EDITORIAL: The hot water gets hotter - Opinion

PRINT THIS Popular

Oct. 09, 2009
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

EDITORIAL: The hot water gets hotter

But calls for Ensign's resignation remain premature

The news story growing out of Nevada Sen. John Ensign's extramarital affair with a campaign staff member -- who was also the wife of his close friend and senior aide -- still has "legs." New developments keep pulling the story back into the headlines.

First, there was the decision of the senator's parents to provide cash help to Doug and Cynthia Hampton after they left the senator's employ. Any relatively wealthy parents might use their resources to help their son in such an unhappy situation, but the payments bore a clear resemblance to "hush money."

Most Popular Stories

VIN SUPRYNOWICZ: What stops mass murderers? A gun

SHERMAN FREDERICK: Call evil by its rightful name

EDITORIAL: Terrorism on trial

EDITORIAL: A pre-9/11 approach to terror

LETTERS: Public-sector workers are still doing well

LETTERS: Harry Reid: Working hard for all Americans

EDITORIAL: 'That's the ticket!'

Our politicians are the greatest, all right

EDITORIAL: I believe in free speech, but ...

LETTERS: A giant octopus threatens rural Nevada

Now, Doug Hampton is being accused of using his influence and his personal relationship with Sen. Ensign to benefit his new lobbying clients -- despite Senate ethics rules that require a one-year hiatus before a former staffer lobbies the senator or his staffers. Sen. Ensign denies any improper lobbying has taken place.

"I've recommended him for jobs, just like I've recommended a lot of people -- but we absolutely did nothing except for comply exactly with what ethics laws and rules of the Senate state," Sen. Ensign tells CNN's Dana Bush.

Some critics -- and even some members of his own party, unhappy with the way the Ensign affair has kept the GOP in the news in a less than favorable light -- have called for Sen. Ensign to resign, which he says he has no intention of doing.

"I am focused on doing my work, and I'm going to continue to focus on my work," the senator said this week.

UNLV political expert Ken Fernandez says that's a smart move. "It doesn't make sense for him to resign now. It would hurt his party. He has really no incentive to resign."

Mr. Fernandez is right. The people of Nevada elected Sen. Ensign to represent them and their interests in Washington -- casting votes for enhanced liberty, responsible budgeting, lower taxes, and a pared-back, less meddlesome federal bureaucracy.

His personal behavior -- though his wife says they've put the matter behind them -- was embarrassing and stupid. Even afterward, instead of making a clean breast of the entire affair -- calling in the police if he felt he was being blackmailed or extorted for cash or favors -- the senator made only partial acknowledgements, leaving other "shoes to fall" and thus guaranteeing the story would drag on.

The senator would do well to stop hiding and step into the spotlight to answer some tough questions. In the meantime, he should cooperate with any ethics or criminal investigations as they run their course.

But at this point, Sen. Ensign does not appear to have broken laws or taken personal advantage of his Senate office. His vote on behalf of Nevada's interests still carries the same weight it did a year ago.

No senator has been expelled from the body as a result of an "ethics" probe since the Civil War. Yet we're to believe Sen. Ensign should resign, running out on constituents who elected him to do the job, because of personal conduct which -- while stupid and embarrassing -- is frankly of a "line forms on the left" variety?

"The ultimate accountability is through the political process," Stan Brand, a former House counsel and expert on congressional ethics, told ABC News. "If people think the system has failed, they have the ability to make a decision at the ballot box."

In 2012.

