Posted on Jun. 24, 2009 by Lindsay Britney
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In this 3′33” long video, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford admitted he had flied to Argentina to meet a “dear, dear friend” with whom he had an affair of a bit over one year. He apologized and announced to resign as head of the Republican Governors Association. A lot believe Mark Sanford should quit his governorship too.
Posted on Jun. 24, 2009 by Lindsay Britney
South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford’s Argentina trip myth was debunked. Mark Sanford, who was “missing” five days from 18 to 22 June, said he went to Argentina in a press conference held today. And Sanford confessed an affair with an Argentina woman whom he knew for eight years! Mark Sanford apologized to his wife Jenny Sanford and the people of South Carolina.
Mark Sanford was the second high-profile GOP who admitted having extramarital affairs recently. A few days ago, Senator John Ensign (R. Nev.), admitted he had a romance in 2008 with his former campaign treasurer Cynthy Hampton, costing him the chairmanship of the Senate Republican Policy Committee. No exemption for Sanford, he will resign as head of the Republican Governors’ Association.
Read full report at HuffPost
Posted on Jun. 17, 2009 by Lindsay Britney
Cyhthia Hampton, a 46-year-old woman, once was Nevada Republican, Senator John Ensign’s affair, according to the reports.
Senator John Ensign admitted having an affair [with Cynthia Hampton]
Rep. John Ensign admitted yesterday in a press conference in Las Vegas that he had an affair with his aide but did not name the woman. Watch below the video of John Ensign admitting having an extramarital affair and making apologies:
Scripts corresponding to Ensign’s statement above
“Last year I had an affair. I violated the vows of my marriage. It’s absolutely the worst thing I have ever done in my life. If there was ever anything in my life that I could take back, this would be it.
“I take full responsibility for my actions. I know that I have deeply hurt and disappointed my wife Darlene, my children, my family, my friends, my staff and all those who believed in me. To all of them, especially my wife, I am truly sorry. I am truly blessed to have a wife like Darlene who has found her name to forgive me.
“I will not mention any names but the woman who I was involved with and her husband were close friends and both of them worked for me. Our families were very close. That closeness put me into situations during the difficult time of my marriage which led to my inappropriate behavior. We caused deep pain to both families and for that I am truly sorry.
“I am committed to my service in the United States Senate and my work on behalf of the people of Nevada.
That unnamed woman was identified as Cynthia Hampton (picture), who is well known in Nevada political circles according to TPM. Cynthia Hampton, misspelled Cindy Hampton by some, is the wife of Douglas Hampton, an employee until May 2008 in Ensign’s Senate office in Capitol Hill. Cynthia herself had worked as a treasurer for both Ensign’s re-election campaign and his Battle Born leadership political action committee, according to Washington Post.
The Cynthia Hampton-John Ensign affair started in December 2007 and ended in August 2008.
It was rumored Ensign publicly admitted he had affair with Cynthia because the latter’s husband required him to give a substantial sum of money.
Darlene Ensign (pictured left) released a statement about her husband’s affair and said she loves him.
“Since we found out last year we have worked through the situation and we have come to a reconciliation. This has been difficult on both families. With the help of our family and close friends our marriage has become stronger…I love my husband.”
But John Ensign, a conservative who opposes the marriage infidelity, was accused of hypocrisy:
Ensign is a member of an Evangelical group called Promise Keepers that promotes marriage fidelity. He was one of many who called for President Bill Clinton to resign when news of his affair with the White House intern Monica Lewinsky came out. And he was one of the first out of the blocks to condemn fellow senator Larry Craig when he was arrested for lewd conduct in a men’s lavatory at the Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport in 2007.
John Ensign was first elected as a Senator in 2000 and re-elected in 2006. In 2008, Ensign was elected as chairman of the Republican Policy Committee, becoming the No. 4 position in the leadership of GOP. After Ensign spoke at a event in Iowa sponsored by the American Future Fund in early June, he sparked the speculation that he would probably replace Sarah Palin as a candidate for president in GE2012. Now Politico is saying Ensign acknowledge of affairs [with Cynthia Hampton] hurt his chances for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination and called into question his future as a leader of the Senate GOP.
Update (WP via Azcentral): Ensign resigned from his chairmanship of the Senate Republican Policy Committee, costing him as an emerging GOP star to lead the Republicans and probably also become a GE2012 presidential candidate.
Cynthia Hampton and her husband Doug released a statement through their lawyer Daniel Albregts acknowledged that she was Senator John Ensign’s mistress. Cynthia Hampton, from Las Vegas confessed that the extramarital affair lasted more than eight months.
Also Sen. John Ensign’s camp confirmed that Cynthia Hampton is the woman who he did not identify during his press conference but declined to answer questions about why he chose this week to make public the affair.
Update: Doug Hampton spoke July 8 publicly for the first time at Face To Face with Ron Raslton on Las Vegas 1 about the affair wife Cindy Hampton had with Sen. John Ensign, claiming the 51-year-old Republican paid more than $25,000 in severance when she left her job as treasurer for two of his campaign committees.
On July 9, Ensign’s attorney Paul Coggins said in a statement his parents gave Cindy Hampton and Dough Hampton $96,000 “out of concern for the well being of longtime family friends during a difficult time.”
