of
marriages end in divorce, there can't be many surprises left as to the
cause of marital discord, at least among political families. There,
adultery and other forms of sexual acting out are rife. In the current
climate, no one would dare call that a lie.
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