I continue not to care much about Anthony Weiner’s travails, but I thought this was interesting:
Caught in a maelstrom of his own making, Representative Anthony D. Weiner saw his support on Capitol Hill crumble after he admitted having inappropriate online exchanges with women. A brash and talented New York politician with many admirers on the left, but few close allies, he suddenly finds himself alone on a hostile stage.
No sooner had Mr. Weiner delivered a startlingly abject admission and apology — carried live on television Monday from a circuslike news conference in Manhattan — than top Democrats on Capitol Hill began distancing themselves from him and his behavior….. Nancy Pelosi of California…. Steve Israel of Nassau County…. Others said it would be impossible to support Mr. Weiner given the outrageous things he had admitted.
….Then there was the fact that his confession had occurred, in the words of one top Democratic Congressional official, a week too late. “It’s hard to trust in an individual who already lied,” said the official, who like others interviewed insisted on anonymity because of the sensitivities surrounding the matter.
Is this the way Republicans normally act? It seems like they’re usually much quieter about this stuff, making a few pro forma comments about bad behavior and the need to pray and reflect, but basically sticking by their fellow sinners regardless of what they’ve done. Is that right? Or am I just imagining it? Republicans have obviously abandoned colleagues before, but it seems like it takes longer and it’s the exception rather than the rule. Look how long John Ensign lasted.
