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twitterTHE SENATOR’S SCANDAL :
In D.C., some worry Ensign saga is not over
Reid and McConnell, meanwhile, stop short of showing public support
Wednesday, July 15, 2009 | 2 a.m.
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Sun Archives
- Ensign to stay in Senate, seek reelection (7-14-2009)
- Silence, not calls for Ensign to quit (7-12-2009)
- If shockers done, Ensign could stay in office, many say (7-11-2009)
- GOP support for Ensign dwindles as new details of affair emerge (7-10-2009)
- Ensign's parents gave Hampton family $96,000 (7-9-2009)
- Hampton portrays Ensign as relentless (7-9-2009)
- Ensign’s pal lacked usual qualifications for top job (7-5-2009)
- Handling the public display of contrition (6-27-2009)
- Off the cuff, Ensign guarded but genial (6-26-2009)
- Fox News had Hampton’s letter earlier than it said (6-24-2009)
- For Ensign, a new lot in Congress (6-24-2009)
- Ensign apologizes during lunch with GOP senators (6-23-2009)
- Back in Washington, Ensign received warmly (6-23-2009)
- Ensign back in D.C.; group plans ethics complaint (6-22-2009)
- In state GOP, Ensign finds few defenders (6-21-09)
Washington — The story of Republican Sen. John Ensign’s affair has entered an uneasy space in the Capitol, as the shock over the revelation that his parents paid the woman’s family has subsided, but colleagues and supporters remain nervous that the story is not over.
Ensign told the Las Vegas Sun this week that he plans to remain in office and to seek reelection in 2012, suggesting that his peers and Senate leaders on both sides of the political aisle have encouraged him to stand tall.
Yet when asked Tuesday whether he would support those efforts, the Senate’s Republican leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, again declined to throw his support to the one-time member of his leadership team.
“I think Sen. Ensign will have to speak to those issues himself,” McConnell said when asked by the Sun. It was the second time in less than a week that McConnell had sidestepped such questions.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has spoken to Ensign, but his spokesman said Reid believes “this is Ensign’s own personal decision to make.” The two senators have an agreement not to criticize each other publicly.
At a dinner meeting of Republican Party activists in Las Vegas this week, no member of the party’s central committee called for a formal rebuke or censure of Ensign.
The party has a shallow bench in Nevada, and Ensign has long been the most popular elected official in the state. He might ride out the scandal much the way Republican Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana has been able to prepare for his reelection in 2010 just a short time after the conservative lawmaker admitted having visited a prostitute.
That is, unless the Ensign story continues.
“There’s a nervousness that maybe the full story has not been told,” said a Republican strategist from Nevada. “Most people think there’s another shoe to drop.”
Another Nevada Republican said “people are just anxious for it to be over.”
Ensign appeared more confident this week, emboldened, as he stepped off the Senate floor into the busy main foyer, rather than slipping out side exits as he had done when he first went public with his affair.
On Tuesday, Ensign, with his youngest son in tow, stopped briefly to chat with reporters and sign the cast of one, engaging in upbeat banter before heading into his party’s weekly policy lunch.
Ensign disclosed last week that his parents paid $96,000 to the family of the woman, Cynthia Hampton, around the time she and her husband, Doug Hampton, stopped working for him in April 2008.
Cynthia Hampton had been the senator’s campaign treasurer and Doug Hampton had been one of Ensign’s top aides.
Yet questions remain, including whether investigations into the payments and the circumstances surrounding the woman’s departure from the senator’s staff will be under way.
An ethics group in Washington has filed complaints with the Federal Election Commission and the Senate Ethics Committee, and asked for a criminal investigation by the Justice Department.
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington raises questions about possible sexual harassment in the woman’s departure and alleges a potential felony violation of campaign finance law if Ensign paid the woman a severance, as her husband claims, but failed to report it as would be required under campaign finance law.
Ensign has insisted the payments from his parents to the woman, her husband and two of their three children were given and accepted as gifts.
New details also could arise if Cynthia Hampton breaks her silence and speaks out about the affair, or if the Hamptons file a lawsuit, which they apparently are considering.
On Tuesday, more information emerged about the confrontation between Ensign and his peers during which they sought to put an end to the affair. The meeting took place at the Christian group residence he shares on Capitol Hill.
Former Republican Rep. Steve Largent of Oklahoma told the Tulsa World that he and the others intervened because Ensign was “wandering off the reservation.”
Largent said that although the men at the residence help to keep one another in line, the direct confrontation of a lawmaker was unusual.
“In my perspective, particularly in this environment when you are talking about members of Congress, guys in office just don’t get confronted that often, particularly by their peers,” Largent said.
Largent said the goal was to persuade Ensign to end the affair and allow his family to repair itself. The paper reported that Largent said the group left unsure of its effect on Ensign, but that eventually the meeting produced a “good result.”
