15 Politicians Who Ruined Their Career Overnight Posted by Hannah Marder Last Updated: October 26, 2024 Donations Make us online 15 Politicians Who Ruined Their Career Overnight 1. New York congressman Anthony Weiner made headlines in 2011 when his Twitter account posted an image of a man’s crotch, presumably Weiner’s. In the photo, the man was wearing underwear, and a bulge could be seen. Weiner initially claimed his account had been hacked, though he dodged questions about whether or not he was the man in the photo. Just days later, he admitted he’d lied about the tweet and revealed that he’d sexted multiple women. He then resigned from Congress and took a break from the spotlight before running for New York City mayor in 2013. However, news quickly broke that he had continued sexting after resigning from Congress, and his campaign was ultimately unsuccessful. He continued to be followed by sexting accusations, including allegations of sending sexual images to a 15-year-old and asking her to undress on camera; he later pled guilty to the charges in court and served 18 months in prison. His political career arguably ended the moment the tweet was posted, and certainly when his mayoral bid ended, and he has stated he has no plans to return to government. He currently hosts a radio show on a conservative radio station. Weiner’s scandal actually essentially ended another notable political career, though not overnight: Hillary Clinton’s. While the FBI was investigating Weiner’s scandal, they searched a computer Weiner shared with his then-wife, Huma Abedin, a prominent Hillary Clinton aide. On the computer, they found emails pertinent to their investigation into Clinton and whether or not she’d mishandled classified info during the time that she was Secretary of State. The emails, of course, were a huge hot-button issue in the 2016 election and may actually have been the reason she lost. 2. In 2006, ABC reported that Mark Foley, then a Republican congressman in Florida, had sent sexual messages to underage male pages, including asking if he made one horny. The irony was that Foley had been a staunch advocate for the rights of minors and had been tough on sex offenders, as well as gay rights. He was also co-chair of the caucus on missing and exploited children. In the wake of the allegations, Foley resigned and apologized. He did not face charges. He left politics and went into real estate, though he later hosted a political radio show in Florida. 3. Mike Pence rose to prominence as the Vice President of the United States during Trump’s presidency. Traditionally, the Vice President is set up for a strong political career and often a future presidential run; however, Pence’s political prospects took a nosedive during the January 6 riots in 2021. Trump pressured Pence, who, as vice president, had the power to certify the election results, not to confirm President Joe Biden as the winner. When Pence refused, Trump tweeted that he “didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution,” and many of the protestors took to chanting “Hang Mike Pence,” despite the fact that Pence did not have the power to reject Electoral College votes. At the end of the day, Pence presided over the election certification and declared Joe Biden the winner. While Pence attempted to continue his political career and even tried his hand at a presidential run, the damage was done. For one, he was running against Trump for the ticket — he had also alienated Trump supporters who continued to deny that Trump had lost the election. Others held him responsible for Trump’s actions as President. As a result, Pence — despite having done the right thing constitutionally — was forced to suspend his campaign rather quickly. 4. One of the more recent political scandals involves NYC Mayor Eric Adams, who was indicted last month on bribery charges and soliciting illegal campaign contributions from foreign nationals. The news came as a shock to many; his indictment was originally reported with no fore-warning and no information about why he had been indicted. He is NYC’s first sitting mayor to be indicted on federal felony charges. While Adams maintains his innocence, and only time will tell if his political career is over, almost 70% of New Yorkers want him to resign. 5. Of course, we can’t make this list without discussing Nixon and the infamous Watergate scandal. You all know the story, so we’ll keep it short: in 1972, five burglars were arrested at the DNC, attempting to access secret documents and bug offices to aid in then–President Nixon’s re-election. While Nixon initially strongly denied any involvement, it was later revealed that he’d played a large role in the cover-up, and he became the first and only president to resign from office. His Vice President Gerald Ford then became president and pardoned Nixon, but his political career was over. 6. Another political fiasco that came close to the magnitude of Watergate is Bill Clinton’s sex scandal. News of an affair between Clinton and intern Monica Lewinsky broke in early 1998 while Clinton was in his second term as President. While Clinton quickly denied it, he eventually admitted to the affair in August of that year. He was later impeached by the House of Representatives, though he was acquitted in the Senate. He remained in office until his second term ended, but while he stayed in the public eye—notably, his wife Hilary Clinton ran for president twice—he himself did not run for public office again. 