The whole Spitzer ordeal is really upsetting to me as a future voter, a New Yorker, and a person. Governor Spitzer had a difficult first year, often facing a lot of opposition inside the New York Legislature. (Though the New York Legislature doesn’t need any opposition to not be doing anything). But he was starting to turn around and get past the typical first year confusion (the first few months was trying to figure out how the phones worked). He honestly could have had an excellent career. It’s a loss and a failure on many levels.

Spitzer made a lot of enemies, mostly because he sued a bunch of corporations for illegal behavior. I will never understand huge corporations feeling victimized simply because they were conspiring to defraud the public. While corporations have a lot of influence, voters still get to vote and New Yorkers like(d) Spitzer quite a bit. In 2006, he was elected with 69% of the vote. What kills me about this scandal is that he could have had an extraordinary career. His name was already being kicked around as a presidential nominee in 8 or 12 years. As a future voter, I wish this whole scandal had never occurred. Had he proved to be a good governor, I certainly would have wanted to see him in the Oval Office.

As a New Yorker, I’m annoyed that Spitzer has betrayed the trust of the voters. New York overwhelmingly voted for him and he has not been a good caretaker of that trust. Spitzer was a great Attorney General, but now all of his actions are seen as hypocritical. He did a lot of very good things, but now all of the progress he made has been negated. Then there is the more local connection to Soon-to-Be Former Governor Spitzer. He was our Governor! His kids went to a nearby school. There will be a lot of questions in the next few days, but I certainly think that the Governor’s kids should be kept in mind.

As a person, I’m wondering how Spitzer could have been so stupid. Going to a prostitute left him open to black mail and all sorts of terrible things, one of which he is experiencing now. While I by no means want to divert attention from what Spitzer did, I am a little suspicious of the manner in which he was discovered. The latest news reports indicate that this discovery came out of an investigation of Spitzer’s bank records. I’m wondering if that investigation was politically motivated.

The thing that has me seething, however, is the press coverage of this. I have always hated, hated, hated the New York Post. It is a trash paper, written by shoddy journalists, and is essentially a tabloid living by low journalistic standards. I was furious when I saw a reported from the New York Post on NBC a few days ago. Their reporter was saying things like Spitzer “bought his way in” and even suggested that his wife was standing by him because she was forced to! I think that “newspapers” like the New York Post are causing a lot of problems by creating rumors where they don’t exist. I wish people wouldn’t buy the paper, but it’s apparently quite popular. Things like that drive me crazy!

I’m disappointed that it has come to this. Ultimately, this is Spitzer’s fault, but I certainly am sympathetic to his kids and family.