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Chris Kelly

Chris Kelly

Posted: March 10, 2008 05:24 PM

Eliot Spitzer Disappoints Wife / Commits Federal Offense


Eliot Spitzer got a perfect score on the LSAT. I'm not making that up. It was in the New York Times. So they probably made it up. No, wait, let me start again.

Eliot Spitzer got a perfect score on the LSAT. He spent six years with the Manhattan District Attorney's office. He was the Attorney General of the State of New York. He has some experience with legal matters.

And yet, to make this last Valentine's Day extra special, he transported a woman across state lines for immoral purposes.

Anyone with a certain amount of gumption and a healthy hatred of women can use a prostitute. The Governor managed to violate the Mann Act.

It can be kind of tricky for a married elected official to hire a hooker, but it's mostly logistics. (Go to the Smoking Gun, and read more about Client #9, the wire transfer, the Amtrak reservation, the envelope, the key at the front desk, the door (ajar or just unlocked?), the question of whether he still had credit from last time. It's like John Grisham meets Feydeau.) Still, with a little luck and the right kind of can-do spirit, the average public servant can find a criminal organization to get him a woman he can treat like a thing.

It takes real work to turn a three-hour assignation into a Federal offense.

It takes a rare and precious combination of arrogance, amorality and shit for brains.

It would be nice to think that even the lawyers who advertise on the bus are smarter than that.

I'm not being judgmental about Eliot Spitzer's home life. And by "home life" I mean, "sex with prostitutes." I'm being judgmental about whether New York State deserves a governor with a rudimentary understanding of the law.

Here's what he said this afternoon:

"I failed to live up to the standards I set up to myself. Now I stand to regain the trust of my family."

And that statement it why he has to go.

The Mann Act is a Federal statute. It pertains to interstate commerce. Whether or not your children approve is immaterial. But thanks for bringing them into it, Gov.

---

While Eliot Spitzer is working things through with Silda and the kids, he might want to explain this passage from the FBI's affidavit:

"LEWIS (a/k/a "Rachelle," the defendant) continued that from what she had been told "he" (believed to be a reference to Client-9) "would ask you to do things that, like, you might not think were safe -- you know -- that... very basic things."


An STD is one thing; I just hope he didn't give her any legal advice.

 
 
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01:19 AM on 03/16/2008
You make it sound like the Mann Act is a subject of everyday conversation. Nice try.
Why don't you tell us the real reason you're piling on Spitzer?
01:17 PM on 03/13/2008
Disappoints Wife! There's an understatement! If you look at her picture you'll see an absolutley destroyed wife! She was betrayed and It's for all the world to see her story! Gosh, disappoints not very accurate is it? How about her possible future with another husband? Whether it's true or not "This guy Eliot, has made me the focus of a new label "I'm a lousy lay" for all the world to see! Gosh Thanks Eliot I'm disappointed! Disppointment isn't in her chldrens thoughts today! More like Crushed, betrayed, abandoned would be more accurate! "Why daddy did you do this to us?" is being asked by his and her children! How do we deserve this treatment and conduct? Disappointed is not correct!

For Federal offenses, yes and I hope the prosecute him for not upholding his inaugural promises to uphold the State of New York laws and statutes! Such as, Mis-use of tax payers money to fund a illegal enterprise, mis-use of State time pay for illegal activities, mis-use of his vested power to persue and encourage illicit enterprises by being a customer. Mis-use of Moral standards set by his own administration.

And for those who think that Eliot Spitzer was a participant in a victimless crime, well go back and re-read again, the above two paragraphs. I think you'll find yourself somewhere in the mix if you're from NewYork State.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
CAPTAINSKIPPY
10:34 PM on 03/11/2008
Again, republikkkans demanding impeachment, over gross personal indiscretions. However, they are silent still on the grossly malignant malfeasance which should guarantee impeachment for each of the Cheney/Chimpy crimes against the people and the Constitution of the United States. Would someone kindly explain THAT to Spitzer's daughters please? I'll be much obliged.
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SolarPowerGuy
Ph.D., Immunology; Solar power @ home; Green Party
11:57 AM on 03/12/2008
George Bush lied about weapons of mass destruction,
Clinton got a blow job.
So there was deception, along with the suction, but:
Clinton got a blow job.
So what's worse? Starting a war,
Or keeping your Cohibas in a human humidor?
But who'd they impeach, and remind me what for? Oh yeah, that's right...
Clinton got a blow job.

http://ericschwartz.com/ES_media/ES_jukebox.html
02:41 PM on 03/12/2008
Spitzer prosecuted people for the very same things he did. Who cares what party he is from?

