Sen. Ensign deeply regrets affair

Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) said Tuesday that he deeply regrets engaging in an extramarital affair with a campaign staffer.
 
“I take full responsibility for my actions,” Ensign said in a statement. “I know that I have deeply hurt and disappointed my wife, my children, my family, my friends, my staff and the people of Nevada who believed in me not just as a legislator but as a person. I deeply regret and am very sorry for my actions.”

{mosads}Ensign, who is up for reelection in 2012, indicated he will not leave the Senate.

“I am committed to my service in the United States Senate and my work on behalf of the people of Nevada,” Ensign said at a press conference in Las Vegas. He did not take questions.
 
Ensign’s office also released a statement from his wife, Darlene, who said she and her husband “have worked through the situation and we have come to a reconciliation. This has been difficult on both families. With the help of our family and close friends our marriage has become stronger. I love my husband.”
 
An aide has indicated that the affair took place for an extended period of time between December 2007 and August 2008. The aide said neither the woman nor her husband, who also worked for Ensign, has been employed by the senator since May 2008.

Sources said the woman worked on Ensign’s campaign staff and her husband was an adviser to the senator.
 
Ensign did not name the woman but said she “and her husband were close friends of mine.”

Multiple reports indicated Ensign made the announcement because he was being threatened with extortion. Ensign reportedly told fellow senators the news before he left Washington on Tuesday to fly back to Las Vegas for the announcement.

Just a month ago, Ensign was being talked up as a potential presidential candidate thanks to a visit he made to the early-presidential primary state of Iowa.

— Reid Wilson contributed to this article. 

— This story was updated at 7:47 p.m.