Sally!!! Good to see you well and sharp as a Katana.

I know you’ve been otherwise occupied, but please don’t stay away quite so long. Another mind on/in The Right is always most welcome.

Why wouldn’t they, then? It’s not like Spitzer has friends in high places….or anywhere, for that matter. He’s almost universally loathed. I couldn’t imagine a prosecutor, let alone a federal prosecutor in the Bush admin, pulling punches on this.

Uh, right jpe. That’s why Spitzer isn’t being prosecuted.

Because he’s a man.

So, the man who jailed hundreds of people for prostitution and soliciting of prostitution is being cut lose for his solicitation of prostitution. And He is a Democrat. Imagine that. What is being done to Vitter?

You're joking of course!

Not really. It would be nice if the guy got convicted of a felony because he would then be disbarred. And I certainly don't like how he reflects on the bar.

But at the same time, such a trial would cost millions of tax dollars (more government spending), at no real benefit to anyone. It's not like he'll ever be taken seriously enough by anyone ever again.

Other than the stain he brings to the NY bar, I don't really have a burning desire to see justice served in this case. I'm indifferent,

P.S. For that kind of money, couldn't he have found a less skanky looking hooker.

Not really. It would be nice if the guy got convicted of a felony because he would then be disbarred. And I certainly don't like how he reflects on the bar.
But at the same time, such a trial would cost millions of tax dollars (more government spending), at no real benefit to anyone. It's not like he'll ever be taken seriously enough by anyone ever again.
Other than the stain he brings to the NY bar, I don't really have a burning desire to see justice served in this case. I'm indifferent,

That's what I like about you Harry…you don't really believe what you type; you're just being polemical.

Why don't we save billions by letting all these corrupt plenipotentiaries skip trial and punishment and just let them suffer from the humiliation of their disrobement.

Eliot Spitzer was no less a sanctimonious shake-down artist than Jesse Jackson. If there is to be any sort of leniency in Spitzer's case, it ought to come from a judge, after a guilty verdict, not as matter of fawning expediency.

Sorry guys. Expediency is the word of the day in our overburdened court system. Pleas are copped every day, and I wouldn't be surprised if the DOJ dropped charges because Spitzer promised his resignation as Gov. (I'm only guessing on this one of course.)

But otherwise, what purpose would his conviction serve? The destruction of his career and reputation is already as strong an example to other would-be corrupt Governors as you can get. What would a prostitution-based conviction add to it?

The US Attorney said, "We have concluded that the public interest would not be further advanced by filing criminal charges in this matter." I agree. As John Q. Public, I couldn't care less about prostitution offenses, and Spitzer has already paid for his bad character and judgment.

That's what I like about you Harry…you don't really believe what you type

I really do believe what I wrote here.

He is out of office and disgraced. Justice is served as far as I'm concerned. I won't get anything more out of him sitting in minimum security (or, more likely, serving a suspended sentence) on my dime.

He is out of office and disgraced. Justice is served as far as I'm concerned. I won't get anything more out of him sitting in minimum security (or, more likely, serving a suspended sentence) on my dime.

Hairy, I think I understand your reluctance at prosecuting someone (with associated outrageous cost) for seeing a call girl.

But law makers have to be held to a different standard.

Well then.
Let's just not apply the Law to anyone.
Gosh!
We'd hate to see them punished.

What universe do you people live in? Take a trip down to criminal court and see how many cases, out of those docketed, actually get prosecuted. Maybe the fact that we can't afford to enforce certain laws speaks for the intelligence of having those laws in the first place.

Elliot Spitzer Gets Off

Wasn't that what got him into trouble in the first place? Heh.

Are you saying his reputation is more important than the principles he was supposed to uphold?

To him, yes. Clearly.

And since our criminal system is based on punishment, not revenge, his loss of reputation is the greatest punishment he could possibly face (as far as his values are concerned). Anything else we lay on him would be revenge for our benefit. Revenge does not serve the public interest (IMO). Convicting Spitzer on prostitution will not redeem the fact that he spent his life prosecuting people for the same stupid offenses.

Spitzer was both the Attorney General and Governor of NY state. In the first office, he was sworn to prosecute those who had broken the law, while in the second he took an oath to uphold and "faithfully execute" those same laws. To NOT prosecute then, regardless of the offense… or the expense, would be a hideous miscarriage of justice. If the man has suffered public and private degradation and humiliation, those are not the concern of the law and are certainly not legally fungible consequences. Besides, as I noted before, those sorts of decisions are the responsibility of a judge, not a prosecutor.

Noblesse oblige, yes?

Crass behavior that might be expected from the ruffian, should not be tolerated by those who wield the sword of the State over others.

They have a higher duty and much more is expected of them.

Spitzer took an oath to support and defend the laws he enforced against others. That he betrayed that oath and, worse yet, gets away with it, sends exactly the wrong message.

Our government is the potent, the omnipresent teacher. For good or for ill, it teaches the whole people by its example. Crime is contagious. If the government becomes a law-breaker, it breeds contempt for law; it invites every man to become a law unto himself; it invites anarchy.

– Dissent by J. Brandeis in Olmstead v. United States, 277 U.S. 438, 485 (1928)

using his office and the law as a weapon with which to attack the enemies of the Democrat Party in NY

First off, that's going too far. He was an overzelous prosecutor, nothing more. More often than not, he overzelously prosecuted bankers who happened to be Dems. There are more Dems in NY to attack than Republicans by far. I don't agree that his politics had anything to do with how much of an asshole he was — he was just an over-ambitious asshole.

As for all the other stuff…

Once again, our justice system functions along a punishment, not a revenge system. It is up to the prosecutor and the judge to decide whether the public interest will be served by prosecuting someone (prosecutor) and how much that someone deserves to be punished (judge). And yes, it is firstly up to the prosecutor to decide whether the man ever sees the judge. In this case, I believe that the prosecutor decided correctly. It would not serve my interest, as a member of the public, to see Spitzer further prosecuted at a great expense.

Think of it as diminishing returns in punishment. It's just not economically efficient.

He should be punished like any other JoePlumber who gets caught with a hooker. If hes a US citizen then why is he not abiding by the laws of the state? And theres no way he can plead ignorance.
I'd seriously question those who let him off (and those who got him off- LOL) what are they hiding?

Make prostitution legal- then it ceases to be a problem. Are you listening goverment?

I told you so. I get to say those words more than most, but it never stops feeling good. Per the NY Times this morning, DOJ policy is only to prosecute the provider, not the customer. ie, there is a weird gender thing going on, and only the women, not the men, are prosecuted.

If selling is legal and fucking is legal, why isnt selling fucking legal: George Carlin

That aside, this asshole should be held to the same standard he set for those he prosecuted.
Charge him, try him, convict him, fine him, imprison him, and when he gets out make him register as a sex offender if thats what the laws call for.
I think these laws are worthless and restrict individule rights, but as long as they exist they should be applied to everyone evenly.