Dana Goldstein makes a surprisingly compelling case for Nikki Haley, the far-right South Carolina governor candidate currently alleged to have had extramarital affairs with two men:
I’m rooting for Haley because after watching so many men in politics fool around and still manage to hold on to their jobs—Bill Clinton, Mark Sanford, Clarence Thomas, John Ensign, Eric Massa, Antonio Villaraigosa, and Gavin Newsom, among many others—I hope we have reached the point when a woman, too, can screw up her personal life and still be evaluated on the public stage primarily for her professional achievements. ...
if the Republican Party is willing to accept male adulterers into the “family values” fold (John McCain, Newt Gingrich, and about a gazillion others), it should certainly be willing to forgive and forget with Haley, who is bright, beautiful, and has a heart-warming Indian-American immigrant story to tell.
Not sure I buy it, but a Haley victory would seem to strike a blow against a double standard.