By the way, I was against impeaching Clinton because it was "just Sex". If we impeached or forced resignation of all politicians who had affairs or availed them of the services of prostitues, we would have a much smaller government. (Maybe that woudl be a good thing).
03:13 PM on 03/11/2008
Come on now, he committed a sin of his religion, when we fought for our country back in WW2, liberty in Pearl Harbor had brothels in Hawaii provided by the US Goverment. This Combat Vet waited in line, and then went back to the action relieved.
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
rosal
JUSTICE always wins
02:40 PM on 03/11/2008
I feel so sorry for Mrs. Spitzer. Having to deal with the humiliation her husband is putting the family thru, makes me feel a lot of compassion.
I am curious is she is going to stand by her man. She is not involved in politics, so I don't see her making a political calculation for her future career and personal ambitions. This makes me have a lot of respect for her, whatever her decision.
02:17 PM on 03/11/2008
It's naive to think he did not know the law. He clearly did and thought he could flaunt it and not get caught. I'm sure that over his years in law enforcement he saw many others getting away with it and figured he could too. Familiarity too often breeds contempt. The preacher listening to the multitude of confessions from his parishoners and thinking how tempting it all was and how he could do it too and nobody would catch him as he was smart and above the law (religious or civil) . Now he will be treated like he treated all those he prosecuted before. Sometimes in these cases I think they build themselves up to a position that it untenable for any human and the stress of it all causes them to fall, a kind of professional and moral suicide.
01:51 PM on 03/11/2008
Our tax dollars our FBI wasting time on prostitution stings. This must have been from ashcroft days.

then why are we violating out civil rights and not going after AlQueda.

remember when the FBi was hot on Bill clinton instead of following up on Al Queda in the uS..

fbi needs to be doing other things then following prostitutes around
03:41 PM on 03/11/2008
Every time one of these feckless wonders gets caught with his dick hanging out, we ALWAYS
have some microcephalic excuser saying things like "we're wasting our tax dollars" or
"guess Bin Laden is in custody", or some other bullshit.
Just like with Bill Bennet, when you set yourself up as a moral bastion, you had BETTER
live a reproach-proof life!!!
When a, say, a Larry Craig, or a Ted Haggard get caught with whores(or guys in public
bathrooms!) then OF COURSE the public is going to hammer them!!!
It has very little to do with schadenfreud, what it's about is HUBRIS!!!!!!!!!!!!
Since the FBI handles DOMESTIC problems, and as far as I know, no one's
reported the existence of AlQueda cells in the U.S., your criticism of them
is point-skewing meaningless drivel.
01:40 PM on 03/11/2008
In America, sex is a federal offence--but NOT CORRUPTION????
What kind of idiocy is this? Why are we Americans so stupid?

What are WE AMERICANS thinking?
\
What are we punishing, SEX? How stupid are we?
How can we be led by the nose by Republican panty sniffing manipulators who are IN CHARGE OF FBI, CIA WIRE TAPPING and sniffing your garbage and underwear?
How about THAT?
Why should our tax money pay for Republican bullsh*t like THAT?

WHY should Spitzer resign for sex?
Why don't Republicans RESIGN FOR CORRUPTION?

What about Republicans like Bush-Cheney & Company who LIED, started a FRAUDULENT FOR-PROFITS Iraq War, REPUBLICANS SCREWED middle-income Americans with HUGE TAX BILLS FOR DEFICIT,
& GIANT BILLS from PROFITEERING BIG OIL pals in their fake "oil shortage" that exists ONLY ON PAPER. They screwed middle-income Americans.

Why don't those Republican CORRUPTORS RESIGN?

