Herman Cain quit. That he has suspended his campaign means that he can still raise money. How presidential. I feel for Cain's followers, especially the ones who donated their money and their time to his populist posturing. However, I do not feel anything but contempt for their candidate. Narcissists never apologize for anything, like dishonesty. It is not the alleged sexless extramarital business, which he denies; it is his dishonesty that has further disqualified him.
Strategic ambiguity aside, Newt Gingrich will do the same thing as Cain – raise money on the pretense of a further presidential campaign. At least Newt is an honest liar. He admits it. But lying is still dishonest.
Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) said that Newt Gingrich is dishonest. Frank called Gingrich “fundamentally intellectually dishonest” about the former House Speaker’s consulting contract with Freddie Mac. Frank used the word “ludicrous” during a recent MSNBC interview on the topic. Then again, there have been words between these former colleagues. Gingrich said the Representatives Frank and Chris Dodd “should be jailed” for their oversight of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in one of the GOP debates. So, Frank qualified “dishonest.”
In fact, as Bloomberg reported, Gingrich made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consulting fees from two contracts with mortgage company Freddie Mac. Gingrich said that he provided only “strategic advice” over an eight year period. The Gingrich assertion has been since that such advice is not lobbying. Obfuscation notwithstanding, it is paid political influence wielding.
We are supposed to forget about that just as we were supposed to forget about the multiple Herman Cain sexual harassment case settlements. Bygones are supposed to be bygones. The truth is irrelevant.
For examples, ten years ago when he ran for president, Gingrich said, “I helped balance the budget for four straight years. We did it by cutting taxes and bringing the unemployment rate below 4%." He said that on Meet the Press. It was not true then and it has not become true since. President Clinton's 1993 tax increase on the wealthy lea to a booming economy after it passed without a single Republican vote.
Article comments
1 - Dr Dreadful
Meh. Politicians lie: you can tell, as the saying goes, because their lips are moving.
So the question is not so much the lying, but whether a candidate is competent to do the job. Gingrich is an unpleasant fellow, but far from being the worst prospect in this regard.
2 - jamminsue
Dr D, What’s wrong with a competent pleasant person? And, if Newt could so anger his peers in the House that they kicked him out, what make you think he will be able to keep an administration together?
3 - jamminsue
Tommy, Nice article and good sound bite - the honest liar. Figuring out how to make people think that is OK to lie and be hypocritical is something tht has always puzzled me.
4 - Dr Dreadful
Sue, you'll have noticed that I damned Gingrich with faint praise?
There's nothing wrong with a competent and pleasant person, but there are only two people in the current Republican field who match that description and only one of those seems to have any realistic chance of the nomination.
5 - Tommy Mack
“Politicians lie” is what people say when they don’t agree with one. Strategic ambiguity and obfuscation are tools of the trade. Lying to investigators is a noose. It will be interesting to see the Republican contest unfold because the whole point of having primaries and caucuses is to see what a candidate will do under pressure. Romney and Gingrich have done this before. Which one hangs himself first loses.
Tommy
6 - Igor
I remember when Newt first started making noise about 20 years ago, and since he was billed as a teacher and professor, a cable network (maybe CNN) started carrying his course lectures which I watched avidly, looking forward to having a real teacher in congress, but he was terrible! He was ill prepared and didn't seem to have a point and didn't even present content. Very lethargic. I decided that he was no kind of teacher.
Just my 2 cents worth.
7 - One American's Rant
I am working on a new presidential candidate rating guide (as useless as the one in my article "Who can be Pres...") that uses flip-flopping as one of the criteria.
I am not completely aghast when a politician lies, because I expect it, but the lack of faithfulness bothers me. It just seems to me that if a man will cheat on his wife, he will cheat on other things. Those are the ones that I don't want to see in power.
8 - Cannonshop
#7 We've only had three that we can confirm didn't, OAR:
1. Carter
2. Nixon
3. GW BUSH.
are you sure you want to use marital fidelity as a measuring tool, instead of...y'know, maybe checking to see how effective your prospective candidates have been in their prior duties/careers?
