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Politics : THE WHITE HOUSE -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: longnshort who wrote (2403)	3/16/2007 6:38:10 PM
From: pompsander	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 25737

A Painful Confession Posted by Dean Barnett \| 10:23 AM hughhewitt.townhall.com Let me start this conversation with an observation that isn’t particularly helpful to my preferred candidate’s campaign: There is hardly any correlation between past presidents’ success as family men and their effectiveness as leaders. FDR and Thomas Jefferson weren’t quite exemplars of moral virtue in their homes. Ronald Reagan also had difficulties on the home front. On the other hand, U.S. Grant was a model husband and a train wreck as president. The same holds for Jimmy Carter. My argument isn’t that all lecherous presidents have been effective nor is it that all devoted family men who occupied the Oval Office were failures. Rather, I’m merely pointing out that if you want a solid predictor of how well a potential presidency will work out, there are better things to look at than a candidate’s marriage. Or marriages. STILL, THERE’S SOMETHING DEEPLY UNNERVING about the confession Newt Gingrich gave to James Dobson on the radio regarding his past infidelities. Bill Kristol described the interview this way: Who cares whom Newt Gingrich was sleeping with when? James Dobson, head of Focus on the Family, cares. He thinks we should all care. He asked Gingrich about it recently on his radio show. Did Gingrich object to Dobson's effrontery? Au contraire. In fact, Dobson framed his on-air question as a repetition of something he had previously discussed with Gingrich: "I asked you a pretty bold question. And I appreciate the fact that you didn't seem offended by it. But I asked you if the rumors were true that you were in an affair with a woman obviously who wasn't your wife at the same time that Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky were having their escapade." Gingrich took no offense at Dobson's repeating their conversation on the air. He clearly expected Dobson to raise the topic. He explained that the subject was a "very painful topic, and I confess that to you directly." And his confession continued: "Well, the fact is that the honest answer is yes." To use Peggy Noonan’s favorite word, the entire conversation between Gingrich and Dobson was creepy. Newt confessed his shortcomings; Dobson later granted absolution, saying, “I think it's really important and will be for many of our listeners to know your responses to that point of disappointment back there someplace. And I really appreciate your willingness to do so.” In a word, ugh. For one thing, absolution isn’t Dobson's to grant. If Gingrich enters the presidential race, each voter will individually decide whether Gingrich’s transgressions are forgivable in the political sense. It’s big of James Dobson that he has apparently decided to overlook the “disappointment back there someplace,” but he is, after all, only one voter. But Dobson’s not the really guilty party here in this off-putting event., After all, he was just doing what he does – arrogating to himself the role of judge, jury and potential executioner when it comes to matters of moral dispute. But what was Gingrich thinking? Doesn’t he realize how undignified he looks discussing his greatest transgressions in public? It’s swell that Newt is atoning and seeking forgiveness. It’s less agreeable that he’s doing so on the public airways. Kind of undermines the sincerity of the whole thing, no? It was almost 15 years ago when right-thinking people were justifiably outraged when Bill Clinton publicly answered the burning question of whether he wore boxers or briefs. Conservatives bayed to whoever would listen, Has this man no innate sense of dignity? If Newt Gingrich runs for president, his campaign will be an issues and idea-based affair. Because he has a real contribution to make to the dialogue and debate, I would welcome his entry into the race and I think most other Republicans feel the same way. But if the Dobson interview provides any indication of what a Gingrich campaign will be like, he should just stay out. Newt has done heroic work the past several years repositioning himself as a public intellectual and in the process rehabilitating himself and his ideas. He didn’t make it back by publicly abasing himself. If he does run, he might want to remember that.