GOP In Bind Over Scandal-Plagued Ensign's Reelection Prospects

Weighed down by ethical controversy and marital scandal, Sen. John Ensign has gone from GOP rising star to pariah. Once tasked with getting more Republicans elected to the Senate, he now is struggling to find members of his own party who are willing to support his own efforts to stay in office.

Last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) refused to provide a vote of confidence for his Republican colleague, who has been accused of improperly using his office to advance the career of a former aide whose wife was Ensign's mistress. And as a Democratic source pointed out, it now seems that the same organization that Ensign once headed - the National Republican Senatorial Committee - is also distancing itself from the scandal-plagued pol.

The chairman of the campaign committee, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) dodged a question about whether Ensign should resign on Tuesday, saying that it wasn't "proper" to comment on a matter being investigated by the Senate Ethics Committee. Back in July, when the story initially broke, Cornyn insisted that discussion of resignation wasn't "called for."

"I leave that situation up to him," he said, before adding: "I get a sense that the public is less judgmental than perhaps they have been in the past."

Asked about the apparent change in Cornyn's support for Ensign -- or, at the very least, his willingness to address the matter -- an official at the NRSC said the inquiry seemed like a "transparent effort" by Democrats to distract attention from more serious issues. Pressed whether the NRSC would state its support for Ensign's reelection bid in 2012, Brian Walsh, a spokesman for the committee replied that the date of the election was too far off to comment.

"Senator Cornyn is Chairman of the NRSC for the 2010 election cycle and that's where his focus is," Walsh said over email. "With all due respect, it's a bit ridiculous to even be thinking about an election that is over three years away. Senator Cornyn has said that this issue will be decided by the Ethics Committee as it should be but we're certainly not thinking about an election that's over three years away. Again, raising that issue is just a transparent effort by the Democrats to distract from the problems facing their party today."

The elections of 2012 are, indeed not an immediate concern. But they're certainly not entirely off the radar of the NRSC or, for that matter, its Democratic counterpart. According to recent reports, the Republican campaign committee is already targeting Democratic senators for that election cycle, including Kent Conrad of North Dakota and Ben Nelson of Nebraska. So why the reluctance to discuss Ensign's re-election prospects?

"There's a big difference between targeting current Democrat Senators - and not just those up for re-election next year - and working to inform their constituents about their voting record today, versus thinking about who our own candidates might be on the ballot three years from now," Walsh replied. "That's apples and oranges."

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Comments

[WhitneyKyle]

A Nevada voice: I don't think Ensign will resign any time soon, unfortuanately for Nevada and America. The lobbyists are still pouring money into his pockets. They would not be doing this if he were going to resign. My home state of Nevada has a long history of Republican crimes and mischief. Ensign's cohorts in the casino industry will protect him, he's their Senator, not ours. Better to have a crook in office, then a Democrat is their philosophy. We still have two more elections to go to turn this state blue on the inside, and they know this.

[CarmanK]

I hope the GOP stays in a bind for a long time. They have done so much damage to real democracy in America, that our nation is in turmoil, like their Party. The hope is that the nation now has a leader that will help steer the ship of state in the right direction.. I don't believe the latest poll that says the republicans have a chance to retake the majority in the House in 2010. How do those numbers mesh with reality of today's political circumstances and the Party of NO action, No plans, No sense.

[dans5843]

Based on what I read in this morning Las Vegas Sun newspaper (his local paper).
Sounds like this dude is looking at a jail term!

Bye

[Aerows]

"I get a sense that the public is less judgmental than perhaps they have been in the past."

No, we've just come to expect unethical and immoral behavior from Republicans. It's less surprising that he got caught and is attempting to stay in office, and more surprising that it was with a woman.

[wizzardly]

What about Rangel??? The Dems seem to excuse his unethical woes.

[Aerows]

I don't recall Rangel being the focus of this article. That could be why no one has mentioned him yet. No matter what Rangel is doing, though, that doesn't mean that Ensign should be screwing another man's wife.

It doesn't have to be an either/or, we can get rid of both corrupt politician. In fact, that's what we should be doing, not trying to excuse bad behavior because someone else is doing something they shouldn't be.

[iMissMollyIvins]

Shouldn't that read "What about Clinton? He did it too!"

[AbeMartin]

Of course they are in a bind. Ensign is as unprincipled and as vindictive as they come. His GOP bud's that don't back him, will be outed as gays, marital cheats, lurkers on child porn sites, tax evaders, etc., etc. Don't forget, Johnny is part of that C-Street Holier-tha­n-thou-the­-rules-don­'t apply-to-us prayer club. Part of their little ritual is sharing their confidences as "trust building exercises."

[ShinjiIkari]

"I get a sense that the public is less judgmental than perhaps they have been in the past."

You wish, Cornyn. The money changing hands behind this scandal is only the second act; what started it all was Ensign boning somebody else's wife.

Maybe Ensign, being a good little Thumper, read in the Old Testament about David and Bathsheba and decided, "Hey, great idea!" (Right-wingers aren't exactly known for humor or irony.)

[Killjoy]

This guy have no shame..none.

[iplaw]

I hope that aid appreciates his wife. With a wife like that a man can really get places.

[Aerows]

Some of the places, such as the doctor's office for an STD, may not be where he wants to go.

[Kevins]

He comes from Nevada.
That sort of transaction is legal there.

[Kevins]

Before that aide gets scrubbed from the Republican payroll,
They'll probably scrub his wife.

[Kevins]

So that's the qualification to be a Republican aide.

I figured it had to do with who you know.

[ShinjiIkari]

"Know" in the Biblical sense?

[One more Thing]

The Center for Disease Control needs to release a warning on Ensign.

[Ramonne]

Perhaps the Republican Congress in general.

[pbfishtaco]

In a bind
Over a barrel
Up the creek

In the closet?
Out of touch
Out of luck
Out of office

[nomobull]

the gop are like the rich playboy heir whose father's money has spent up or been taken away by fed up parents or bankruptcy.they've been irresponsible and self centered . and so used to their money cleaning up their messes. now the reality of what they are and what they believe themselves to be are on a collision course.