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twitterCOMMENTARY:
What might result from a national airing of Ensign’s dirty laundry
Sunday, Nov. 22, 2009 | 2 a.m.
Mark down 8:35 p.m. PT Monday: That’s when the plug will be pulled on John Ensign’s grand delusion, the moment, as the Wachowski brothers might appreciate, that the Matrix is revealed and the grotesque reality becomes unavoidable.
As ABC’s “Nightline” begins a half-hour devoted to the senator’s sex, lies and lobbying scandal, the man walking around as if his career is alive will confront the shocking truth that he has been living in a fantasy world as 5 million people listen to his former best friend accuse him of morally bankrupt and potentially criminal behavior.
Doug Hampton, who began telling his story four months ago on “Face to Face” and has filled in blanks with The New York Times and now “Nightline,” will tell the country the awfully creepy story. ABC may not break much new ground, but the impact of the story is likely to be substantial.
I don’t suggest Ensign will resign. As Joseph Welch once witnessed with a more infamous member of the Club of 100, shame is not a quality that suddenly becomes apparent after years of shameless behavior.
But senators who are not lucky enough to watch “Face to Face” on the Web or didn’t slog through the Times piece last month will see Ensign’s accuser describe what the senator did — and so will many of their constituents who might wonder why Mitch McConnell & Co. continue to condone his actions with their silence. And the “Nightline” report may prod the Senate Ethics Committee, which has begun a preliminary inquiry, and the Justice Department, which may think Khalid Sheikh Mohammed slightly more important than John Ensign, to move forward. Maybe.
Since he disclosed his affair with Cynthia Hampton, a former campaign treasurer, on June 16, Ensign’s attempt to coast through the storm of his own making has been sporadically interrupted by thunderbolts from his ex-lover’s husband. Hampton’s original allegations that Ensign paid the couple an improperly undisclosed severance resulted in the laughable admission by the senator that his parents coughed up $96,000 in “gifts” as part of a “pattern of generosity” from Ma and Pa Ensign.
“Pattern of generosity?” Hampton scoffs to “Nightline” co-anchor Cynthia McFadden in the interview. “Oh, hey, listen, ‘We realize our son’s having an affair with your wife, maybe some money will help.’ It’s ridiculous!”
Almost as ridiculous as Ensign’s benign spin on how he may have importuned companies to hire Hampton and then, according to Hampton, engaged in a conspiracy to break a one-year cooling-off period to ensure his betrayed ex-best friend could make a living while he continued the affair with his wife.
“Why would a client hire Doug Hampton if he didn’t think he would have access to John Ensign’s office?” Hampton will say Monday night. “It’s the only reason I would hire him!”
What do you say about a guy who goes on national television to essentially say he was hired only because of his ties to a U.S. senator — that’s well beyond self-deprecation to self-emasculation — and then, as he did with the Times, admit to a crime (violating the cooling-off law) but says Ensign did, too, by aiding and abetting him?
Yes, he’s desperately out for revenge — as many similarly situated might be. But he’s also probably telling the truth. Or is he? (Some have been vicious in assailing Hampton for his conduct. But only one person in this sordid drama is an elected official.)
Hampton told ABC that he can prove his allegations, but he’ll probably need more than a handwritten note on the severance to do so. Much more serious is that he tells McFadden that Ensign arranged a meeting with a White House official for Hampton despite the cooling-off law.
Although laws may have been broken — we are a long way from that — the seminal issue is that Ensign has been exposed as a raging hypocrite who was a moralizing finger-pointer by day and philanderer by night — the same man who called on President Bill Clinton to resign for similar transgressions.
What would the John Ensign perched on his high horse for so long say about the John Ensign who slept with his best friend’s wife while both were on staff, wrote a cynically pious “Dear Cindy” letter to deceive the C Street moralists he bunked with, funneled $96,000 in severance/hush money to the aggrieved couple, helped the former best friend land jobs with companies needing his legislative assistance and, while potentially breaking laws, reinforced the image of moral degradation too many Americans have of the D.C. elite?
