Political "Affairs"

After Nevada Senator John Ensign (R) admitted to having an affair with a staffer, Rasmussen Reports reported that 37% of Americans believe that most members of Congress have extramarital affairs.

Last week, after Governor Mark Sanford's (R-SC) admission of an extramarital affair, a Rasmussen Reports survey found that only 24% of Americans feel that most members of Congress DO NOT have affairs. Thirty-eight percent (38%) said that they were not sure.

When asked whether a politician who has an affair should resign or be forced out of office, the results were as follows:

• 47% of Republicans said yes
• 39% of Democrats said yes, and only
• 35% of unaffiliated's said yes.
  

To some degree this may illustrate how commonplace adultery has become in our society, or how little we expect of our elected officials.

For the Republicans, these recent stories have brought about yet another difficulty. The Republican party has for some time labeled itself as the party of traditional and family values. The Party has specifically made an issue of this as it has fought for traditional marriage and against same-sex marriage.

These revelations that significant Party players are, by traditional standards, immoral, place the Republican Party in a position to be mocked and accused of being hypocritical.

One recent example would be the political cartoon drawn by Daryl Cagle for MSNBC.com in which he depicts a casually dressed donkey wearing a t-shirt which reads "I'm with Holier-than-thou Hypocrite Christian Adulterer" on an arrow which points to an elephant in a business suite with his pants down.

It is not coincidental that the mocking of the Republican Party is accompanied in this case by mocking the Christian religion as well.

To read the Rasmussen Reports article, click here.
To see the Daryl Cagle political cartoon, click here, and proceed to cartoon #10.

The Wisom of Solomon, the Patience of Job: The Governor Sanford Affair

In a tearful press conference today, South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford admitted that his disappearance over the weekend was not because he was hiking the Appalachian Trail, as first reported by his staff, but because he was in Argentina presumably ending an extra-marital affair.

Sanford had been viewed as a rising star in the Republican party, and held the position of chairman of the Republican Governors Association. He has now resigned from that position, and there are some calling for him to step down from the governorship.

Additionally, many are noting the irony of the Republican party touting itself as the party of "Family Values."

In the midst of this mire, Mrs. Sanford issued what TwoMinuteBriefing reviewers feel is an absolutely incredibly coherent, intelligent, and frankly Christian statement. The statement reads in part:

Psalm 127 states that sons are a gift from the Lord and children a reward from Him. I will continue to pour my energy into raising our sons to be honorable young men. I remain willing to forgive Mark completely for his indiscretions and to welcome him back, in time, if he continues to work toward reconciliation with a true spirit of humility and repentance.

This is a very painful time for us and I would humbly request now that members of the media respect the privacy of my boys and me as we struggle together to continue on with our lives and as I seek the wisdom of Solomon, the strength and patience of Job and the grace of God in helping to heal my family.

To read the complete statement, click here.
To read the MSNBC story, click here.

Empowering Girls - Brooke Shields Wishes She had Lost Her Virginity Earlier

In an interview posted on Health.com, Health Magazine's website, Brooke Shields stated that her biggest health regret was not having had sex earlier.

Shields states that as a consequence of not having lost her virginity earlier than age 22, she carried around a protective 20 extra pounds in college, and was not as in touch with herself as she might have been.

Brooke Shields appears on the cover of the June 2009 issue of Health magazine. The online article is entitled, "Brooke Shields Gives Back: Her Mission to Empower Girls and More".

To access the Health.com article, click here. The remarks referenced above appear on page two of the article.

Bristol Palin calls teen motherhood 'hard work'

Bristol Palin appeared on the NBC's Today show on Wednesday, May 6th. During her interview, she stated that whereas she previously was advocating safe sex, she is not advocating abstinence.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/30597615/

Levi Johnston, the father of Bristol's baby appeared on CBS's The Early Show also on Wednesday and said that abstinence-only for teens was not realistic. He is quoted as saying, " ... It's a great idea and a great message she's trying to send out to the world and all the young kids. It's not easy raising a baby. But I do think there's more things to it than just not having sex."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/05/06/earlyshow/leisure/celebspot/main4995425.shtml

ABC news headlined a story "NYC Teens Chide Palin's Abstinence Call - Students Say Bristol Palin is a 'hypocrite,' a 'Celebrity' and 'Hasn't Been in Our Shoes'.

Bristol had appeared before approximately 150 teens in a town meeting forum at The Times Center.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/ReproductiveHealth/story?id=7516975&page=1