The recent upward surge of Newt Gingrich in the preference polls for Republican presidential candidates makes one wonder about the memory of the American electorate. Or is his rise simply a willingness by the public to forgive ethical lapses, questionable conduct and frank hypocrisy. Of course, Gingrich’s support is not really shocking. Candidates’ unsavory behavior, immoral actions or frank corruption have often been disregarded by voters. However, a compendium of the ex-Speaker’s disreputable deeds appears to place him in a special category.
Among Gingrich’s “missteps” was his involvement in the House banking scandal when he issued bad checks in the late 80s and early 90s. Then there was the sweetheart deal he made with a publisher in 1994 that gave him a $4.5 million advance even though he had pilloried the Democratic House Speaker Jim Wright over the latter’s book deal a few years earlier. (Under pressure from the media and colleagues, Gingrich surrendered the advance and accepted a standard royalty agreement.) Subsequently, questions were raised about illegal funding for Gingrich’s political action committee GOPAC. An investigation by the House Ethics Committee found that the information Gingrich provided it about GOPAC was “inaccurate, incomplete and unreliable.” (The Speaker said it was because he had not gotten proper legal advice.) In January of 1997, Gingrich was reprimanded by the full House 395 to 28 and ordered to pay a penalty of $300,000 for contravening House ethics rules and utilizing a non-profit organization for political ends.
Though a loud advocate for family values, Gingrich has been divorced twice and is now working on his third marriage. His first marriage failed because he was having an affair with a woman who was later to become his second wife. There were then difficulties over payment of alimony and child support to his first wife, Jackie, who had uterine cancer. (Church collections apparently helped keep the family afloat.) Then while married to his second wife, Marianne, Gingrich began an affair with Callista, twenty-three years his junior, who eventually became his third wife. (Callista had been a junior Congressional staffer when the affair started with Gingrich.) What makes this even more repugnant was Gingrich’s leadership role in the effort to impeach President Clinton for sexual improprieties while he himself was similarly engaged.
Now, information has surfaced about Gingrich’s work for Freddie Mac, a government backed agency that he has demonized. Notwithstanding that, from 1999 to 2008, he received $1.6- $1.8 million from this organization, but denies lobbying for them and says that he was merely a “consultant” to help Freddie Mac deal with conservatives in Congress. Questions have also arisen about Gingrich’s contracts with several other firms and contradictory stances in regard to his work.
But Gingrich’s behavior is not as surprising as the willingness of a large number of citizens to support him in spite of what he has done and said. Perhaps it is an indication that ideology matters more to some voters than character. It may also be the result of de-sensitization, where all politicians are seen by the electorate as unethical if not corrupt, making it important to at least back someone with a similar viewpoint. But should someone like Gingrich even be considered for the highest office in the United States?
Maybe the main problem with American politics is not the partisanship and ideologic rigidity visible every day, but its politicians’ lack of character. If our political system is to be transformed, ethical conduct and moral compass must count. Until the public demands stringent ethical standards from its elected officials, it will get highly flawed men and women running for office and nothing will change.
A VietNam vet and a Columbia history major who became a medical doctor, Bob Levine has watched the evolution of American politics over the past 40 years with increasing alarm. He knows he’s not alone. Partisan grid-lock, massive cash contributions and even more massive expenditures on lobbyists have undermined real democracy, and there is more than just a whiff of corruption emanating from Washington. If the nation is to overcome lockstep partisanship, restore growth to the economy and bring its debt under control, Levine argues that it will require a strong centrist third party to bring about the necessary reforms. Levine’s previous book, Shock Therapy For the American Health Care System took a realist approach to health care from a physician’s informed point of view; Resurrecting Democracy takes a similar pragmatic approach, putting aside ideology and taking a hard look at facts on the ground. In his latest book, Levine shines a light that cuts through the miasma of party propaganda and reactionary thinking, and reveals a new path for American politics. This post is cross posted from his blog.