Just Another Victim
Posted on July 22, 2009 at 12:52 am
So it looks as though, once again, Mary Mancini’s law of politics has been proved correct. Those who moralize most strenuously about their moral code are the ones most often found violating it.
State Sen. Paul Stanley was the sponsor of one of the more ambitious pieces of socially conservative legislation this session. Senate Bill 78’s stated aim was to keep cohabiting, unmarried couples from adopting children.
Of course, the true aim was to write into law a ban on homosexual adoption. Because, while I’m sure there are exceptions, most unmarried couples looking to set down roots and raise adopted children are doing so because, by law, they cannot be married.
The Attorney General ultimately opined that the bill would likely not meet constitutional muster and thus didn’t ultimately go anywhere.
But Paul Stanley didn’t just attach his name to the bill. He wasn’t the Senate sponsor as a favor to a colleague in the state House or anything like that. No, he was the bill’s driving force and champion.
Sen. Paul Stanley was the face of the fight against gay adoption. His reasons for being against gay adoption were cliche. The nuclear two parent family was the ideal.
“Our responsibility is to put these children in the best homes in the ideal environment. It’s not always the perfect environment. The ideal environment is a married couple that are able to bring them up in a great home life. And, if they’re not married, a lot of times there’s just not the commitment to one another. Now, there’s exceptions to that as there is a lot of things, but over the course a lot of relationships, that’s definitely the case,” argued Stanley.
Now, instead of using cliches in his arguments, now he is one.
Today, we learned that Stanley was the victim of an extortion attempt by the boyfriend of a women, a legislative intern, who is alleged to have had a sexual relationship with the Senator. The relationship has not been proven, of course, and the Senator has not confessed — but he hasn’t denied a relationship either.
Instead he has hid behind the TBI investigation to avoid saying anything one way or another.
“Unfortunately, I am the victim and a witness to a crime in an ongoing investigation. At this time, I have been advised by authorities and the District Attorney’s office not to comment. There is already misinformation being inferred regarding this matter which I look forward to clearing up at the appropriate time,” Stanley said in a statement.
Interesting phrasing. Of course, we don’t know what happened or didn’t happen exactly. All we know that instead of telling the blackmailer that his bluff was called and to do his worst, he called the TBI.
Instead of proclaiming his innocence and his martial fidelity on camera to get in front of the story, he hid behind a written statement. While the words in his statement say innocent, his actions say guilty.
If Stanley did transgress in any way with this woman, if he put himself in the position to be blackmailed, he should not be sending out statements calling himself a victim.
He should not be simply resigning his committee chairmanship.
He should be resigning from his seat in the state Senate.
Stanley should be apologizing to his wife, obviously, but to his party also for becoming yet another statistic, another star on the the conservative walk of shame.
The truth is will come out eventually. When, it does, the actions and words of Paul Stanley and the Republican Party today and tomorrow will be scrutinized.
Republicans, rightly or wrongly, by pursuing a certain agenda have made themselves targets. They signed up for this. They set themselves to a higher standard.
Sometimes you have to pay a price for the life you choose. Sen. Paul Stanley chose to stand for office. He chose to be a social conservative and a vocal one. He also (allegedly) elected to have an affair with a very young subordinate. Now it is time to pay the price.
The longer Stanley holds out hope that there is a way out of this, the worse it will get — for him and his party. Stanley needs to step down now.
Stanley’s politcial career can’t be salvaged, but some of his honor can. Day job or not, wife or not, if he did in fact have a relationship with this girl, he needs to step aside. Every man must have a code and even though Stanley has appeared to have violated his quite severely in the past, it is time for him to live up to it now.
Comments
43 Responses to “Just Another Victim”
Bravo. he’s gotta go, even if it means we may be stuck with Kelsey in the Senate.
Not that Kelsey won’t face primary opposition, mind you; he will.
No, sorry. I don’t like the guy, hate his proposed bill….but he hasn’t broken a single law. If he was in fact blackmailed, he is in fact a victim.
