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Note the odd role-reversal between Michelle Malkin and Wonkette. Malkin thinks the extra-marital affair's awful; Wonkette says "Meh".
Shades of honesty!
1. Michelle Malkin:
Ugh. What a wretched dog. GOP Sen. John Ensign of Nevada cheated on his beautiful wife — the mother of his three children — with a campaign aide who was married to one of his Senate staffers. He rode his high horse as a guardian of marriage and Promise Keepers. And then he only admitted publicly that he broke those marital vows when the husband of his ex-mistress reportedly asked for money. It’s galling that Ensign was even considering a 2012 presidential bid given the hell he put his family through.
.... Rule of the Beltway: Never trust a man in politics whose hair is prettier than his wife’s.
2. Bonnie Erbe
This incident will also, let us hope, rob him of the credibility to campaign as a defender of marriage (against gay marriage.).... The list of hypocritical politicians throughout American history is long, storied and bipartisan. The list of hypocrites who campaign against gay marriage is much shorter, but growing rapidly enough to ponder the question, who is doing the institution of marriage more harm: gays and lesbians who want in, or married heterosexual politicians who ignore their marital vows.
3. John Weaver [from The Fix]:
"This is yet another reminder as to why the American people have chosen new management for the foreseeable future."
4. Kevin Madden (also from the Fix]:
"[This] is a Nevada story, a personal dilemma and an issue between John Ensign and his constituents."
5. Mark Silva:
It will be left to the court of public opinion to decide what impact his confession will have.... But the track record suggests that this is not a catapult to higher office.
6. Rachel Maddow suggests an Ensign/Vitter ticket [Hat tip: Joe.My.God]
7. Josh Marshall takes this bit from a 1990 Washington Post article, detailing precautions some Christians take against adultery:
Rep. Steve Largent (R-Okla.), a Christian conservative, insists a male staff member is present whenever he meets with a woman, his spokesman said. John Ensign, who is running for senate in Nevada will not be alone in a car with a woman
8. American Pundit:
What a disappointment. Not only was it a massive moral failing, but he’s given the media an excuse to paint Republicans as unprincipled sleeze for the next few news cycles.... Ensign is a Republican, so there’s no “Guess that Party” in this news. The Associated Press manages to mention his affiliation by the second word.
9. Ace of Spades HQ:
I do like that he admitted it the moment the blackmailer attempted to pressure him. That at least demolishes the affair as source of coercion or corruption.
10. Firedoglake
Whatever the nitpicky little details of the timing or how long Republican donors were paying Ensign's mistress, I think it's obvious that this never would have happened if the gays hadn't loosened the holy bonds of marriage by, uh, getting married. Not even a Promise Keeper could keep it together with all that redefinition going on around him.
11. Wonkette:
.... when he had the affair, he was separated from his wife. That’s just a sledgehammer to the comedic possibilities here. Does that even count as “cheating?” Maybe some of you married fools can explain. The only good part of this scandal is that this lady was married to another campaign staffer of his. But without PIX… well maybe we will never write about this scandal again.
12. Nate Silver:
Ensign's is a valuable seat at that: only one state more Democratic than Nevada currently has a Republican senator. That's Maine, which has two of them. But whereas Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe are moderates, Ensign is a staunch conservative who chairs the Senate Republican Policy Committee.
Red State hasn't front-page posted about it yet; The Corner offered a one-sentence link.
Updated as they come in... so far, as might be expected, Left blogs have been more chatty about it.
