Julius Spitzer

The Ides of March were not kind to (soon-to-be former) New York Governor Eliot Spitzer. He got his comeuppance, big-time, and the knives of cutthroat politicos and media types were fully in evidence as he fell. It was his prior demeanor and hypocrisy, rather than his sexual peccadilloes, which made his political position untenable. It seems as though he wasn't even given enough time to cop a plea.

I'd say that the fault was both within him and in the stars. Apparently he was unlucky that some of his bank transactions--fairly large ones, to pay for high-class hookers willing to engage in unsafe, covert sex--fit a pattern which caught the attention of snoops and flatfeet.

There's plenty of irony in his fate. As NY Attorney General, he helped develop the techniques of using these "structured" bank transactions (structured to avoid mandatory reporting) to develop cases against suspected criminals. He went after prostitution rings (like the one he got entangled with) and various other financial rip-offs, some of which crossed boundaries (as he did in his search for good hideouts for his compulsive behavior). His technique in high-profile cases was to throw a wall of charges publicly at his targets, forcing them to settle--just as he was made to do.

David Patterson (Lt. Governor, until Monday) has become the unlikely beneficiary of Spitzer's hubristic, tragic fall. It remains to be seen whether he will take on the role of Mark Antony (protegee, and defender of his predecessor's legacy), of Augustus (the guy who cleaned up in the end and ruled all), or merely Lepidus (the Third Man of the triumvirate, who makes an early exit from the competition for supreme power, but hung around as high priest). Unlike Patterson, I don't think history notes that any of the three were blind, so no clue there.

Once again, though, we see that those who pose as holier-than-thou are highly vulnerable to the greatest corruption, whether venal or, in this case, carnal.