So… Will Clinton Reject or Denounce Him?
Not long after Eliot Spitzer took office, Radley Balko wrote in disgust about Eliot Spitzer's arrogance—particularly how he called himself "fucking steamroller." If the metaphor police got another crack at him, they'd probably label him a "fucking tar pit." Spitzer endorsed Hillary Clinton, his home-state senator, only a few months into her presidential bid. Two months later Spitzer was exposed for using state resources to spy on his political archenemy. A few months after that Spitzer tried to ram through a driver's licensing program for undocumented workers: When Clinton was asked about it in an October debate, her fumbling answer started her decline in the polls.
Obviously, Clinton had nothing to any of Spitzer's transgressions, crimes, and stumbles. When Spitzer was riding high, on his way to winning a 40-point landslide to become governor of New York, I analyzed his autocratic style and tried to see experimental federalism. I'd say this scandal—assuming Spitzer did not abuse his power to cover it up—is the least of his offenses. New York and national Democrats should still feel a twinge of shame for enabling his antics.
Much-discussed GOP fixer Roger Stone warned us about Spitzer back in December, in a video you can see at Reason.tv.
For a sample of the sanctimonious promises that led Spitzer to this place, here's one of his 2006 ads.
The ad's producer, Jimmy Siegel, now works for Clinton. (Spitzer promised that government would change "on Day One" of his reign. Clinton, of course, is "Ready on Day One.")