If you die in the Matrix, you die for real. Monday night the plug will be pulled on John Ensign.
Jon Ralston hosts the news discussion program “Face to Face With Jon Ralston” on Las Vegas ONE and publishes the daily e-mail newsletter “RalstonFlash.com.” His column for the Las Vegas Sun appears Sunday, Wednesday and Friday.
Discussion: 63 comments so far…
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what a pathetic human being johnnie boy ensign is...
granted every single advantage in life...
rode mommy and daddy's coat tails all the way to the us senate...
but that wasn't enough...
he had to have his best friend's wife...
entitled as he had been his whole life...
and when he got caught...
he fired them both...
ruined their lives...
then ran to mommy and daddy to fix his boo boo...
all while a member of the c street cult...
what a joke...
what a snot nosed spoiled punk...
what a stupid pathetic lying republican fraud...
U.S. Senator John Ensign
D.C. Internship Program
Internship Opportunity
Internships are an excellent way to get a firsthand look at how the United States Senate operates.
They can be challenging, educational, and fun. Serving an internship in Senator John Ensign's
office enables you to work closely with Senate staff who are involved with all levels of the
legislative process and responsible for constituent services. The program is intended to provide
an overview of how a congressional office operates and of the legislative process.
Interns are assigned to work with Senate staff who are responsible for Senator Ensign's
legislative, administrative, or press operations. Your time is divided between substantive projects
and support work. Interns are assigned to staff members depending on their interests and
academic background.
Eligibility
Applicants must have completed at least one year of undergraduate level study at an institution
of higher education. Applicants must be U.S. citizens. Nevadan residents or students attending
school in Nevada will receive priority in the selection process.
Females must be able to provide their own Safe Sex paraphernalia.
Married Male applicants must possess desirable spouse.
Single Males need not apply.
Application
To apply for an internship, you must submit a complete package. It is highly recommended that
you keep a copy of your application packet. Applicants will be notified by e-mail upon receipt of
their completed forms. If notification has not been received in one week, please contact our
office immediately. Your packet should include the following: application form, cover letter,
resume1, an essay outlining why you wish to serve (maximum of two pages), grade transcript,
and two letters of recommendation (letters cannot be from family members).
Application and Selection Deadlines
Application packets must be e-mailed, faxed, or postmarked by the following dates:
Summer 2009
May 26 -- August 7, 2009
Application Deadline: April 10, 2009
Notification Date: April 17, 2009
Fall 2009
September 8 -- December 11, 2009
Application Deadline: August 6, 2009
Notification Date: August 14, 2009
Spring 2010
January 4 -- May 14, 2010
Application Deadline: November 13, 2009
Notification Date: November 24, 2009
Submit Application to:
E-mail: Intern_Coordinator@ensign.senate.xxx
Fax: (202) 228-xxxx
USPS: Senator John Ensign
Attn: xxxxx
xxx Russell Senate Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
U.S. Senator John Ensign
D.C. Internship Program
Part 2
Housing
Locating housing while in Washington, D.C. is the responsibility of the intern. Interns that are
selected will be provided a list of local housing programs with contact information. The names
and contact information of other interns selected to participate in the same session will be sent
out in the event you want to coordinate shared housing.
"C" Street arrangements can be handled for qualified interns (wink wink).
Travel
Travel arrangements to and from Washington, D.C., are the responsibility of the intern.
Additional Information
If you have questions or need additional information, please contact:
xxxx
Intern_Coordinator@ensign.senate.xxx
(202) 224-xxxx
"You may only make a small difference, but then again,
the whole Ensign enterprise has been demoted to such disappointments.
That does not relieve you of the responsibility to make that difference. Especially if it
makes the Senator feel manly."