7. President Clinton’s impeachment didn’t only ruin one political career; it also contributed to the downfall of Republican Bob Livingston. Livingston was about to become Speaker of the House but resigned on the very same day the House voted to impeach Clinton. He had just confessed to infidelity after learning his cheating was about to be exposed in a magazine article, and knew the Republicans would have no moral authority to remove Clinton if he remained in office after his own sex scandal. The move was extremely sudden and unexpected, and he did not run for public office again; however, he currently works as a lobbyist. 8. Moving on to those outed for questionable public comments…Jocelyn Elders, who was the Surgeon General during the Clinton administration, was forced to resign from her position after outrage erupted at comments she made on a panel for World AIDS Day. After she was asked if promoting masturbation might help curb risky sexual behavior, Elders replied, “I think that it is something that’s part of human sexuality, and it’s part of something that perhaps should be taught. But we’ve not even taught our children the very basics. And I feel that we have tried ignorance for a very long time, and it’s time we try education.” While suggesting teaching children how to masturbate was not her first controversial comment, this served as a final straw for the Clinton administration. With it, Elders’ political career was over, and she became a professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Elders has fared better than others on this list — as the first Black Surgeon General and only the second-ever female Surgeon General, she is often celebrated for her accomplishments and staunch support of sex education. 9. George Santos became the first Republican to be expelled from the House of Representatives after a series of controversies, mostly involving lies he told. For example, Santos had claimed his mother was in the World Trade Center on 9/11, but it was uncovered that she wasn’t even in the country at the time. He’d also lied about having graduated from college and about his employment history. And he’d tweeted that he’d lost employees in the Pulse nightclub shooting, which could not be verified. More false claims about his family included that his mother was Jewish and that his Jewish grandparents had escaped Nazis in WWII. He also claimed to be “a proud American Jew,” which he later walked back, saying, “I never claimed to be Jewish. I am Catholic. Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was ‘Jew-ish.'” In addition, he was accused of withholding life-saving GoFundMe money from a man who was trying to fund surgery for his dog (Santos denied the claim), and as a result, the dog died. Oh, and a purported image of Santos in drag circulated, though Santos denied he’d ever done drag. This all happened over the span of a few months. Santos was investigated and then arrested on financial-based criminal charges, such as money laundering. He was eventually kicked out of Congress in late 2023. this year, he pled guilty to wire fraud and identity theft and will be sentenced next year. 10. Illinois congressman Aaron Schock was also ousted from his position due to abuse of finances, and the reason is so ridiculous that it earned him a spot on this list. Schock reportedly used taxpayer money to pay decorating firm Euro Trash to redecorate his office in the style of Downton Abbey (after controversy, he paid back the decorating costs). He was also accused of using campaign funds on a sold-out Katy Perry concert he attended with interns and on World Series tickets, which he resold at a profit. Schock ultimately resigned due to backlash over his spending and was later charged with wire fraud and other financial-related charges. He was able to reach an agreement with the courts, and charges were dropped. He does not currently hold public office. In 2020, he made headlines when he came out as gay after previously supporting anti-gay legislation. Which reminds me of another politician…Larry Craig. 11. Republican senator Larry Craig’s career went down the drain immediately following his arrest on suspicion of disorderly conduct after an incident in an airport bathroom. An undercover officer claimed Craig had entered the stall next to him and shown signals “to engage in lewd conduct.” When news of his arrest broke, it was soon followed by other publications claiming a history of sexual activity with men, sometimes in public places such as Union Station. Craig denied these and any claims that he was gay (he’d notably supported anti-gay legislation), and though he pled guilty to disorderly conduct, he later expressed regret for this plea and filed a motion to withdraw it (which was denied). He later stepped down from multiple political posts and announced his resignation from Congress, though he ended up serving out the rest of his term. However, he did not seek reelection and has not held public office since. 