There is no reason for him to step down. This madness has got to stop.
Oh, by all means. Keep him in so he can be a walking PR disaster for the TNGOP.
Mack is right. I simply fail to see how proposing legislation to ban gay adoption mandates a higher standard of marital fidelity. Hate the man’s ideology, mock his moral failings; both are fair game. Calling for his resignation over a manner not germane to the public trust is just too over the top, too “gotcha politics” for my taste.
FWIW, Stanley has always been a POS.
He should apologize not only to his wife and his party, but also to the Tennesseans he hurt by pursuing his vicious agenda against families. Gay couples who cannot marry have the same rights to love and family as everyone else. Children have the right to loving homes, even if it’s the home of their grandmother and her sister, rather than a male/female married couple.
As to this, “They set themselves to a higher standard.” I respectfully call bullshit. The GOP politicians who continue to be exposed for the adulterous, lying sacs they are most certainly did NOT hold themselves to a “higher” standard than any of the millions of non-conservatives in this country who happen to believe in the sanctity of marriage (for ALL couples!) and the importance of fidelity. Instead, they claimed to be the ONLY embodiment of those values, and it is for that reason their hypocrisy is so galling. They said their marriages and relationships, and their sexuality, and their belief system, was MORE holy, MORE loving, MORE Godly than anyone else’s. That’s not a “higher standard.” That’s heresy.
He’s a politician after all. Ive come to expect this from all of them on both sides of the aisle. But look that doesnt take away from the fact that most people in this state even democrats outside of Davidson and Shelby counties agree with what he says on social issues. Huge majorities agree that gay marriage should be banned,most believe abortion should be banned,most believe gay couples shouldnt be allowed to adopt and so forth and so on….
Dan, that’s one of the reasons we have laws in the first place: to protect the rights of the minority from the tyranny of the majority.
Boy, whether they are in the majority or the minority, the GOP just can’t function unless they are a “victim”.
Whether it’s those “liberal college professors”, the “liberal media”, “feminazis”, “illegals”, “union agitators”, blacks and gay people demanding “special rights”, or overall political correctness, the Republicans have nothing to sell if they aren’t being oppressed by someone.
So yeah, say Paul Stanley is a victim, Mack. Just like all those poor millionaire CEO’s who are being brought into line by our “socialist” President. Victims, all of them, as they laugh all the way to the bank with your 401k fund. And Sarah Palin, who cut and ran from the people of her state - victim. Just like all the immoral bastards in your party (Sanford, Ensign, Vitter, Craig, and the rest) who claim to be for family values and that they’re going to “protect marriage” and then promptly shit all over their own marriages. All of them VICTIMS.
What I understand is that people have failings and make mistakes. What I don’t understand is how conservatives sit in judgement over peoples’ lives and then complain of a conspiracy or “political motivation” when they get caught, literally, with their pants down.
No wait - I do understand it now. It’s called mental illness. If there is a hell, Mack and the rest of you right-wing fascists are all going to burn in it for your hypocrisy, your immorality, your greed, and your lies.
Doesn’t matter a whit; he’s a Republican and will get re-elected anyway.
What is missed by the typical response to “personal” scandal is the practical reasons it matters. Affairs should be treated with the same seriousness as untreated addiction, gambling debts, or any desperately kept secret. When one chooses to be a trustee of the public’s voice and purse, one’s personal demons are a public liability.
This is not some “high moral standard” argument. If Stanley and company are sleazy and unashamed of it, we can rely on voters to find the limits of acceptable behavior. But when a public official is in a position to be blackmailed their integrity is compromised. What if the blackmail’s demand was a vote or a contract? Stanley is no victim; he’s just too weak and corrupted to faithfully serve his constituents.
Sen. Stanley specifically included heterosexual unmarried, sexually cohabiting couples in his legislation. I wager there are several such exceptions in the state of Tennessee.
