You're Done

Politicians have over sized egos. In fact sometimes they are downright delusional. New York Governor Eliot Spitzer would appear to fall into that category. How does he think he can survive this sex scandal?

I remember years ago my old boss Brian Bracco used to bound down the stairs into our newsroom and say to me with a broad smile, "He's done, he can't survive this." He was referring to then Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton. It seemed like Clinton was facing the drip, drip, drip that adds up to water boarding in politics. Stories ranged from allegations of draft dodging, womanizing, and marijuana smoking. Brian liked to talk to me about politics and Clinton, because he knew I had covered him years before when he was the Attorney General in Arkansas. I used to say don't be so sure. I would never say that about Spitzer.

This time it's different. New York Governor Eliot Spitzer has a big problem going for him. Americans are willing to forgive, although they never forget. You can put together a list of folks who've been able to survive sex scandals. Don't believe me, ask actor Hugh Grant. Remeber Senators David Vitter, and Larry Craig, or how about sportscaster Marv Albert. Why do some survive and others do not? That's hard to say. But think I know with certainty, Americans have problems with sanctimonious pompous blowhards. One guy on Wall Street summed it up this way, "He's holier than thou, and he got what he deserved!"

We stopped into one of our favorite spots last night. At Fat Tuesdays it was all anyone was talking about. As one guy said to me, "It's always the guys who preach to us that seem to fall from grace." He cited Ted Haggard, Jimmy Swaggart and Jim Bakker. Bottom line in America, if you preach they'll pounce. Someone close to Spitzer will have to pull him aside today and say "You're done!"

Because as my old boss Brian Bracco used to say, "He's done, he can't survive this." This time around Brian would be right.