What are we punishing here-- SEX? That is insane. How stupid are we?
WHEN WILL WE PUNISH CORRUPTION, INSTEAD?
03:45 PM on 03/11/2008
Must be a Republican.....
seems to ME, that despite years of It's not about the sex, it's about the lies" on
Bill Clinton, they SURE do backtrack and attack if someone THEY like
gets caught!!!
And yes,I know Spitzer is a Dem, but he's a Dem like Lieberman is!!!!
04:03 PM on 03/11/2008
How is he a Dem like Lieberman? In what way are they remotely similar except that both are Jewish?
02:44 PM on 03/12/2008
I think Lieberman has principles and Spitzer doesn't.

None fo this reflects on race, religion or political party.
01:25 PM on 03/11/2008
This is about arrogance not ignorance. Politicians who commit crimes think they can get away with them, because somehow the law doesn't pertain to them. Power corrupts and certain personality types will often use their power to break the law because they justify it in their mind, that their motives have been proven fit in the past, so therefore when they now employ illegal or immoral acts, it's not the same thing. Very often these people compartmentalize aspects of their life. The hypocrisy and the crime is the issue here. Spitzer prosecuted prostitution rings, and once he was Governor (or maybe even before he was Governor) he funded prostitution rings. So was his prosecution of crimes as an Attorney General a ruse, a method, device to fuel his career, or a genuine desire to uphold the laws of his state?
01:10 PM on 03/11/2008
I am a lifelong Democrat and have to admit I was glad to see all these Republicans outed on there hypocritical stand on sex. With this revalation about Spitzer I wonder what thi country can do. There are F'n hypocrites on both sides of the aisle. We the public have no idea about ou elected representatives.
Spitzer should not resign. My suggestion is to impeach the S.O.B. He just gave the country another black eye
09:20 PM on 03/11/2008
Honest George,
Hard to disagree with you on that one.
But why all the Impeachment noise in Albany, while deafening silence on Capitol Hill on the same issue (for far more heinous crimes both in number and in severity)???
I was beside my with rage when I heard the news about Spitzer! A few thousand dollars for a prostitute is many times dwarfed by trillions of dollars for gross violations of international law involving illegal invasion, torture, rape, theft, no-bid contracts and so forth!!!!!
And yet, only Cynthia McKinney (back in 2006), and Dennis Kucinich (currently), along with a very few brave souls in the U.S. House had and have the courage and integrity to pursue their Constitutional duty to seek Articles of Impeachment against Bush and Cheney. Even Obama and Hillary are unforgivably silent on this issue!!
Yes. By all means impeach Spitzer if he is thus guilty of prostitution (not the mere allegation). But those who cry the loudest for his head should be pressing their U.S. House Delegation to press for Articles of Impeachment against Bush and others so responsible for crimes against our great nation, lest what they propose to do now in Albany is remembered for its rank hypocrisy!!!!
12:58 PM on 03/12/2008
Doesn't your country have enough problems rather than impeach another dumb politician? This Elliot Spitzer nonsense is just a diversion. Its unimportant. You know what really made me angry? Its the NYT story about an illegal immigrant that was left in a cell for 4 days without food and water. That's what America should be ashamed and concerned about.

Yes, of course, I think Spitzer should lose his job. But there are real issues in America that need to be addressed that are being totally ignored. What about the fact that CEOs are being paid hundreds of millions of dollars to gamble away their company's assets and in doing so destroy the American Economy?

I think its important to put things in perspective.
01:00 PM on 03/11/2008
The Mann Act is an archaic piece of legislation originally intended to prohibit black men from transporting white women across state lines. Heavyweight champ Jack Johnson was the first person prosecuted under the Mann Act. In more recent times, it has been applied capriciously. If being a habitual a--h--- were a crime, Spitzer would have been incarcerated long ago, and Fox News would be off the air for lack of staffing. Despite the glee of the denizens of Wall Street, Spitzer committed no crime based on the information currently available. This is a matter for the voters of NY to judge.
HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
biglover
01:35 PM on 03/11/2008
I agree with Argente. And why was he being wiretapped. I believe some big high up on Wall Street with ties to this administration set the wheels in motion. I thought we were supposed to be trying to find terrorists through wiretapping.
12:48 PM on 03/11/2008
The frightening thing that people don't seem to be noticing is that, if you take a few thousand dollars of your own money in your bank account and transfer it, it triggers a warning at the bank and they notify the IRS which begins to investigate to see what you are doing with your money.

