All I have to say about Eliot Spitzer

I have very little to say about the soon-to-be-former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer. Most of what I do have to say is obvious, and I’m sure that anyone who’s read this blog before or has glanced over anything on the sidebars knows the gist of my position — he committed crimes and should resign. I applaud the Legislature for moving on impeachment, and I’m glad that Gov. Spitzer spared the state that ordeal.

However, I listened to his press conference this morning at which he announced his resignation, and one thing in particular struck me — he spoke from the diaphragm, he spoke firmly and confidently. He talked about what he’s done well and wanted to make sure that anyone listening thought about him as a good person. He also never identified what he had done wrong.

On the one hand, I understand this. He doesn’t want this press conference to be admitted as evidence when he goes to trial. On the other hand, it puts the lie to his statement that he sincerely apologizes. When one apologizes, one has to apologize for something. Confession is part of the process. Reading the transcript, you’ll note that he carefully avoids identifying what he did wrong.

For example, I’m sorry that I didn’t do the dishes yesterday. My wife hates it when dishes are piled in the sink, and I left the sinks quite full (when I cook, step 1 is “Dirty every dish in the kitchen”). I didn’t clean them, though. That’s something that I neglected, and so I apologize. Specifically. I’m not apologizing for some vague and nebulous something …

Gov. Spitzer was a well-known and powerful prosecutor. He was also ruthless and arrogant. While he did a quantity of good, he left a lot of wreckage behind him. He ruined a lot of people that he never prosecuted. Did they deserve to be ruined? I don’t know. What I do know is that Spitzer shows that he enjoyed wrecking his victims. Apparently, it was not so much a love of justice as it was a love of power.

Beyond this, his wording shows a desire to remind the listeners about his virtues. He wants his resignation to look magnanimous, so that we give him credit for stepping down, despite the fact that he’s stepping down because of his involvement in criminal activity, beside his moral bankruptcy.

Think of the last time that you have apologized to someone. Did you stand up straight, speak from the bottom of your lungs, and pronounce, “I apologize for falling short of your expectation. Please think of the good that I’ve done”?

No. You could barely make eye contact with the person to whom you were apologizing. Your voice cracked, and was soft. You weren’t the strong one at this point. That is exactly why I know that Gov. Spitzer is sorry that he got caught … he’s not apologizing to the people of New York.

This is how politicians speak, and I know it. It doesn’t mean that I have to play along. I expect honesty and integrity in political leaders … and I have no use for this kind of false profession.

I know that a lot of people will say one thing or the other about his wife sticking with him. I judge not. She has to make her own decision, and she doesn’t owe anything to the rest of the world in terms of being some kind of role model. Forgiveness is a virtue, too, and I find it despicable the number of Republicans who are coming down on her for not walking out on him immediately. At the same time … she’s within her rights if she does so. She gets an absolute pass from me.

I have no desire to hear or talk about Gov. Spitzer for a long amount of time … I almost didn’t want to put this post up. We’ll see what happens.

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