Washington, D.C. Office
xxx Russell Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-xxxx
Fax (202) 228-xxxx
Las Vegas Office
xxx Las Vegas Boulevard South, Suite 8203
Las Vegas, NV 89101
(702) 388-xxxx
Fax (702) 388-xxxx
Reno Office
xxx South Virginia Street, Suite 738
Reno, NV 89501
(775) 686-xxxx
Fax (775) 686-xxxx
Carson City Office
xxx East William Street, Suite 304
Carson City, NV 89701
(775) 885-xxxx
Fax (775) 883-xxxx
There won't be any talk of impeaching this President beacause he hasn't done anything to be impeached for, except admiring himself in the mirror. Muhammed Ali used to say "I am the greatest" But he went out and proved it. This President just goes out.
Speak out LOUD Doug! Maybe Ensign supporters are deaf and that's why they still don't understand. . .
we hear you, and we do understand. There is a difference in not hearing and ignoring.
Hey I just say Ensign with Erin Kenny at the CVS purchasing lubricant.
President Obama has never said he is the greatest. Ali did, though.
My personal code of conduct is that if I make public a standard of behavior for myself and others, I follow it, otherwise I am a hypocrite, and if people call me that, it'll be the truth. Clinton never held himself up as the family values/keeper of american morals candidate. Ensign did. He is a member of Promise Keepers and violated all of the promises he made to the organization.
John McCain consorted with and praised ACORN when he was invited to address the organization as a keynote speaker in 2006, IIRC, so he's been associating with unsavory individuals and the purveyors of voter fraud according to Andrew Breitbart, so he's guilty by association.
Palin made welcome speeches for the Alaska Independence Party, a secessionist organization, so she has been consorting with secessionists, and is therefore guilty of being a secessionist by association.
I like Ensign, Gibbons and Palin and the whole gaggle of talk-radio nut jobs...I hope is melt down is slow and painful
We Need a Constitution Amendment for Term Limit for the Legislative Branch. Six Terms for the House (12 years total) & Two Terms in the Senate (12 years). It's not going to get rid of every corrupt official but it will lessen their numbers.
I think it's mred who is in the middle of a melt down. He just can't stand anyone who have different political views then his own...
jajma is a Christian who happens to be a liberal who excuses Bill Clinton behavior, while condemning Ensigns behavior...
As of course being a left winged liberal, he has to take a cheap shot at Sarah Palin who is not relevant to this discussion...
My favorite Muhammad Ali (my friend Joe Frazier still refers to him as "Clay") story is when he was traveling somewhere on an airplane. In response to the flight attendant's instructions to fasten his seatbelt, he asserted "Superman don't need no seatbelt." The seasoned flight attendant immediately replied, "Superman don't need no airplane."
One word of advice for John Ensign: resign
Two words of advice for Barry Obama: one term
Three words of advice for Harry Reid: give it up
Again, the liberal bias of this paper is obvious. Senator Ensign, we're with you. Fight these clowns! I remember when our president Bill Clinton was sleeping with interns in the White House, I don't recall this paper's outrage. Bias reporting. Give 'em hell Mr. Ensign. We're with you., not THE Sun.
On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the worst)....this babling is about a 20.
Correction: Give'em herpes Mr. Ensign....
Ensign should resign. A sexual predator should not be representing Nevada. We deserve better.
Sexual predator? Not likely. Ensign was set up.
He is guilty of trusting a sleazy woman and her equally sleazy husband. They brought him down.
I think he is guilty of nothing more than satisfying a basic human need. Just like you.
the man is a low life; this is what you want for your senator? is this the norm for elected officials in nevada? no wonder your state is in the toilet.
Once again, the right wingers come out and try to defend the indefensible by saying other people did it, too.
Seeing how this world has produced Hitler, Stalin, and Mao, if that was a legitimate defense then nothing would be indefensible.
What Enisign did - and it's not just the affair; there's criminal conduct involved here, too - is not defensible no matter how many people did it.
Hypocrisy abounds. The very same people who were screaming for Bill Clinton's head and demanding he be impeached are on this very page trying to defend John Ensign by saying that what Ensign did was no worse than Clinton. Unbelievable.
Defending Ensign by bringing up Adam Clayton Powell? Are you serious? He's been dead for 37 years! You might as well say we should excuse Ensign's conduct because Caligula was a pervert.