Definitely the worst writing/thinking I’ve seen from you Kleinheider. John Edwards preached the “two Americas” sermon - the affluent elite and those who struggle in the middle class and below. He was a former trial attorney who lived in a 15,000 square-foot home and lived the life of a jet-setter, complete with his squeeze on the side. In short he was a complete phony. That takes nothing away in the least as far as what he preferred in terms of policy. I thought most of what he pushed was nonsense but it had nothing to do with how he lived.
“… If there is a hell, Mack and the rest of you right-wing fascists…”
HAHAHAHAHA!
Yeah, Slarti, that was my reaction as well. Obviously he’s never read Mack before…
I just read it again. It is worse the second time through, tabloidesque in tone. Is that what you’re shooting for?
People stumble all the time, good people, liberal and conservative people. Beyond infidelity there is alcoholism, pornography, and gambling problems. There are things nobody sees like neglecting your family, secretly wishing harm to those who oppose you.
If a guy is on-the-take fine, makes sense to connect it with policy. Otherwise it is just a cheap shot, delivered hard and low.
Steve and Slarti, its funny to see what happens when you don’t automatically call for someone’s head even though you are members of different parties. No sweat, though.
Martin, I have to agree, and I like ACK and admire his efforts here. But I am troubled by the tone here whenever someone displays a human failing…and I wish I could find another word besides failing, since it isn’t always the case.
I thought the McNair stuff got over the top, and the righteous indignation over Michael Jackson took me aback….
If I want sensationalism, I’ll read Drudge.
I’m not neccessarily a fan of Paul Stanley (Gene Simmons is much more talented), but I hate when logic is misused.
In order to apply the charge of hypocrisy, one has to be doing exactly the thing for which he criticizes others. Think Ted Haggard.
Now, certainly someone is going to dig up a quote where Stanley criticized someone for philandering, and then the accusation of hypocrisy will be true. Until then, however, we are dealing with irony, not hypocrisy.
The preceding is not meant to be any indication of my opinion on Stanley’s office and whether he should keep it. It’s not that I don’t have an opinion, it’s that I don’t have all the facts.
Slarti, a precious few people have all the facts. Thats a big part of my position as well.
Just a few thoughts. Though I may be personally disgusted by such situations, alleged in this case, my position continues to be that overall I don’t care what the lawmakers do in their personal lives as long as it isn’t illegal or involving intoxicating substances to the point their judgment and ability to responsibly fulfill their public obligations are impaired.
I have relatives in Germantown, Cordova, and Memphis proper. They are originally from Middle Tennessee. Just based on what I know of them and the circles they move in, I doubt this situation, if what it appears to be, will go over well with any of those voters. But they could well be canceled out by others.
As an immigration-control activist, I appreciate the support Paul Stanley has given to some immigration-control/demagnetization legislation.
The legislative intern program needs some kind of overhaul, but I’m unsure what it should be.
Stanley had everything going for him…even that Baptist preacher look so many Southern politicians need don to look the part of the morally outraged. But the more they look like a Baptist preacher, the more they are likely to engage in the unspeakable. This time, the use of personal power to subjugate a young innocent. What a low life human piece of filth.
Unspeakable? Did he torture her? Good God, it was consensual sex. Innocent? At 22? Please.
Now, certainly someone is going to dig up a quote where Stanley criticized someone for philandering, and then the accusation of hypocrisy will be true. Until then, however, we are dealing with irony, not hypocrisy.
So when he’s talking about the marital commitment between a man and a woman, the sanctity of marriage, hetero Moms and hetero Dads being the nucleus of the family, etc. - does that count?
I wonder what red badge of courage the right wing conservatives will take up next? They seem to have royally “screwed up” the family values one. Maybe it’ll be nutrition or healthy living habits or better hair pieces?
obese children - letting your child be fat as child abuse — that’s gonna be the next one for ‘em … big pharma will push diet speed shaped as Disney characters, with proof of purchase for CDs and stuff …
[...] out this “Fornicator“: “Unfortunately, I am the victim and a witness to a crime in an ongoing investigation. At [...]
