Elliot Spitzer, Meet David Vitter, Larry Craig and Mark Foley

And the hypocrisy machine rolls on.

The news on Elliot Spitzer isn't even half a day old and already there are all sorts of Republicans out there demanding the resignation of Elliot Spitzer who, by the look of things, engaged/employed prostitutes, possibly in violation of the Mann Act, making him subject to Federal prosecution. Pardon me if I don't joing the clamoring throng of people wanting to see Spitzer's head on a stick. I know what Spitzer did was wrong, illegal, possibly immoral (depending on what you believe) and breathtakingly stupid but, hey, he's a Demcorat and sex scandals are our thing.

What I want to know is, where was all this Republican outrage over David Vitter, famous Louisiana Senator and prostitute enthusiast? When Vitter admitted his sins, all the Republican talking heads and their giant noise machine jumped up and down angrily about how Vitter was being railroaded and he didn't have to resign over this because it was a personal matter. Before Mark Foley was forced to quit, Dennis Hastert and the Republican leadership turned a blind eye to Foley's clumsy passes at male Congressional interns. Larry Craig is STILL a member of the US Senate despite having PLEADED GUILTY to "disturbing the peace" in an incident apparently stemming from an attempt to engage in gay anonymous sex in a public bathroom. And, of course, the Republicans made inevitable comparisons to Ted Kennedy and Bill Clinton and their attendant sex scandals.

But now they want Spitzer's blood. They don't have the balls to demand that Vitter resign for doing the same thing lest it give the Democrats a larger majority in the Senate but they are happy to take shots at Spitzer. They were impotent in the face of Craig's desire to remain in the Senate despite all of what he had done. One big difference, of course, was that they paid lip service to wanting Craig gone because they knew Craig's replacement would be selected by a Republican governor but they also knew that if Vitter quit, he would be replaced by a Democrat.

Don't get me wrong; I'm not defending Spitzer. I'm not certain I think he should resign, but I'm not defending him. But Spitzer, who did run on a platform of accountability and stamping out political corruption has never, unlike Vitter, run on a "family values" or "morality" platform. Vitter and Craig both spent so much time railing against gays and people who would destroy our family values but I just do not recall anything like that coming from Spitzer.

So, please, excuse me if I find it difficult to get too wrapped up in all the Reoublican calls for Spitzer's head. You Republicans go clean up your house first and then we can talk.

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Just so we are clear, let's have a brief rundown of what all the recent and relatively recent sex scandals were about.

Elliot Spitzer: Apparently paid prostitutes for sex although nothing has yet been disclosed. While he has gained political fame for running on an anti-corruption platform, he has not run on a "family values" platform or attacked others for their beliefs on gay marriage or sex outside mariage.

Mark Foley: Forced to resign rom his House seat when it became clear that he was sexually pursuing underage boys who were in the US Capital page program.

David Vitter: Ran on a platform of "family values." His own wife made comparisons between herself and Hilalry Clinton about how much better her marriage was and what punishment she would inflict on her husband if she found out he had been cheating as Bill Clinton had been cheating. Has, I believe, admitted to sexual involvement with prostitutes.

Larry Craig: Criminally charged as a result of an incident involving him cruising for anonymous gay sex in the Minneapolis airport. Later pleaded guilty to disturbing the peace. When the plea was found out ny the public, he attempted to withdraw it and stayed in the Senate. Remains in the Senate despite being unable to withdraw his plea.

So, both parties have sex scandals and both parties act hypocritically in terms of trying to get people to resign as a result of the scandals. The only real difference I can see here is that all those Republicans (except maybe Foley) have run on platforms that put their own personal conduct up to scrutiny. At least Elliott Spitzer isn't one of those guys talking about family values while fucking a hooker. Yes, Vitter, I am talking to you.