Ensign ought to ignore the "yellow" jounalism of our day and continue serving us in the Senate with his clearcut views of limited government and no taxes.
afvet; dont forget about the adultery and conspiracy to hide a felony.
I am disappointed in Senator Ensign's judgement in this matter, but so far he has done his job in Washington & done it well.
I'm not ready to summarily dismiss him.
"I'm not ready to summarily dismiss him."
No matter how many felonies he may have committed.
I know I will regret saying this........ I agree with Birdie on this one. My keyboard just burst into flames.
perhaps our noble senator is merely an unhung hero who likes to dazzle but often just disappoints. Mom and dad have been unplugging him from wall outlets for years now. He still gets kinda goofy with his tools at times. But he's really not a bad boy, really.
Finally the truth will be told, one down, "Ensign" one to go "Gibbons"....
Phargo, you are as full of crap as a forty-pound robin. Do you have anything, anything at all to back up any of the statements you made about Wright or Obama? I agree with very little that mandingowhatever says, but you are porporting to represent a reasonable group of right-wing nut-jobs, if there is such an animal. So how about some proof???? Any kind of documents, anything at all?
Story on nightline, on Good Morning America, on MSNBC...good for the local economy
if I was Hampton I'd have a book to pitch....
Phargo,
Go to the Rev. Jerimah Wright's entry in Wikipedia to check the photos and the sources information for the facts stated below. [See the numbers in brackets.] Simply repeating a lie over and over doesn't make it true.
From 1959 to 1961, Wright attended Virginia Union University,[2] in Richmond. In 1961 Wright left college and joined the United States Marine Corps and became part of the 2nd Marine Division attaining the rank of private first class. In 1963, after two years of service, Wright joined the United States Navy and entered the Corpsman School at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center.[8][13] Wright was then trained as a cardiopulmonary technician at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Wright was assigned as part of the medical team charged with care of President Lyndon B. Johnson (see photo of Wright caring for Johnson after his 1966 surgery). Before leaving the position in 1967, the White House Physician, Vice Admiral Burkley, personally wrote Wright a letter of thanks on behalf of the United States President.[14][15][16]
In 1967 Wright enrolled at Howard University in Washington, D.C., where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1968 and a master's degree in English in 1969. He also earned a master's degree from the University of Chicago Divinity School.[8] Wright holds a Doctor of Ministry degree (1990) from the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio, where he studied under Samuel DeWitt Proctor, a mentor to Martin Luther King, Jr.[17]
A 40 pound robin? Man that is a lot of poop!
Sadly, no one pays attention anymore. He's just another politico in troble. Americans can't keep the ledger straight and don't care anymore.
Half of the losers have a (D) after their names, the other half of the losers have an (R) after their names.
My CV is comprehensive as is, thank you. I feel it best to stay with the truth, but in any case, it is easy to verify.
Wikipedia is far more accurate now than it was in 2003. This is also why original sources are required, with where to access them. But these issues are not the question.
I fully believe, if your statements regarding Rev. Wright were factual, the GOP would have made this VERY PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE indeed and long before now. Please give one verifiable source of information (or a reliable reference;) the date and place of the court marshall should be easy, since you said you both witnessed and testifed to the event. Why was/is this secret after 30 to 50 yrs? Although I have read a number of your postings, both here and in the RJ, I am not confident in your fact checking. Your offer to "embellish" my bio demonstrates a propensity for playing fast and loose with facts.
Books
FYI Muhammed Ali a/k/a Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. was a draft dodger and will never be anything but a criminal to many of us. He proved nothing. Changing religion o get out of fighting in a war. Cowardice.
Changing religions is common in this country. People change their affiliations all the time for whatever reasons. Ali was merely a mouthy dissadent. He resented the treatment Black people received at the hand of the white man. He rebuked everything white including their accepted religion and what he considered their war. If he would have agreed to go into the Army he would have been treated like every other celebrity. Joe Louis never actually served in a frontline unit. He was in a special unit. Ali chose to make a big deal out of it just like he did every thing else. I don't fault Ali. I have a bigger issue with Jimmy Carter. He gave all draft dodgers an unconditional pardon. Typical bible thumping move. How Christlike. Carter angered more people than he knows. Thats a reason they voted for Reagan.
