It's Good To Be Governor

By now, the whole world knows that Eliot Spitzer resigned as governor of New York last week after his liaison with a high-priced prostitute became public. Some people may wonder what the big deal is, and under most circumstances, I would agree that this was no one's business except his and his wife's.

However, Spitzer was a former prosecutor. One of his favorite targets was Wall Street and the various financial shenanigans that financial firms occasionally try. Ironically, it was Spitzer who pressed banks to tighten their reporting of suspicious financial activity to the IRS. The rules were designed to help authorities crackdown on money laundering schemes. It was precisely such a series of transactions that led government investigators to the mysterious "Client Number Nine" that eventually turned out to be Spitzer.

So if nothing else, Spitzer is guilty of profound arrogance and stupidity.

Now comes word that former New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey and his wife engaged in three way sex with another man on several occasions. His now ex-wife is denying the allegations, and this of course has led to a number of accusations between the former couple as to which one is lying.