The former NFL star said Doug Hampton was not present for the confrontation and Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn, who arranged the meeting, did not suggest any payment as restitution to the family, as Doug Hampton claimed in a TV interview last week with Las Vegas Sun columnist Jon Ralston.
“I think learning of the money situation was a shock to everybody,” Largent told the paper, referring to the $96,000 payment.
Coburn has confirmed he was at the February 2008 intervention, but strongly denied he suggested a payment, saying he counseled Ensign to end the affair and repair the damage.
Largent no longer lives at the C Street house but remains close to his colleagues, attending weekly dinner and counseling sessions, he told the paper. The conservative Republican served in Congress from 1994 to 2002.
Ensign has been among the harsher critics of other lawmakers who have had affairs, calling on President Bill Clinton to resign over the Monica Lewinsky scandal and more recently trying to push out former Sen. Larry Craig, the Republican who declined to seek reelection in Idaho after pleading guilty to disorderly conduct after his arrest on charges that he sought sex from a plainclothes police officer in a men’s room at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
Sun reporter J. Patrick Coolican contributed to this story.
Discussion: 23 comments so far…
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It hits a little too close to home for a lot of the holier-than-thou politicians. Time to get a real job.
From the article: "Ensign told the Las Vegas Sun this week that he plans to remain in office and to seek reelection in 2012, suggesting that his peers and Senate leaders on both sides of the political aisle have encouraged him to stand tall."
--
Really? Is Senator Ensign lying or are there really other Senators who think Ensign is "standing tall?" Who are these Senators "on both sides of the political aisle," Senator?
I'd really like some names. Who on earth would call Ensign's utter lack of shame after his lying, cheating, bribery and hypocrisy, "standing tall?"
--
From the article: "[Former Representative Steve Largent (R-OK)]said Doug Hampton was not present for the confrontation and Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn, who arranged the meeting, did not suggest any payment as restitution to the family, as Doug Hampton claimed in a TV interview last week with Las Vegas Sun columnist Jon Ralston."
--
I'm not a lawyer but it looks like Senator Coburn (R-OK) plans to claim that the payments or bribes he allegedly proposed are a-ok as long as you call them "gifts" and not "payment as restitution."
Senator Coburn has declared that he will never, ever testify in court or to the Senate Ethics Committee about his alleged proposal to pay off the Hamptons, but I think he's skating on thin ice with his claim that he possesses some kind of double special immunity as a deacon and a former OB-GYN.
What Dr. Deacon Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) doesn't realize is that claiming a doctor/patient relationship or a clergy shield doesn't protect him from prosecution for his own illegal actions.
If Coburn proposed the payment of hush money to cover up what might arguably be sexual harassment, that's probably illegal. It could be a conspiracy and it might involve mail/wire fraud. Who knows what else.
I hope Dr. Senator Deacon Coburn (R-OK) not only supports a full investigation of this but that he also changes his mind and agrees to cooperate fully. I'm sure he'd say that he and Senator Ensign and everyone else involved have got nothing else to hide, right?
Probably time the media and those on the HILL worry about the economy and unemployment, since those two areas are more important to 90% of America.
Mia,
When people go to Confession, they can confess crimes with total confidentiality. If Coburn counseled Ensign, then he does not have to discuss it with anyone else.
I understand that henderson, but when somebody goes to confession, I don't think their deacon/ob-gyn is shielded if they conspire to violate campaign finance laws or suggest ways to cover up what might arguably be sexual harassment.
I'm sure you'll agree that an investigation is warranted to clear his name now that Senator Ensign has decided get back to business as usual, henderson.
"Probably time the media and those on the HILL worry about the economy and unemployment, since those two areas are more important to 90% of America."
Bet you weren't saying that in '98 when you were screaming for Clinton's resignation. The chickens come home to roost.
I don't agree that Coburn should be investigated at all. I think Doug Hampton went to him because he is a "good man," (Doug Hampton's words, not mine) and told him of the situation. I believe that Coburn tried to get Ensign to end his affair. I don't believe for a moment that Coburn told Ensign he should give "millions of dollars" to the Hamptons, "pay off their million dollar home", and "relocate them to Colorado."
I think that's probably what Doug Hampton wanted, but I don't think there's even a chance that Coburn would have dispensed this advice to Ensign. As a Deacon, Coburn does not have to reveal what they discussed. I know you don't like it, but that's how it works.
Get your bumper stickers:
"AIN'T NO SIN, LIKE ENSIGN."
"John Ensign is Running for Re-Erection."
"Spay and Neuter Our Veterinarian Senator."
"I'll Trade You One Mistress For a Senate Seat."
"Protect Marriage from Mistresses"
"ENSIGN: MY OB/GYN SAYS I'M GOOD TO GO AGAIN!"
I like "Spay and Neuter Our Veterinarian Senator." But I would like to know more about that mysterious week he disappeared a few years back to handle "family business." That's probably why no one will come out in support of Ensign. They know he's hiding more and that it will come out eventually.
