HOH’s One-Minute Recess: For Your Reading Pleasure
Now that ex-Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) has officially left office in the wake of his extramarital affair, it seems appropriate to reflect on Washington’s many sex scandals — and fortunately, there are plenty out there to peruse.
First up, there’s this Esquire profile of ex-Rep. Eric Massa, who resigned from office earlier this year because of sexual misconduct allegations. Author Ryan D’Agostino, who spent time with the New York Democrat after the scandal, reveals that Massa tried to commit suicide twice in March and became a shut-in at his home after his resignation.
Things are less serious over at rival men’s mag GQ, where Ana Marie Cox has complied a list of the “25 Greatest Philanderers in American Political History.”
Neither Massa nor Souder make the list, but there are some familiar faces, such as GOP Sens. John Ensign (Nev.) and David Vitter (La.), ex-Sens. John Edwards (D-N.C.) and Larry Craig (R-Idaho), and former Speakers Bob Livingston (R-La.) and Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.).
And there are also some throwback picks that make today’s scandals seem a little minor league. There’s 19th-century Rep. William Breckinridge (D-Ky.), who was sued by his lover for “breach of promise” when he didn’t ask her to marry him, and early 20th-century Sen. Arthur Brown (R-Utah), who was shot and killed by his jilted lover, Anne Bradley (who was acquitted at her trial after pleading temporary insanity).
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