BOOKS...
"Ensign was set up"... BY WHOM? His penis?
The Clay/Ali conscientious objector story and Carter's pardoning of draft-dodgers is a hell of a lot more complicated than calling it "bible-thumping." There's so much wrapped up in my previous sentence, a guy could write at least a history book and a couple of biographies on it.
So funny......Ralston babling on and on about the Nightline story....guess what.....it is a big snooze and had very little news.
Even the Sun did not carry anything in today's edition about it.
AP -- nada too.
The Sun did carry a story the other day.....it reveal the details of the "text message"......OMG what breaking news.
Looking foward toward more Ralston's bablings about nothing at all.
Perhaps another imaginary conversation piece in the workings????
No???? Perhaps more dribble about the Matrix......
sgtrocky..
So far to the right calling him a neocon may be somewhat of a misnomer. Apologist & CHEERLEADER for every naughty nut-job the Repubs put out there... Here's rocks dream team;
Ensign president
Gym Gibbons VP
Sherm Fredericks, Press Secretary.
Mr. Nance poo-poos every single solitary story that involves these goons.
Who the heck besides rock would find wisdom and leadership in this evil triumvirate?
gmag39? Explain complicated. Everyone knows that Carter was a bible thumper. He believed in forgiveness. I don't. Draft dodgers should have been penalized in some way. Maybe forfeiture of voting rights for 10 years or a fine. What did he give them? Nil, nada, nothing. Good men died for them and they ran to Canada. Regardless of what the reasons were.
thank gawd for the free press in america.
otherwise, the crimes of the bush administration
and his christian, republican goons would have
gone unnoticed...what a bunch of creeps.
ha,ha,ha.
lmao...laughing my azz off!
We seem to have gotten pretty far afield here, but while we're off the subject....
odog,
Muhammad Ali deserves as much respect for his stance on the Viet Nam war as anyone. He, at least, stood up and took his punishment. He could easily have spent quite a few years in jail for his stance on the war (and nearly did) and risked having his career destroyed as well. He paid a very large price for his views and never once ducked his responsibility under the law. He knew that the army would never send him anywhere near a battle zone; they'd have used him to fight exhibitions and entertain the troops. Still, at great personal cost, he defied the law and accepted his punishment. For that he deserves respect.
Contrast what Ali did with what the thousands of draft dodgers who ran to Canada did. Those people were the true cowards. Unlike Ali, David Harris (Joan Baez' husband) and Martin Luther King - who stood up to what they saw as injustice and paid the price for doing so - these people tucked their tails and ran for the border. They did not have the courage of their own convictions and deserve nothing but our scorn.
Contrast what Ali did with what Dick Cheney - who had other priorities - did. Who is more deserving of our respect?
Contrast what Ali did with what George W. Bush - who had his father pull strings so that he would never have to go near Viet Nam - did. Who is more deserving of our respect?
Ali deserves respect.
john ensign for president.
sarah palin for vice president.
ha,ha,ha.
what a hoot !
7pesos is the poster child of the far left. He still thinks that President Bush is still in office and is responsible for all of Obama's shortcomings.
Hey, by the way, it's Tuesday and Ensign is still in office. What happened???
Gamg....I think the whole national media poo poo the Nightline story.
LVRJ had something about it buried in the local section.
The Sun even poo poo the story.
Lots of poo poo....except for Ralston who thought it was a BIG BIG WHAM BAM bright headlines story.
I thought for sure that the NY Times was going to blast on the front page something about the Matrix though. They pick up Ralston's imaginery conversation pieces every time. I was betting that would print his gems on the Matrix.
Dam....did not happen.
Politico is reporting that according to the new site, DOJ officials "signal that the case against Senator Ensign is a low-priority matter for them." It adds that "no one close to Ensign or the Hamptons has been contacted by any federal investigators."
