EDITORIAL – Public officials, private lives

Just a few days after former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s involvement in a prostitution… Just a few days after former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s involvement in a prostitution scandal led to his resignation, the state’s new governor, David Paterson, decided to clear out his own closet of skeletons.

Paterson admitted yesterday that he had several affairs in the past, including one with a state employee. According to the Associated Press, the affairs took place during a “rough patch” in his marriage, when both he and his wife, Michelle Paige Paterson, engaged in infidelity.

Amid the news of Spitzer’s and Paterson’s extramarital affairs, more news has surfaced surrounding the sexual exploits of other public officials. New York City councilman Dennis P. Gallagher resigned after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a woman. And the Detroit City Council is calling for the resignation of Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick over an alleged affair that he claims he did not have.

Upon first hearing such news, it is easy to feel disenchanted with politicians who claim to be serving the public but who seem to be doing more to serve themselves. But, at the same time, it is important to try and distinguish between what is a private issue and what is a public issue.

Following his admission, Paterson said, according to The New York Times, “I do not feel I betrayed my commitment to the citizens of New York State. I haven’t broken any laws. I don’t think I violated my oath of office. I saw this as a private matter.”

The obvious difference between Spitzer’s case and that of the new governor’s is that Spitzer’s extracurricular activities violated the law. Furthermore, his involvement in an illegal prostitution ring revealed the hypocrisy behind his public policy stances. As governor, Spitzer centered his career on battling corruption and maintaining ethics – qualities that he obviously could not manage to integrate into his personal life.

Paterson, however, claimed to have been experiencing a low in his marriage, a situation that was leading to divorce before the couple sought counseling, a situation that many married couples in the United States experience.

While we have the right to be informed about the lives of the public officials we elect, we also believe that the media has developed an unnecessary fascination with their personal lives. Recall the scandal surrounding former President Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. Recall the time and energy that was spent on trying to impeach the president for an affair – something that, history has shown, our presidents are no strangers to.

This is not to say that the actions of these political officials should be completely ignored, but rather that a certain level of privacy should be acknowledged. If a particular controversy does not affect the way a public official leads, why blow it up until it does?