9 - jamminsue
#7 OAR, you say, It just seems to me that if a man will cheat on his wife, he will cheat on other things.
Maybe so, what is important is once one decides on their ethics, they should stick with them, and should b honored for doing so. If a person can prosecute someone for doing the same as they are, they are so bankrupt that they should not be allowed to be a public servant. I wrote a long paper on public service looking through Cicero’s work, which is one of my best projects. In it I suggested that people should be educated to be in public service (everyone) and those who can learn a certain amount, formulate and articulate their ethics should be allowed to be considered for service; those who don't are too chancy and so should be rejected.
10 - Glenn Contrarian
OAR -
There was once a leader who didn't cheat on his wife and stayed true to her until death, who brought his nation's economy from severe recession to strong profitability, and who built a nationwide highway for national defense and for aiding commerce nationwide.
It wasn't Eisenhower - he, like FDR, JFK, and Thomas Jefferson - DID cheat on his wife. But in Eisenhower's case, if what Jackie O. said was true (that Mamie was a vindictive b***h since she essentially forced Jackie on a lengthy tour of the White House just days after she'd given birth to Jack Jr.), I'm not really sure I blame the guy. And I've always liked Eisenhower anyway - it couldn't have been easy dealing with both Patton and Montgomery in the same room at the same time.
By the way - the guy I was referring to in the first paragraph was Hitler.
In other words, judge not a leader's ability to govern by his marital infidelity.
11 - Tommy Mack
That our country has a sexual hang-up is documented. Infidelity is only interesting. The ball in this particular court is deceit.
Tommy
12 - One American's Rant
That particular criteria is not the only one, just one that I think needs to be considered. There is a youth program, intended to make better future leaders, and better people in general, called Character Counts, which has six pillars upon which all character rests.
Trustworthiness
Respect
Responsibility
Fairness
Caring
Citizenship
I won't go into their definitions of these characteristics, and they are slightly different for adults, at least in implementation, than they are for children. But, the gist of what it takes to be a good person, and in my opinion a good candidate, is contained in those six items.
Does that address the issue?
13 - One American's Rant
Jamminsue,
If I understand what you are saying in the first sentence, then if a man cheats on his wife, and owns up to it, then as long as he continues to cheat and is up front about it, it's OK.
If the second sentence is true, then we should not even be considering several of the candidates, since they are guilty of the same things they are castigating their opponents for. No?
14 - One American's Rant
Glenn,
I didn't know that about Hitler - it is a bit surprising. I'm still looking for some metric of character, and I'm certain that I want that in a President, and almost equally as much in a Congressman. I would like for them to be above the petty problems of the working class schmoes. I don't expect that we will find the perfect candidate with this or any method, but I like to play the game of what if.
15 - Jordan Richardson
I guess that's two things I have in common with Hitler.
16 - troll
Adolf's marriage to Eva lasted 2 days iirc...the body of myth indicates that he had no other mistresses though so Glenn's not far off
17 - Glenn Contrarian
Then call it a 'common law' marriage.
18 - troll
well kinda - the relationship wasn't publicly acknowledged
also - a quick check points to the probability that H was screwing around in the early 30s even while involved with Braun
19 - Cannonshop
#14 if you're looking for a metric of character, OAR, how 'bout seeing if your prospective candidate's got a habit of owning his own mistakes as opposed to passing the buck, or as opposed to claiming the Bandwagon as an excuse.
There's something to be said for Truman's "The Buck Stops HERE." attitude as it relates to character and the ethical nature of a man. Excuse-Making is a sign of weak character, and it's entirely too common in our political class, as is bald-face denials, and "Everyone else did it" or "Yeah, but the other guy did it too".
There is something to be said for a man who owns his own mistakes. Of course, such men are virtually absent from the pit of passions and narcissism that is the modern political scene.
20 - ProfBob
After reading the book 'Politics--the Science of the Possible' (Book 9 at http://andgulliverreturns.info) I have to laugh and cry at the political mistakes the candidates keep making.