12. John Edwards was a prominent young Democrat in the early 2000s, running for president (and later Vice President under John Kerry) in 2004 and 2008. But in 2007, amidst his second presidential campaign, it was reported that Edwards had had an affair with a former staffer, who was later revealed to be Rielle Hunter. Hunter was pregnant and gave birth to a daughter in early 2008, declining to name a father on the birth certificate. Meanwhile, Edwards denied the affair and reaffirmed his commitment to his wife, who had terminal cancer. He later admitted the affair but denied being the father of Rielle’s child. Edwards suspended his 2008 campaign early that year, before Rielle’s child was born but after initial news had broken. But he wouldn’t admit that the child was his for two years — after which he was indicted for using campaign funds to try to conceal the affair and ensuing pregnancy during his 2008 campaign. He was ultimately acquitted on one count, and a mistrial was declared on the others. The case was not retried, so Edwards avoided legal consequences. However, his political career was over, and he now works as a trial lawyer. 13. Jack Ryan seemed a shoo-in for the Senate during his 2004 campaign against Barack Obama, who was then largely unknown. Previously married to Star Trek actor Jeri Ryan, he made headlines when documents from their divorce case were made public, revealing Jeri’s claims that Jack had pressured her to perform sex acts in clubs while others watched. In the ensuing controversy, Ryan withdrew his candidacy; Obama ended up winning the election and would, of course, later become President of the United States. Meanwhile, Ryan left politics entirely to create a media company. 14. Democrat Gary Hart had long faced rumors of being a womanizer, leading to reporters questioning him about affairs in 1987 while he was running for President. In response, Hart told reporters to follow him around to prove he was faithful. “I don’t care. I’m serious. If anybody wants to put a tail on me, go ahead. They’d be very bored,” he said, according to the New York Times Magazine. Well, reporters did — and quickly caught him in an affair with Donna Rice. Scandal erupted, and Hart dropped out of the race. 15. And finally, we’ll end on one of the silliest examples on this list. In 2004, Howard Dean’s political career largely ended in the wake of what became known as the “Dean Scream,” which, yes, was simply a scream-like noise the then-presidential candidate made during a speech in Iowa. The moment quickly went 2004’s version of viral, frequently appearing on cable news. It’s debatable if the scream *actually* ended Dean’s campaign – he’d already lost the Iowa caucus — but it certainly hurt his chances, and it’s still what Dean is best known for. While Dean’s bid to become president ended pretty suddenly, he did continue to have a career in politics, most notably as the DNC chairperson from ’05-’09. He currently works as an advisor and consultant for McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP. What other politicians can you remember ruining their career overnight? Let us know in the comments! Source link
1. New York congressman Anthony Weiner made headlines in 2011 when his Twitter account posted an image of a man’s crotch, presumably Weiner’s. In the photo, the man was wearing underwear, and a bulge could be seen. Weiner initially claimed his account had been hacked, though he dodged questions about whether or not he was the man in the photo. Just days later, he admitted he’d lied about the tweet and revealed that he’d sexted multiple women. He then resigned from Congress and took a break from the spotlight before running for New York City mayor in 2013. However, news quickly broke that he had continued sexting after resigning from Congress, and his campaign was ultimately unsuccessful. He continued to be followed by sexting accusations, including allegations of sending sexual images to a 15-year-old and asking her to undress on camera; he later pled guilty to the charges in court and served 18 months in prison. His political career arguably ended the moment the tweet was posted, and certainly when his mayoral bid ended, and he has stated he has no plans to return to government. He currently hosts a radio show on a conservative radio station. Weiner’s scandal actually essentially ended another notable political career, though not overnight: Hillary Clinton’s. While the FBI was investigating Weiner’s scandal, they searched a computer Weiner shared with his then-wife, Huma Abedin, a prominent Hillary Clinton aide. On the computer, they found emails pertinent to their investigation into Clinton and whether or not she’d mishandled classified info during the time that she was Secretary of State. The emails, of course, were a huge hot-button issue in the 2016 election and may actually have been the reason she lost. 2. In 2006, ABC reported that Mark Foley, then a Republican congressman in Florida, had sent sexual messages to underage male pages, including asking if he made one horny. The irony was that Foley had been a staunch advocate for the rights of minors and had been tough on sex offenders, as well as gay rights. He was also co-chair of the caucus on missing and exploited children. In the wake of the allegations, Foley resigned and apologized. He did not face charges. He left politics and went into real estate, though he later hosted a political radio show in Florida. 