WI: Eliot Spitzer Avoids the Prostitution Scandal

Eliot Spitzer was, once upon a time, a figure that our Future History section thought of as a plausible President. However, he was caught using an escort service, and thereafter resigned in political disgrace. David Paterson succeeded him, but failed to maintain popularity. Andrew Cuomo became governor thereafter.

What if Spitzer avoided the prostitution scandal?

*Bumpity bump bump*

He should have no trouble winning reelection, especially if the GOP nominates the same guy they did in OTL. He could very well be to the left of Cuomo - not encouraging conservative Democrats to defect to the GOP to maintain dirty deals, for instance. If he wanted to and avoided scandal, he could be able to win a third term - and perhaps be a contender in 2016?

Emperor Norton I said:

. . . David Paterson succeeded him, but failed to maintain popularity. Andrew Cuomo became governor thereafter. . .

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Yes, as this churning of elected officials show, difficult times. Economically as well as otherwise, but probably most of all economically. It is hard for members of the general public to know what to do and how to judge their officials.

Maybe if citizens insisted their officeholders used the method of solid medium step, honest feedback, another solid medium step, additional honest feedback, etc. And this combined with transparency.

And I think Eliot Spitzer was almost more interesting as attorney general. Although I generally go the opposite direction on criminal justice. Instead of giving rich people the same wretched conditions in jail and prison, I would rather see poor people get the same decent conditions that rich people often get in federal prisons, that kind of thing.

why not more permissive moral attitude to prostitution? It's not as if he actively abuse the escort, just need someone to warm his bed...

Yuelang said:

why not more permissive moral attitude to prostitution? It's not as if he actively abuse the escort, just need someone to warm his bed...

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It's still illegal, and the governor shouldn't be doing illegal things even if it's silly for the law to be in place. I mean, I want to lower the drinking age to 18*, but if I heard that the governor was distributing illegal alcohol to minors, I'd be upset with him.

*despite being in the minority of people between 18 and 21 not to drink alcohol

If it wasn't hookers it would have been something else. Spitzer only looked Presidential, the man was a walking train wreck and he achieved nothing in his administration because there was a scandal-a-week well before he got caught breaking the law he wrote.