Integrity of Politicians: Private Life of Political Candidates and Officers

The recent media frenzy surrounding the resignation of now former New York Governor, Elliot Spitzer, highlighted the growing disappointment the general public seems to have of the private conduct of its public officials. The new governor of New York, David Paterson, has admitted to having an open marriage. Many see this as an issue claiming this shows a lack of integrity. If the politician lacks integrity, how can he be trusted to properly fulfill his obligations as a public servant?

The answer is simple. It comes down to the legality and illegality of the actions the politician is engaged in. In the case of Elliot Spitzer, he was engaged in illegal conduct. Using a prostitution service in the manner he did is considered a Federal offense. New evidence reveals he may have used campaign funds to finance his sexual (mis)adventures.

Governor Paterson is engaged in legal conduct. An affair is not a crime. Bill Clinton’s affair itself was not a crime, but his perjury concerning testimony related to the affair was. Did this affair have an affect on Clinton’s policy pursuits as president? Probably not.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles admitted to having an affair but was not engaged in illegal conduct. His problem is that he ran as a family values candidate. Most of the public would not call an affair a family value. Does this reflect on his integrity as a person? Of course it does. Does this reflect on his integrity to fulfill his obligations as mayor? Perhaps, but not likely.

The public and media should stop clamoring for perfectly moral candidates. They do not exist. Most people have moral lapses and dilemmas that they consider private. Being in public office does not make those same problems more grave, they just get exposed more often. That is the nature of the media in the United States which is driven by ratings rather than quality of the news being reported and its usefulness to the public.

To summarize, illegal activity is wrong and should be a factor in deciding the integrity of a politician as to his capacity to perform his public duties; legal activity that is just morally wrong should not!