3. Mike Pence rose to prominence as the Vice President of the United States during Trump’s presidency. Traditionally, the Vice President is set up for a strong political career and often a future presidential run; however, Pence’s political prospects took a nosedive during the January 6 riots in 2021. Trump pressured Pence, who, as vice president, had the power to certify the election results, not to confirm President Joe Biden as the winner. When Pence refused, Trump tweeted that he “didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution,” and many of the protestors took to chanting “Hang Mike Pence,” despite the fact that Pence did not have the power to reject Electoral College votes. At the end of the day, Pence presided over the election certification and declared Joe Biden the winner. While Pence attempted to continue his political career and even tried his hand at a presidential run, the damage was done. For one, he was running against Trump for the ticket — he had also alienated Trump supporters who continued to deny that Trump had lost the election. Others held him responsible for Trump’s actions as President. As a result, Pence — despite having done the right thing constitutionally — was forced to suspend his campaign rather quickly. 4. One of the more recent political scandals involves NYC Mayor Eric Adams, who was indicted last month on bribery charges and soliciting illegal campaign contributions from foreign nationals. The news came as a shock to many; his indictment was originally reported with no fore-warning and no information about why he had been indicted. He is NYC’s first sitting mayor to be indicted on federal felony charges. While Adams maintains his innocence, and only time will tell if his political career is over, almost 70% of New Yorkers want him to resign. 5. Of course, we can’t make this list without discussing Nixon and the infamous Watergate scandal. You all know the story, so we’ll keep it short: in 1972, five burglars were arrested at the DNC, attempting to access secret documents and bug offices to aid in then–President Nixon’s re-election. While Nixon initially strongly denied any involvement, it was later revealed that he’d played a large role in the cover-up, and he became the first and only president to resign from office. His Vice President Gerald Ford then became president and pardoned Nixon, but his political career was over. 6. Another political fiasco that came close to the magnitude of Watergate is Bill Clinton’s sex scandal. News of an affair between Clinton and intern Monica Lewinsky broke in early 1998 while Clinton was in his second term as President. While Clinton quickly denied it, he eventually admitted to the affair in August of that year. He was later impeached by the House of Representatives, though he was acquitted in the Senate. He remained in office until his second term ended, but while he stayed in the public eye—notably, his wife Hilary Clinton ran for president twice—he himself did not run for public office again. 7. President Clinton’s impeachment didn’t only ruin one political career; it also contributed to the downfall of Republican Bob Livingston. Livingston was about to become Speaker of the House but resigned on the very same day the House voted to impeach Clinton. He had just confessed to infidelity after learning his cheating was about to be exposed in a magazine article, and knew the Republicans would have no moral authority to remove Clinton if he remained in office after his own sex scandal. The move was extremely sudden and unexpected, and he did not run for public office again; however, he currently works as a lobbyist. 8. Moving on to those outed for questionable public comments…Jocelyn Elders, who was the Surgeon General during the Clinton administration, was forced to resign from her position after outrage erupted at comments she made on a panel for World AIDS Day. After she was asked if promoting masturbation might help curb risky sexual behavior, Elders replied, “I think that it is something that’s part of human sexuality, and it’s part of something that perhaps should be taught. But we’ve not even taught our children the very basics. And I feel that we have tried ignorance for a very long time, and it’s time we try education.” While suggesting teaching children how to masturbate was not her first controversial comment, this served as a final straw for the Clinton administration. With it, Elders’ political career was over, and she became a professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Elders has fared better than others on this list — as the first Black Surgeon General and only the second-ever female Surgeon General, she is often celebrated for her accomplishments and staunch support of sex education. 9. George Santos became the first Republican to be expelled from the House of Representatives after a series of controversies, mostly involving lies he told. For example, Santos had claimed his mother was in the World Trade Center on 9/11, but it was uncovered that she wasn’t even in the country at the time. He’d also lied about having graduated from college and about his employment history. And he’d tweeted that he’d lost employees in the Pulse nightclub shooting, which could not be verified. More false claims about his family included that his mother was Jewish and that his Jewish grandparents had escaped Nazis in WWII. He also claimed to be “a proud American Jew,” which he later walked back, saying, “I never claimed to be Jewish. I am Catholic. Because I learned my maternal family had a Jewish background, I said I was ‘Jew-ish.'” In addition, he was accused of withholding life-saving GoFundMe money from a man who was trying to fund surgery for his dog (Santos denied the claim), and as a result, the dog died. Oh, and