As they say, “Hypocrisy is the tribute vice pays to virtue.” So his conduct does not necessarily bear on the soundness of his policy preferences. And though I don’t think that resignation is necessary, I also think he has disqualified himself from being a state senator, which (safely) assumes that the reports are true.
I wonder how Sen. Stanley being the one trashed and badmouthed in public. Now he knows now gay Tennesseans felt everytime HE opened his spiteful mouth to degrade and harm them. Wallow in it, Sen. Stanley, and let us know how you like it.
Interesting situation.
It’s no secret that I want to continue my service to our community and nation by serving in our Tennessee State Legislature.
So… Suppose I (or you) were to run and win a seat. Power, the most insidious of aphrodisiacs, strikes (even at this minor state legislature level). Some chick (or dude for the female types) who would otherwise be ‘out of our league’ starts flirting, making it clear that he/she would ‘put out’ at the slightest indication of desire. I’m happily married. It’d devastate my wife if I ever cheated on her. Since my wife is also my best friend, I’d be crushed if she were heartbroken.
So… I’ve won a seat in the Legislature. A couple of months into my term a pretty chickie-doo starts telling me how good I am at being a Legislator. She complements me on my cologne. She offers to rub my tired shoulders. She wears sexy, professional clothes to the office. I’d be flattered. Hey… I’m an man. But I’m a man who loves my wife and family. So what would I do? How would I handle this situation? How would YOU handle this situation?
I’d fire chickie-doo and hire an unattractive yet efficient intern who could do the job interns are supposed to do.
Then, I’d go home and kiss my wife.
“If he was in fact blackmailed, he is in fact a victim” This statement is a crock of crap. He is not a victim. His wife and family are the victims and the people who voted for him are victims. He is an adulterer! He got caught. He’s lucky he wasn’t dating Jenny here in Nashville. He’d be dead! In another article, he stated he was a victim; he is so incorrect. He would never have been blackmailed if he had not placed himself in a risky situation. And didn’t anyone learn a lesson with Bill Clinton’s behavior? Good grief, these men are stupid, stupid, stupid.
Two separate issues, sidney. He is not a victim for indulging in this behavior, he is a victim of a blackmailing scheme. How he got there is irrelevant.
Extortion is illegal. There is a victim.
Stanley made a stupid choice, given his position. But it isn’t an illegal choice. The moment he was blackmailed by the ex, he became a victim. Not alot of gray area here.
Paul is trying to blame the blackmailer for his trouble. He got into this mess with his eyes wide open. What is it with the GOP lately, where they preach goodness and family values? I have decided that I want the GOP out of my life. I do not want them to make anymore decisons for me. I bet if he had gotten the girl pregnant, he would take her for an abortion as soon as he could. Do as I say, and not as I do. Good Gosh!
Come on all you Dems! Where’s the righteous indignation you directed at others when Bill Clinton said..”I did not have sex with that woman”? Remember the cries of “It’s ONLY SEX” and “It doesn’t affect how he serves” etc…? It seems that if you were in that crowd supporting Clinton…and now calling for Stanley to resign…Hypocracy IS an issue with you.
lots of it to go around, Jon - I think, tho, that a ‘family values’ guy who leaves wives for interns is sort, well - you know, compromised …
Well, I have said before that I don’t necessarily think he should resign. That’s for him to decide, and his constituents can determine his political fate if he doesn’t.
You never know what the voters might do. I remember when Rep. Dan Crane (R-IL) and Rep. Gerry Studds (D-MA) both got caught at about the same time with inters (Crane with a girl and Studds with a boy). Both were reprimanded by the House. Crane cried, told us he loved Jesus, and did the press conference with his deer-in-the-headlights wife at his side. He was defeated in the Republican primary. Studds glared at the Speaker as he read the reprimand, never apologized, ran for reelection and won, staying for several more terms.