Share & Save

Leave Your Comment	42 Reader Comments
Terms & Conditions The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsiblity of the authors. The reviewjournal.com does not review comments before publication nor guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by the comment policy. If you see a comment that violates the policy, please notify the web editor. Some comments may not display immediately due to an automatic filter. These comments will be reviewed within 48 hours. Please do not submit a comment more than once.
Please enter your name Name: Please enter your email Email: Please enter a comment COMMENTS : (word count limit is 300) You have reached the maximum number of words allowed Current Word Count: Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background. Blackvegas wrote on October 09, 2009 08:52 PM: "Republicans are jealous because President Obama, after nine months in office, won the Nobel Peace Prize. On the other hand, all Bush won in eight years was the Two Shoes for Incompetence Trophy." HELEN WEILS wrote on October 09, 2009 06:51 PM: WHOOPTIDO, OBUMMER GOT A NOBEL PEACE PRIZE ALONG WITH YASSAR ARAFAT AND JIMMY CARTER. DUMB AND DUMBER, YEAH, GREAT HONOR, IF YOU'RE A COMMUNIST OR TERRORIST. ANYBODY WHO THINKS THIS IS ANYTHING OTHER THAN A POLITICAL BJ IS WELL DREAMING. LOL!!! HELEN WEILS wrote on October 09, 2009 06:48 PM: I COULDN'T CARE LESS ABOUT THIS FUNNY BUSINESS. IT WAS STUPID BUT OH WELL! HE BLEW HIS CHANCES TO RUN FOR PRESIDENT. KARMA. I'M FAR MORE WORRIED ABOUT THE REAL ACTION GOING ON BEHIND OUR BACKS GIVING OUR COUNTRY AWAY. FOCUS, PEOPLE, FOCUS!!! Blackvegas wrote on October 09, 2009 06:17 PM: I wonder what the crooks in Washington are doing while they have their partisan minions fighting it out. It appears "Winston" and I are the only sane ones here. George wrote on October 09, 2009 05:48 PM: Clinton was a felon by saying "I didn't have sex with that woman". Ensign is untouchable because he just bribed the husband of his mistress. Let's get real. Either look on these things as the French do or go after Ensign. I wont even get into the hypocrisy angle because nobody goes to jail for that kind of thing. winston smith wrote on October 09, 2009 03:25 PM: As I read elsewhere, Obama being nominated for the NPP after 12 days in office is like giving him the Cy Young Award for throwing out the first pitch of the baseball season... What a politicized joke! .. wrote on October 09, 2009 01:01 PM: Republicans are jealous because President Obama, after nine months in office, won the Nobel Peace Prize. On the other hand, all Bush won in eight years was the Two Shoes for Incompetence Trophy. Redhawk9 wrote on October 09, 2009 12:39 PM: dan wrote on October 09, 2009 09:57 AM: Dilemma: Rightwingers yessterday: "Obama's been in office nine months! Why hasn't he fixed the economy yet?" Rightwingers today: "Obama's been in office nine months! That's not long enough to win the Nobel!" ______________ Like a dog chasing its tail. More accurately, what has NOBAMA done in HIS ENTIRE LIFE that even warrants consideration for a nobel? When President Reagan brought the Soviet Union to its knees and ushered in the freedom of millions of people and GW Bush liberated millions more people (remember the purple fingers???), and neither are even considered for the Peace Prize, but NOBAMA who has gone around the world apologizing for every wart that America has ever had and Jimmy Carter (the second worse President in American history) and ALGORE, the prince of doom and gloom both get it?? Whats wrong with that picture?? S. Summerlin wrote on October 09, 2009 12:26 PM: This is NOT an R or D issue, no matter how much so many wish it would be (on both sides)... FACE IT... Either Ensign broke a law or he didn't... There is currently the appearance that he broke a law. APPEARANCE. The RJ is wrong to say there is no APPEARANCE... Is finding recommending someone for a job illegal... NO! Is committing adultery illegal... NO! But possibly being illegally swayed by lobbyists... IS ILLEGAL... HOWEVER --- there is no proof yet that he was influenced by his old "friend"... this proof will come out in the investigation, and if it is true, he MUST resign from his Senate seat... no doubt. In the interim, he must recuse himself from all dealings where there can be a conflict of influence... The same chorus should be made for Charlie Rangel to step down from his leadership post... The fact that both events are not happening is PURELY PARTISAN, and if we want to get away from the partisanship of this country, we must demand our leaders take action NOW!!!! Now all this talk about Clinton is a distraction... the difference here is that Clinton was guilty of perjury... an actual criminal offense. As a result he was disbarred. But the crime of perjury was not sufficient to warrant a guilty verdict during the impeachment hearings... why? Likely partisan and political... it was made to be about SEX (a big mistake on both parts) rather than about LAW... he broke the law... does anyone argue that? Right now we don't know if Rangel or Ensign broke the law... we have suspicions on both tho.. and while those suspicions are outstanding, they must excuse themselves from their leadership positions... RJ Onion wrote on October 09, 2009 11:20 AM: "But at this point, Sen. Ensign does not appear to have broken laws..." Depends on what your definition of 'laws' is. Read All Comments