I don't respect Ali. Why should I? Because he's a Muslim? Thats crap. Muslims put their religion first, always first. I put my Country first. then my family. then you and your family. Then MacDonald's, Then the Steelers. Religion is about 700th on the list. I would die for my country, I would die for you and yours. To die for religion is a real waste of protein.
Don't be an idiot, Books. Nobody ever said to respect Ali because he's a Muslim.
No American soldier who died in Viet Nam died for his country; he died for someone else's. American soldiers in Viet Nam died for one another. They most certainly did not die to protect America; we weren't threatened in any way whatsoever.
I believe that was Ali's point when he said "I ain't got no quarrel with no Viet Cong." Ali, in doing what he did, was helping to make us a better country. He wasn't alone in thinking that this country was making a grave mistake by being in Viet Nam, but he was one of the very few who was willing to openly defy the government and take his punishment for it. By standing up the way he did he was putting his country first.
If more of the cowards - like those who ran to Canada, or used deferments of one sort or another, or had Daddy pull strings - had demonstrated the kind of courage that Ali did we might not have over 50,000 names on that wall in DC. It was those cowards - the draft dodgers who ran and the Cheneys and Bushes of the world - who put themselves ahead of their country, not Ali.
JohnF:...Like I said birdbrain, Ali was a coward, he hid behind the Muslim religion. If every body down through history did what that coward Ali did we would still be under British rule. If Everybody did the Ali shuffle Hitler and Tojo would be splitting up the USA. Don't give me that crap about individual freedoms and what draft dodgers did for our country. If you don't like your country leave it. If you are not ready to die for your country, for your beliefs, than you too are a coward and we don't need you here.
Whether we agree with our leaders decisions to go to war or if we don't. When called upon to do your duty, you do it. In any way the country asks you to. Yours is not to reason why, yours is but to do or die. Again, if you don't like it, move to Sweden. As far as Cheney, he was a bigger coward than Ali. He is what John Fogarty referred to as a "Favorite son". There are a lot of them around, including GW Bush. Bill Clinton nor Obama ever served. I hear no talk of that. It's always people in a lower station in life that save the country. Likewise it's always politicians that take the credit. If wars were fought by men over 50, there would be no war.
Books, Rhooster,
Who died for America in Viet Nam? Anyone?
You need to learn what it truly means to be an Ameican. Does loving America mean blind obedience to authority? Does loving America mean doing whatever the government tells you to do?
If the colonists felt that way there never would have been an America.
Mine is the America of Henry Thoreau and Martin Luther King; of Susan B. Anthony and Thomas Paine; of Thomas Jefferson and yes, Muhammad Ali.
All of these people risked imprisonment and even death to stand up to the legitimate government when they thought the government was wrong. They were willing to take whatever punishment awaited them in order to challenge injustice.
None of those people ever picked up a gun and faced hostile fire. Yet all of those people were far greater Americans than those who meekly bow down to authority when that authority is wrong or - like the people who ran to Canada - take the easy, convenient way out.
JohnF:..I don't see it the same way you do. Yes we can disagree with govenment and we can talk against their policies. When you are called to duty you go. No argument, just go.
The way you tell it Ali is a national hero because he pulled the religion card. He disgraced himself. You buy into that crap. Ali is a hero? Not likely.
Books,
I buy into it, but it wasn't crap. Had Ali been unwilling to accept punishment, that would have been crap.
What was crap - and still is crap - is those who feel that their dissent shouldn't carry a price. I think we can both agree that those who ran to Canada are beneath contempt. They enjoyed the privileges of American citizenship and then when something was asked of them, they tucked tail and ran. They were Americans of convenience only; as soon as something was asked of them they ran.
Ali - even if you believe his stance was wrong - was willing to at least stand up and take the punishment that came with his refusal to accept induction.
I think every citizen has the right to decide for himself whether what is being asked of him is unreasonable and to decide whether he wants to comply. As long as the citizen is willing to submit to the rule of law and accept whatever punishment comes with his refusal to comply he'll have my respect.
And for the record, those who chose to go to Viet Nam have my ultimate respect and admiration. Their political leadership let them down, but that was hardly their fault.