I have asked Senator Ensign for help with a cover-up by Msha Boulder NV office(Tim Fisher) and NV Mine Safety and Training Section(Ed Tomany and Jeff Bixler) To this day the Senator has helped with the cover-up. Where is the Help Senator Ensign? Paul Rupp B125 SP NV 89047
Senator Ensign is not alone in a cover-up of the truth. A letter was handed to Gov. Gibbons asking for help to investigate the unlawful cover-up by NV Mine Safety and Training Section(Ed Tomany and Jeff Bixler) for safety violations and false safety records here in the Nevada Mining industry. It appears Both Senator Ensign and Gov. Jim Gibbons are indeed birds of a stained feather.
Doesn't matter if he's voted out, another bozo that could give a crap about Nevada will be voted in. How about focusing on getting rid of Harry Reid, what has he done for Nevada?
henderson writes: "As a Deacon, Coburn does not have to reveal what they discussed. I know you don't like it, but that's how it works."
Are you a legal expert, henderson? I'm not.
But I'm pretty sure that Dr. Senator Deacon Coburn (R-OK) cannot conspire to commit a crime and seek immunity by hiding behind his crucifix, if that's the case.
Hopefully, Dr. Senator Deacon Coburn will change his mind and cooperate fully with an investigation into this matter.
It's obvious that you're not a legal expert, there is no evidence that Coburn did anything other than try to counsel a fellow Christian.
Even if Coburn did say, "I think you should pay Doug Hampton millions, pay off his house, and move him to Colorado," that is not criminal. It's terrible advice, but not against the law.
I find it very hard to believe that Coburn said that, and I find it very hard to believe that you really think he said it. I think you're just looking to knock out two conservatives for the price of one.
Unless there are ethics violations that stick against Ensign, Coburn will not even be dragged into any kind of investigation.
As clergy, he reserves the right to not discuss his private counseling sessions in court. This has been challenged several times, and the courts always rule in favor of confidentiality.
Sorry. You're seriously barking up a tree to nowhere.
henderson writes: "Even if Coburn did say, "I think you should pay Doug Hampton millions, pay off his house, and move him to Colorado," that is not criminal."
We don't know what Dr. Senator Deacon Tom Coburn told Senator Ensign at the Promise Keeper intervention meeting; all we have are allegations and denials.
It may be criminal if Dr. Senator Deacon Coburn and Senator Ensign hatched plan to surreptitiously pay the hush money from Senator Ensign's campaign coffers or his senatorial staff budget, but as I say, I'm not a legal expert, henderson.
But if that's the case, I don't think Dr. Deacon's double sacred shield will protect him if they conspired to violate the law while he was meeting with the group to hear Ensign's confessions.
It just looks mighty fishy the way Senator Deacon Doctor Coburn jumps up and says he ain't talking because he's an ob/gyn and a deacon too and Hampton is a liar but he won't ever testify.
Mighty fishy.
You believe Doug Hampton, and that's what Doug Hampton said happened, even though he wasn't there.
The only money in question at this point, is the $25,000 severance pay, and the $96,000 that came from Ensign's parents. There will surely be in investigation into these funds and how they were paid to the Hamptons.
There is no evidence of any kind that Senator Coburn has done anything wrong. I know you don't like it sweetie, but if he doesn't want to disclose what was said, he NEVER has to and NOBODY can make him.
benighse....
priceless!
lol
how about: "It's the Hypocrisy, Stupid!"
Where is the help Senator Ensign?
Going to have to work real hard now?
Where is the help Senator?
Mia, Henderson, Please! Stop the Insanity! The solution to this is very simple - Shave Ensign's ass and make him walk backward through the Senate. Oh, wait, that just might excite him...
Too funny! I really am enjoying the sight of these self-righteous twits scrambling to keep their butts covered.
I hope C.R.E.W. barbecues Ensign. He's a spoiled, rich, frat-boy turd who needs to be brought to earth.
Go team!
Steve Largent's had one too many footballs bounce off his helmet. What is it with these evangelical whack-job Republicans?
There's nothing sinister about the C Street Fellowship. The group just believes that "love thy neighbor" trumps the Ten Commandments if you're rich, white, male and Republican.
See:
http://notionscapital.wordpress.com/2009...
Who would publically support him? Asking these other politicians does not make sense. If someone does support him, he or she will likely not say publically.
It is more important to uncover the veil of secrecy that allows these men to deceive the public so easily. The system needs to be taken apart and destroyed. A politician running on a platform of higher morale authority must prove his/her worthiness. few can but most will simply fail short while others (such as Ensign) blatantly manipulate the public for their own self engrandiosement.
Their families are most often just props. Wives are generally in the loop bt the children are unaware of their parents deceit.
jsayler@twitter.com