Sex In The Public Square - Eliot Spitzer Caught in Prostitution Ring - Comments

On faith in the government

Elizabeth — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:42:36 -0700

Exactly, Lisa. My faith is shaken by their spending priorities, to be sure, but I can't say it's the sexual transactions I question the most!

clarification

Lisa_M — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:23:49 -0700

Actually, I don't think other anti-prostitution laws should be on the books. It's just that the Mann Act (a.k.a. White-Slave Traffic Act) has a particularly sordid history of aiding and abetting Jim Crow, and it's a wonder that it has survived.

In any case, it now looks as if a legal case against Spitzer would focus on whether he concealed how he paid for the services. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/11/nyregion/11spitzer.html?pagewanted=1&_...

Predictably the Times cites a lobbyist saying, in reference to Spitzer, "This is why people lose faith in government"--as if we'd all be delighted with the status quo if only politicians kept their pants up.

Remember Vitter

Lisa_M — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 18:19:13 -0700

It's a shame that Spitzer will probably get worse treatment than Louisiana Republican Senator David Vitter, a family values and abstinence-only-ed champion, whom two madams identified as an erstwhile regular client last July. Vitter escaped criminal charges due to the statute of limitations and is still in the Senate. Spitzer faces much more serious charges under the 1910 Mann Act, a vestige of Progressive Era moral panic that shouldn't even be on the books.

Eliot Spitzer Caught in Prostitution Ring

Chris — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:44:59 -0700

There are some news ledes that you never expect to read. Case in point:

Gov. Eliot Spitzer has been caught on a federal wiretap arranging to meet with a high-priced prostitute at a Washington hotel last month, according to a person briefed on the federal investigation.

Generically, it's not that surprising to find a politician hiring call girls. But Spitzer always seemed to be a genuine straight arrow, or at least smart enough to not get caught up in a sordid scandal du jour. In a way, despite all the mistakes that Spitzer's made since he went from being Attorney General to Governor, it's a little disappointing to see him get caught in something so common.