Published: Friday, August 27, 2010
When personal problems become public news
Wednesday happened to be the first anniversary of the death of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. That has nothing to do with Snohomish County, but it brings to mind the sometimes troubled intersection of politicians' public and private lives.
Private problems made headlines before Stephanie Wright was chosen by the Snohomish County Council as its newest member. Wright, until she was chosen Tuesday for an open County Council seat, was on the Lynnwood City Council.
In an apparent move to squelch her chance of winning the seat, an attorney hired by an undisclosed client last week e-mailed documents involving Wright and her husband to media outlets.
Those records, according to an article by Herald writer Noah Haglund, show: Wright and her husband were sued in 2009 by American Express Centurion Bank over nearly $27,000 in credit card debt; and Wright's husband was arrested in 2000 on a charge related to arranging a marijuana purchase, a charge dismissed after he completed drug court.
The recent revelations didn't keep county councilmen from choosing Wright, on a 4-0 vote, over two other Democratic Party nominees.
Credit card debt problems are nothing compared with the dirty linen in the late Sen. Kennedy's past. Kennedy lived much of his political life in the dark shadow of the Chappaquiddick incident.
It was the summer of 1969 when the body of Mary Jo Kopechne was found in a submerged car owned by the Massachusetts senator, who told police he had accidentally driven off a bridge near Martha's Vineyard. Kennedy pleaded guilty to leaving the scene; his two-month jail sentence was suspended.
Watching a TV news report about Kennedy on Wednesday, I was struck by his long and distinguished Senate career despite the most tragic and extreme political scandal in my memory. No matter how you viewed Kennedy's political views, he was indisputably an effective lawmaker.
All of it -- Wright's personal finances or former President Bill Clinton's sexual liaisons -- raises perennial questions. When do problems of private life matter in public life? Do voters care what elected officials do when they're not serving the public?
Travis Ridout is an associate professor of political science at Washington State University. When I spoke with him Thursday about the disclosure of documents involving Wright and her husband, his general opinion was that unless a problem is job-related the public doesn't much care.
"Honestly, I don't think people find it all that interesting. It's not public money. And a lot of people could see themselves in a similar situation," Ridout said about Wright's debt. "If it's a private scandal, something that doesn't affect public money or performance in office, people don't want to go too far with that."
Ridout also said the public doesn't hold politicians responsible for their families' behavior. "People separate the spouse or the children from a candidate," he said.
Coverage of politicians' personal lives has evolved with changes in society and media.
"Until the 1970s, sure reporters knew about private lives, but they didn't think it was relevant to talk about. Politicians got away with a lot," he said.
Ridout said that after a sex scandal dashed Gary Hart's presidential run in 1987, mainstream media outlets were compelled to check rumors. In January of this year, a Washington Post article focused on the tabloid National Enquirer's initial coverage of former presidential contender John Edwards, who admitted fathering a child outside his marriage.
Dirt doesn't necessarily sink a political career, Ridout said.
"I do think it's changing. We can't 'tsk-tsk' when half of marriages end in divorce," Ridout said. "And maybe we can put ourselves in that politician's position -- with credit cards."
David Nice, another WSU political science professor, answered questions by e-mail.
"We sometimes see relatively consistent conduct between private actions and public conduct," Nice wrote. "However, there are sometimes large gaps between public and private activities. Richard Nixon seems to have been pretty trustworthy in his private actions, but he didn't seem to think ethical guidelines mattered in politics."
In the end, each voter decides what matters.
As for our personal lives, who really wants to cast that first stone?
Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460, muhlstein@heraldnet.com.
Private problems made headlines before Stephanie Wright was chosen by the Snohomish County Council as its newest member. Wright, until she was chosen Tuesday for an open County Council seat, was on the Lynnwood City Council.
In an apparent move to squelch her chance of winning the seat, an attorney hired by an undisclosed client last week e-mailed documents involving Wright and her husband to media outlets.
Those records, according to an article by Herald writer Noah Haglund, show: Wright and her husband were sued in 2009 by American Express Centurion Bank over nearly $27,000 in credit card debt; and Wright's husband was arrested in 2000 on a charge related to arranging a marijuana purchase, a charge dismissed after he completed drug court.
The recent revelations didn't keep county councilmen from choosing Wright, on a 4-0 vote, over two other Democratic Party nominees.
Credit card debt problems are nothing compared with the dirty linen in the late Sen. Kennedy's past. Kennedy lived much of his political life in the dark shadow of the Chappaquiddick incident.
It was the summer of 1969 when the body of Mary Jo Kopechne was found in a submerged car owned by the Massachusetts senator, who told police he had accidentally driven off a bridge near Martha's Vineyard. Kennedy pleaded guilty to leaving the scene; his two-month jail sentence was suspended.
Watching a TV news report about Kennedy on Wednesday, I was struck by his long and distinguished Senate career despite the most tragic and extreme political scandal in my memory. No matter how you viewed Kennedy's political views, he was indisputably an effective lawmaker.
All of it -- Wright's personal finances or former President Bill Clinton's sexual liaisons -- raises perennial questions. When do problems of private life matter in public life? Do voters care what elected officials do when they're not serving the public?
Travis Ridout is an associate professor of political science at Washington State University. When I spoke with him Thursday about the disclosure of documents involving Wright and her husband, his general opinion was that unless a problem is job-related the public doesn't much care.
"Honestly, I don't think people find it all that interesting. It's not public money. And a lot of people could see themselves in a similar situation," Ridout said about Wright's debt. "If it's a private scandal, something that doesn't affect public money or performance in office, people don't want to go too far with that."
Ridout also said the public doesn't hold politicians responsible for their families' behavior. "People separate the spouse or the children from a candidate," he said.
Coverage of politicians' personal lives has evolved with changes in society and media.
"Until the 1970s, sure reporters knew about private lives, but they didn't think it was relevant to talk about. Politicians got away with a lot," he said.
Ridout said that after a sex scandal dashed Gary Hart's presidential run in 1987, mainstream media outlets were compelled to check rumors. In January of this year, a Washington Post article focused on the tabloid National Enquirer's initial coverage of former presidential contender John Edwards, who admitted fathering a child outside his marriage.
Dirt doesn't necessarily sink a political career, Ridout said.
"I do think it's changing. We can't 'tsk-tsk' when half of marriages end in divorce," Ridout said. "And maybe we can put ourselves in that politician's position -- with credit cards."
David Nice, another WSU political science professor, answered questions by e-mail.
"We sometimes see relatively consistent conduct between private actions and public conduct," Nice wrote. "However, there are sometimes large gaps between public and private activities. Richard Nixon seems to have been pretty trustworthy in his private actions, but he didn't seem to think ethical guidelines mattered in politics."
In the end, each voter decides what matters.
As for our personal lives, who really wants to cast that first stone?
Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460, muhlstein@heraldnet.com.
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