2008 — Year of the Prostitute?

I thought that headline might get your attention. I’m just amazed at the number of high-profile political scandals that have arisen lately dealing with high-priced call-girls (and in some cases, not-so-high-priced ones).

Just when I thought it was safe to go back into the bathroom stall and settle into my wide stance, I hear that Sen. Debbie Stabenow’s (D-Mich.) husband was paying $150 for a hooker to turn tricks in a Michigan hotel. Heck, I think the room was more expensive than the call-girl … a Residence Inn? I can just see the look on Eliot Spitzer’s face based on the thousands he paid for the same “treatment.” What about the current New York governor, David Paterson? I think his first official declaration was that he had engaged in extramarital affairs “numerous times.” So much for a State of the State address.

Seriously, folks, this is getting out of hand. And don’t give me that jive that “everyone’s doing it, just more are getting caught.” Even if that’s the case, those in the public eye and political spotlight should know better. When you commit to leaving your house, evading your spouse for hours, and holing up in a no-tell motel for a night of illicit fun, you have to be pretty sneaky and downright premeditated.

What I’m saying here is that actions have consequences. Before you make a move in the wrong direction, you should weigh the consequences. Just a small bit of forethought may be enough to convince someone thinking of straying that there is no clean way out of this mess just waiting for you when you exit that hotel room, believing no one is watching.

No matter how cheap or dear a hooker costs, there is a higher price to pay. Notwithstanding the emotional toll on the families, I would argue that the public trust is harmed even more. Why? Because they have already come to view the average politician as crooked and corrupt. Adding “sexually depraved” to that slate of views only makes a public servant’s job that much more difficult to carry out.

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