I have also said before, Jon, that the “Well what about…” stupid crap that you guys on the right predictably throw out every time some Republican finds himself in a scrape may be a clever and irrefutable argument on talk radio, but it is irrelevant everywhere else. What Bill Clinton did nearly 15 years ago has nothing to do with Sen. Stanley or Rep. Briley. They are all shameful on their own (de)merits.
And, in your collective mental illness, you right-wingers seem to be just unable to understand that these “Well, what about…” comments ALWAYS have a hypocritical flip side. In this case: You thought Clinton was so terrible that you wanted to impeach him, but you’re not calling for Stanley to be thrown out of the State Senate? In your own words, Jon, “Hypocrisy is an issue with you.”
Let’s just leave these “Well,what about…” red herrings alone.
Come on all you Dems! Where’s the righteous indignation you directed at others when Bill Clinton said..”I did not have sex with that woman”? Remember the cries of “It’s ONLY SEX” and “It doesn’t affect how he serves” etc…? It seems that if you were in that crowd supporting Clinton…and now calling for Stanley to resign…Hypocracy IS an issue with you.
Right here. It’s only sex. People need to chill.
Mack, you said “Stanley made a stupid choice, given his position. But it isn’t an illegal choice”. Well I disagree with you. He has a legal and binding contract with his wife - a marriage certificate, or “contract” if you will. Now, he broke the terms and conditions of that contract. He’s lucky he got off with just paying the piper by having to give up his position of power. Steve McNair gave up his life. Men, ya’ll are all just little boys looking for a bigger thrill. When will you all learn? It always has to be the “hard” (no pun intended) way! If you’re married, don’t fool around. You’ll just get burned! They all do - eventually! So, I’m sort of thinking “poetic justice” here!
Emmy Lou,
“Dan, that’s one of the reasons we have laws in the first place: to protect the rights of the minority from the tyranny of the majority.”
And another reason we have laws is to allow society to set certain parameters of behavior to preserve the Values and Traditions of that society. Not all change is progress and the majority has the right to defend its Values and Traditions.
Mikey,
“obese children - letting your child be fat as child abuse — that’s gonna be the next one for ‘em …”
I hate to tell you this but one of the inevitable results of national health care is going to be government regulation of diet. Taxes on sugary drinks and salty snacks are just the first step. Check out the movie ‘Demolition man’ for a good idea of where we are heading.
TennRod,
Both sides should heed your advice.
Johnny C, I am willing to be dollars to donuts that eventually O’man has an affair - or the “appearance of one”. And it’s not just “sex”. It’s broken vows, broken promises, broken hearts and broken lives. I know you are just saying that to the demorats. They really lighten up on their own kind, but when a repuglican falls from grace, all hell breaks loose. (And I intentionally spelled those 2 words the way I did)
Oops! “bet dollars to donuts” Sorry for mistake!
Sidney- Jenny Kazemi and that guy who killed Marcia Trimble have gotten better treatment from the local media than Senator Stanley.
I’ll take your bet- I prefer Krispy Kreme or Donut Den. We’ll talk before Jan 2013.
So you’re saying, Johnny C, that O-man won’t have or have the appearance of an affair by Jan 2013 and you prefer Krispy Kreme. OK, you’re on! Did you hear about the book that came out with Michelle O talking about their “marital problems” before he ran? I won’t tell you what I really think. But keep this e-mail so you can hold my feet to the fire — or I can hold yours to the fire in 2013.
Yes, but it can’t just be from some wingnut blog or talk radio or Newsmax. A news report.
Paul Stanley should be judged more harshly for his adultery, considering how much he has condemned others for immorality.
Similarly, I would be more outraged if the President of MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) were to be arrested for DUI than I would if it was someone else. It’s more outrageous to be guilty of something when you are publicly crusading against it. Hypocrisy adds to the magnitude of a transgression.
Note to Sen. Stanley: Start blaming the liberal media immediately for your troubles. That’s Chapter 2 of the GOP Playbook, right after “Pretend To Be A Good Christian To Get Votes” and before the chapter “Attack and Malign Your Accusers.”