The Washington Post is now reporting that Republican John Ensign of Nevada had an extramarital affair. Check out the Washington Post Website!!!!Washington Post
THE POLITICO IS REPORTING THAT HE WAS POSSIBLY BLACKMAILED!!!
The Politico
Sen. John Ensign today acknowledged an extramarital affair with a member of his campaign staff, according to several Nevada Republican sources.
Ensign told the Associated Press, "I deeply regret and am very sorry for my actions."
An aide in Ensign's office said the affair took place between December 2007 and August 2008, with a campaign staffer who was married to an employee in Ensign's Senate office. Neither have worked for the senator since May 2008. The aide spoke on condition of anonymity. The aide declined to comment on Ensign's political future.
(h/t Kitty)
According to Cilliza:
Sources in Washington and Nevada say Republican Sen. John Ensign, a rising star in the Republican Party considering a 2012 presidential bid will hold a press conference later today in which he will acknowledge an extramarital affair.
Ensign, a member of the Senate GOP leadership, flew back to his native Las Vegas today in anticipation of the public announcement, sources said, missing a vote considered key to the Nevada tourist industry.
Two senior GOP political strategists, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter, said the announcement was imminent. They declined to say with whom Ensign had the affair.
In February 2002, Ensign took an unexplained two week leave of absence from the Senate citing "personal reasons."
When he returned from that respite, Ensign told the Las Vegas Sun that he was "not making any comments one way or the other. I'm just asking people to respect my privacy."
Here is the link to the Las Vegas Sun Article
Another example of Ensign's hypocrisy now looking back...
Seventeen-year-old Ally Reith questioned the senator’s stance on gay marriage.
"In 2006, you voted yes on a constitutional ban on gay marriage," she said. "How do you justify your stance against homosexuality when you have continually used the same old rhetoric that adheres to the idea of marriage as a fundamental institution, when 50 percent of marriages end in divorce?"
Ensign acknowledged what he called Nevada’s "libertarian streak," the desire to keep the federal government out of people’s personal lives. However, he said every study he’s seen shows that children benefit from having parents in a traditional marriage.
"From a societal standpoint, it’s ideal," he said. "And that’s what the government should endorse.
(h/t cadejo4)
According to Wikipedia Ensign won his last election over Jack Carter in 2006 55% to 41%, with Nevada's strong Democratic trend, coupled with his infidelity the Hypocritical Senator from Nevada may have a real challenge on his hand, or maybe a sudden retirement for 2010? At least one good thing for the Republicans, one less crappy Republican running for their 2012 Presidential nomination.