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Editorial
Character flaws end career for another politician
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Just like that, U.S. Rep. Christopher Lee of New York is gone.
Representing himself as a divorced lobbyist, Lee, a family-values, married Republican congressman, was exposed after responding to a Craigslist post with a cheesy cell-phone picture of his bare-chested self. He didn't fool the woman he was exchanging e-mails with, though, and she turned a photo over to the Gawker gossip website, which led to his downfall.
Sex scandals are as old as humanity, but are especially condemning for someone from Lee's end of the political spectrum.
Lee was a businessman before he won his seat in the House in 2008, and earned an 88 percent approval rating from the American Conservative Union for his 2010 votes. He voted against abortion funding in the health care overhaul, against repealing the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy in the military, and has been active in economic revitalization issues.
He was also an important supporter of the families of victims of a Buffalo commuter airline crash, and related safety reforms.
Now, thanks to his misguided libido, people who voted for him and depended on him to champion their causes, have been left out in the cold.
Yes, Lee was right in resigning, but the reason is just as much his stupidity as his moral failings.
His downfall should serve as a warning to voters to pay as much or more attention to a candidate's personal integrity as his or her stand on the issues.