Just in the last week, two Christian politicians admitted to having affairs, but their wives were noticeably absent from the press conferences.
Yesterday, Governor of South Carolina Mark Sanford admitted that he had an affair with a Argentinean woman, and last week, Nevada Senator John Ensign confessed to having an affair with a staff member of his campaign. Sanford has previously called the evangelical Seacoast Church his home church, and Ensign was active with Promise Keepers.
Politico outlines how most politicians’ wives have stood by their mournful husbands in recent years:
The traditional rule book for adultery damage control always recommends something like this: cheating candidate confesses, sheds a tear if he can (and it has always been a he), and then pleads for mercy with a pained, tight-lipped wife standing mutely by his side.
That’s how Suzanne Craig handled it when her husband, then Idaho Republican Sen. Larry Craig, admitted that he plead guilty to disorderly conduct after he was arrested for lewd behavior in a men’s bathroom stall. Louisiana Republican Sen. David Vitter came clean about his involvement in a Washington, D.C. prostitution ring with his wife, Wendy Baldwin Vitter, standing next to him. And a shellshocked Silda Wall Spitzer, stood next to her husband, then-New York Governor Elliot Spitzer, after he was caught on a federal wire-tap soliciting a high-priced prostitute.
In both Ensign’s and Sanford’s case, the wives issued statements about their husband’s affair, indicating their support despite their absence from the public spotlight.
Jenny Sanford said her husband had been separated for two weeks so she could “maintain my dignity, self-respect, and my basic sense of right and wrong,” but he has earned a chance to resurrect their marriage. Part of Sanford’s statement:
Psalm 127 states that sons are a gift from the Lord and children a reward from Him. I will continue to pour my energy into raising our sons to be honorable young men. I remain willing to forgive Mark completely for his indiscretions and to welcome him back, in time, if he continues to work toward reconciliation with a true spirit of humility and repentance.
This is a very painful time for us and I would humbly request now that members of the media respect the privacy of my boys and me as we struggle together to continue on with our lives and as I seek the wisdom of Solomon, the strength and patience of Job and the grace of God in helping to heal my family.
Darlene Ensign: “Since we found out last year we have worked through the situation and we have come to a reconciliation. This has been difficult on both families. With the help of our family and close friends our marriage has become stronger. I love my husband.”
What do you think? Should spouses stand by each other during a public confession?
