What do folks here think would've happened if Weiner had just said, in the first place

[Ken Burch]

"Yeah...I did this...so what?"

I wish he had done that(also, of course I wish he hadn't done the sexting to start with...but at this point, so does he, if the man is at all rational).

Would Weiner have survived, in your view, if he'd just come clean at the start?

(for whatever it's worth, I don't actually have an opinion myself as to whether Weiner should have resigned or not).

[Sarah Ibarruri]

1. Weiner should've said (like Vitter), "I'm not resigning"

That pig Vitter is still there, and it's he who needs to be ousted, not Weiner.

[pnwmom]

2. I know I would have been completely on his side in that case.

And I said so, at the time. I think that's largely what separated him from Vitter, who didn't try to shift the blame onto anyone else.

My only tiny doubt is with regard to the ultimate photo . . . none of us has ever had the chance to view a Member's member before. . . . Would that have been an insurmountable obstacle? We'll never know.

:shrug:

[HipChick]

3. The media would have continued to hound him, knowing the Dems would fold

[tnlefty]

15. Uh hm, and the stakes are raised again about what the dems

will fold on next.

[gkhouston]

4. Nope. The media would have continued to hound him and the

Dem leadership would have aided and abetted that.

[LadyHawkAZ]

6. I second this

[saras]

12. Absolutely - the media alone couldn't bring him down but the Dems could and would

Blue dog Dems have no problem with fighting as dirty as Republicans, and they emphatically don't want progressives raising any difficult questions as they and the Tea Party finish selling off the country.

Fer chrissakes, a third of the posts on DU seemed to think he was worse than a baby rapist. He did the equivalent of say "hi" to some females and the equivalent of fundamentalist Muslims are screaming about the two sexes mixing. It makes America, not just the Republicans, look really stupid.

[pipi_k]

5. Can't speak for anyone else, but...

as for myself, I would have had a whole lot more respect for the guy if he had said that yes, he did it...he has a problem and needs help, then retire for a bit to go into treatment.

No lying. No game-playing. No blaming invisible people for "hacking" his Twitter account.

Be a man and own up to it.

Yep. I would have respected him a lot more. Maybe others would have too.

[Beam Me Up]

7. I think that is exactly what Clinton should have done way back when, too.

Isn't that basically the way the BUSH cabal handled shit?

We had a gay rent boy in the WH overnight and in the Press pool asking soft-ball questions? So??

[W_HAMILTON]

8. No.

The right-wing would have still gone after him, the rest of the media would have reported on it, and it would have kept on and on.

Admitting guilt from the start would not have mattered one iota. Even after he admitted guilt, the obsession continued, and not on him lying, but on other pictures that were being released.

[girl_interrupted]

9. People who say it was about lying are full of it

Can't help it, but thats the way I feel. "If he didn't lie, it would have been ok" What BS. That would be like me murdering someone, and because I didn't lie that I did, its ok. What changes? A murder still occurred. The victim is still as dead as a door nail. So when people say this is about lying, I think they are full of it. Its about sex, period. And a lot of people just can't handle anything that has to do with sex.

Weiner broke no laws. He cheated on his wife, that was the "crime". The only way he would have survived is if the Democrats handled it the way Republicans do. They don't call for resignations. They chose to ignore it or say very little. Not so with Democrats, they had a total freak out.

You have to wonder when Obama was interviewed why didn't he just say, "Look, it his personal problem, that's between him and his wife, I don't agree with what he did, but the choice isn't mine, it's up to his voters". Then start talking about the subjects he wants attention brought to. But no, he had to make sure he had to distance himself. "If it was him" Yeah him and his halo

I like what Weiner stood for, I don't agree with what he did, but the way Democrats reacted it was like he raped and killed someone.


If he had the support of his party, yeah I think he would have survived. I think if it was up to his constituents, he would have survived.

[Cleita]

10. But it doesn't seem to be up to the constituents anymore.

The party doesn't care what we want after they get our vote and get into office. The way the Democratic leadership went after him even though most of the rank and file Democrats wanted him to stay just proves that what we want isn't important to them.

[Throd]

11. His wife might not have been too cool with that.

[ergot]

13. The "story" would have dissolved in 2 or 3 news cycles.

What amazes me is that he wasn't smart enough to realize that from the git-go.

[Ninten12]

14. Does not matter because

the weak, punk ass "leaders" of his own party still would have pushed him out. No matter what his contituents wanted!

[ChrisBorg]

16. If his wife had come out with the same attitude, nothing would have happened.

The comics and pundits would have had a heyday laughing at the prudes.

That is why this is comically tragic. Why did he call all the media in for a lie-fest?

Self administered political foot shooting.

[riderinthestorm]

17. I agree. Which makes me believe she's the one who put the final nail in Weiner's political career

I posted an OP (which dropped like a stone) that Weiner only finally resigned after Huma came home.

I'd like to be able to ascribe his decision to the DNC and DLC leadership types pressuring him BUT he's been saying himself for a couple weeks now that he would. not. resign.

And then he does after she gets home.

I don't blame her. Not one bit. A family decision to focus on repairing and healing their family would HELP him make a political comeback in a couple of years.

I wish she'd been involved from the beginning. I wish he hadn't resigned. I wish he'd decided to ride it out. Sigh.

[ChrisBorg]

18. A friend at work posited that Weiner had engaged in this behavior with his wife.

Dating, foreplay, sexting,...because I'm old...talking dirty on the phone. Old habits are hard to break. I think she knew WAY before the rest of us.

I wish this on no relationship.

On edit..changed "he" to "Weiner" in headline.

[riderinthestorm]

21. And that's kinky, fun and lovely! I would hope they are so playful.

Honestly, I'm sure he DID do this with his wife and that's fine.

Its the other stuff that got him in trouble imho.

[bigwillq]

19. Would've earned more points in my book.

Not sure if he would still keep his job or not.

[Matariki]

20. Well, you can be sure that the "morality police" would have found another reason to hate him.

And by that I mean hear on DU.

I'm sure once the "it's the hypocrisy" or "it's the lies" wasn't relevant, they'd still find something to mind other people's business. My guess it would be about the "infidelity".

[customerserviceguy]

22. Perhaps he would have survived

But the steady drip, drip, drip of the stories of the women he'd contacted, and the photos he sent them would still have been fodder for the mainstream media.

My guess is that we would see the same outcome, but it would have taken much longer to get to the point of resignation.

Americans 'understand' adultery and patronizing prostitutes way more than they understand sexting. I'm pretty sure congresscritters feel that way, too.