GovLoop on HuffPo: When Private Lives Become a Public Problem

The most recent GovLoop column is up on the Huffington Post website. Here’s an excerpt:

On a recent episode of Parks and Recreation, Amy Poehler’s character is approached by an election committee and asked to run for public office. The committee chairman warns her that any personal information about her will be made public during the course of the campaign. “Is there a scandal out there?” he asks. “Is there anything at all you need to tell us about your life?” Poehler’s character, who is currently involved in an illicit office romance, smiles tightly and replies, “Nope!”

Of course, we all know where this plot line is going. Government is no stranger to personal scandal. From Bill Clinton to John Edwards to the latest on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s love child, public leaders have been making headlines for having affairs. Inevitably, these admissions of infidelity spell an end to their political career and produce much hand wringing over the moral character of people in public office.

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