Do we really want the banks and IRS watching us buy a cheap used car for our kids or a piece of jewelry for our wife or girlfriend? The IRS isn't even a government agency.
01:31 PM on 03/11/2008
Only if it's more than 10K
HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
biglover
01:36 PM on 03/11/2008
I also agree with websmith. Why would they be suspicious of a guy with a lot of money like Spitzer transferring money. This is what happens when we give up our civil liberties.
12:47 PM on 03/11/2008
During the entire interview/report, Spitzer never looked at his woebegotten wife once nor did he appologize to her, nor the country in an outright manner. Too much power in the hands of greasy, balding, short, toothless men just can't be handled. As the old song goes "It goes to his head" - or something like that. Why these pathetic women go to the podium with these silly old Viagra popping old men and look longingly into the distance is beyond me. He might crawl up to that podium on his bloody stumps, but I'll be damned if he'd go there with me standing beside his adulterous ass! I do, and always have, disliked weak spineless women who for convenience sake, and money, put themselves through what can only be public humiliation/hell.
03:08 PM on 03/11/2008
WOW lenoirlady, you sound like the perfect person to be passing judgment on mr. and mrs Spitzer. I am really impressed by your obvious omniscience. You have demonstrated a COMPLETE understanding not only of Elliot Spitzer but his wife as well, and the dynamics between them. Unfortunately the rest of us are forced to divine the depths of her pathetic-ness by what we read or see in the media. You see her standing on the podium next to her husband and immediately judge her as pathetic, weak and spineless. Why should you consider that perhaps there is more to their relationship than what you have heard about on the news in the last two days? It strikes me that you are a pathetic barren woman without the ability to experience a depth of love that might actually compel you to forgive a transgression by the object of that love. Of course, to make a point, I am judging you as you judge Mrs. Spitzer. Erroneously! The bottom line is you have NO idea what is going on between them on ANY level.
04:00 PM on 03/11/2008
Maybe she loves him. Maybe, on balance, he is a good husband and father and public servant. Maybe she is angry that he saw a prostitute, or that he wasn't careful enough to keep it quiet, but she doesn't think it should ruin his career. Maybe she depends on his career for the good of their family. Maybe as a New Yorker she wants him to continue in service. Maybe she believes in him.
Maybe he apologized to her in private, which is where the whole thing should have stayed.

Since when is 48 old?
12:47 PM on 03/11/2008
I WOULD BET THAT EVERY MAN CONDEMING THIS GUY HAVE DONE THE SAME THING. THEY JUST NEVER HAVE BEEN CAUGHT! I'M NOT STICKING UP FOR HIM...........BUT LET'S FACE IT.... MANY MEN HAVE THEIR BRAINS BETWEEN THEIR LEGS AND WHEN AWAY FROM HOME.......USE THAT ITEM BELOW THERE INSTEAD OF THEIR INTELLIGENCE.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
stdeclan
08:56 PM on 03/11/2008
You are so right Lady. I never cheated, through thirty years, though often tempted. I, for some reason, always knew deep down that it would CHANGE EVERYTHING. Whether discovered or not, our lives would be forever altered.
But many supercilious prigs and those envious of what he has accomplished will attack him.
I am disappointed. I thought he was one of the really good guys. But regardless, he did do a lot of good while working for the publics interests.
Stupid peccadilloes, and that's what they are, minor (in the real scheme of things) peccadilloes.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
wrabbitt
Soylent Green IS People.
12:41 PM on 03/11/2008
Just another public servant showing his contempt for our broken legal system! We all know that he will get away with it, with no charges! After all he's part of our wonderful government, and all are above the laws of the land. We need to do some housecleaning , This kind of story was rare a few years ago. Now with killing students and crooked government, the terrorists don't need to do anything just sit back and watch us self destruct! Again i'm ashamed to be from New York State!
03:13 PM on 03/11/2008
What crime is he getting away with please?
07:04 PM on 03/11/2008
Violation of the Mann Act (1910)
03:57 PM on 03/11/2008
"This kind of story was rare a few years ago."

The story, yes. The act, no. Politicians have always patronized prostitutes, but they didn't have wiretaps to record it, and the reporters didn't delve into it. Except those British guys in the 60s.