a purported image of Santos in drag circulated, though Santos denied he’d ever done drag. This all happened over the span of a few months. Santos was investigated and then arrested on financial-based criminal charges, such as money laundering. He was eventually kicked out of Congress in late 2023. this year, he pled guilty to wire fraud and identity theft and will be sentenced next year. 10. Illinois congressman Aaron Schock was also ousted from his position due to abuse of finances, and the reason is so ridiculous that it earned him a spot on this list. Schock reportedly used taxpayer money to pay decorating firm Euro Trash to redecorate his office in the style of Downton Abbey (after controversy, he paid back the decorating costs). He was also accused of using campaign funds on a sold-out Katy Perry concert he attended with interns and on World Series tickets, which he resold at a profit. Schock ultimately resigned due to backlash over his spending and was later charged with wire fraud and other financial-related charges. He was able to reach an agreement with the courts, and charges were dropped. He does not currently hold public office. In 2020, he made headlines when he came out as gay after previously supporting anti-gay legislation. Which reminds me of another politician…Larry Craig. 11. Republican senator Larry Craig’s career went down the drain immediately following his arrest on suspicion of disorderly conduct after an incident in an airport bathroom. An undercover officer claimed Craig had entered the stall next to him and shown signals “to engage in lewd conduct.” When news of his arrest broke, it was soon followed by other publications claiming a history of sexual activity with men, sometimes in public places such as Union Station. Craig denied these and any claims that he was gay (he’d notably supported anti-gay legislation), and though he pled guilty to disorderly conduct, he later expressed regret for this plea and filed a motion to withdraw it (which was denied). He later stepped down from multiple political posts and announced his resignation from Congress, though he ended up serving out the rest of his term. However, he did not seek reelection and has not held public office since. 12. John Edwards was a prominent young Democrat in the early 2000s, running for president (and later Vice President under John Kerry) in 2004 and 2008. But in 2007, amidst his second presidential campaign, it was reported that Edwards had had an affair with a former staffer, who was later revealed to be Rielle Hunter. Hunter was pregnant and gave birth to a daughter in early 2008, declining to name a father on the birth certificate. Meanwhile, Edwards denied the affair and reaffirmed his commitment to his wife, who had terminal cancer. He later admitted the affair but denied being the father of Rielle’s child. Edwards suspended his 2008 campaign early that year, before Rielle’s child was born but after initial news had broken. But he wouldn’t admit that the child was his for two years — after which he was indicted for using campaign funds to try to conceal the affair and ensuing pregnancy during his 2008 campaign. He was ultimately acquitted on one count, and a mistrial was declared on the others. The case was not retried, so Edwards avoided legal consequences. However, his political career was over, and he now works as a trial lawyer. 13. Jack Ryan seemed a shoo-in for the Senate during his 2004 campaign against Barack Obama, who was then largely unknown. Previously married to Star Trek actor Jeri Ryan, he made headlines when documents from their divorce case were made public, revealing Jeri’s claims that Jack had pressured her to perform sex acts in clubs while others watched. In the ensuing controversy, Ryan withdrew his candidacy; Obama ended up winning the election and would, of course, later become President of the United States. Meanwhile, Ryan left politics entirely to create a media company. 14. Democrat Gary Hart had long faced rumors of being a womanizer, leading to reporters questioning him about affairs in 1987 while he was running for President. In response, Hart told reporters to follow him around to prove he was faithful. “I don’t care. I’m serious. If anybody wants to put a tail on me, go ahead. They’d be very bored,” he said, according to the New York Times Magazine. Well, reporters did — and quickly caught him in an affair with Donna Rice. Scandal erupted, and Hart dropped out of the race. 15. And finally, we’ll end on one of the silliest examples on this list. In 2004, Howard Dean’s political career largely ended in the wake of what became known as the “Dean Scream,” which, yes, was simply a scream-like noise the then-presidential candidate made during a speech in Iowa. The moment quickly went 2004’s version of viral, frequently appearing on cable news. It’s debatable if the scream *actually* ended Dean’s campaign – he’d already lost the Iowa caucus — but it certainly hurt his chances, and it’s still what Dean is best known for. While Dean’s bid to become president ended pretty suddenly, he did continue to have a career in politics, most notably as the DNC chairperson from ’05-’09. He currently works as an advisor and consultant for McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP. What other politicians can you remember ruining their career overnight? Let us know in the comments!
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