AUGUST 30, 2016
Photo: Getty
When a marriage is in trouble and may be on the verge of breaking up, it’s very often sad. But when that potential break-up is used as ammunition in a political campaign, that is always disgusting.
On Monday morning, Hillary Clinton’s closest aide, Huma Abedin, announced that she was separating from her husband of six years, former Congressman Anthony Weiner. What finally prompted Abedin’s decision was the front page photo of Monday’s New York Post showing Weiner, wearing shorts but with the outline of his penis very visible, sexting that picture to another woman. And, oh yes, in the background of the sexted photo, the couple’s 4 year-old son is sleeping.
If you know anything about Anthony Weiner, this development should come as no surprise. Once a Democratic superstar of the left, the Congressman’s fortunes continued to rise until 2011, when it was revealed that he was sexting explicit photos of his body to other women, just one year into his marriage to Abedin. Though he was forced to resign his Congressional seat in disgrace, she decided to stay with him and give him another chance.
As Abedin continued to travel with Clinton in her capacity as Secretary of State, Weiner wisely decided to lay low for a couple of years. But, as with almost all ex-politicians, the campaign itch returned, and Weiner thought his best shot to win was to run for New York City Mayor in 2013. Confident of his chances and determined to find political redemption, he even agreed to have his comeback filmed by documentarians Josh Kriegman & Elyse Steinberg. (The resulting film, “Weiner” is one of the most fascinating films of 2016 so far — you can read Exact Change Today‘s original review of “Weiner” here.)
With Abedin (occasionally) campaigning by his side, Weiner’s campaign got off to a quick lead in the race. But then came “Carlos Danger,” the pseudonym that Weiner used to text explicit photos of himself to four women. Once that revelation came out, Weiner’s standings in the polls plummeted, and he lost the election badly. Still, almost incredibly, Abedin stayed by his side and decided to give him a third chance.
That third chance ran out on Monday.
Weiner’s self-destructive behavior has been called by many as that of a political sociopath, so, despite his enormous (though wasted) political gifts, there were few tears shed for him by political observers. But Abedin was a different story. It was no secret that, given Clinton’s traveling schedule, the couple was largely living apart, but from all reports, they were held together by the mutual love of their young son. If there was severe judgment of Weiner, there was universal sadness and sympathy at the break-up of this family.
Almost universal sadness. Enter Donald J. Trump.
After Abedin announced the separation on Monday, Trump’s Twitter fingers wasted no time getting to the keyboard.
“Huma is making a very wise decision,” tweeted Trump. “I know Anthony Weiner well, and she will be far better off without him.”
But Trump wasn’t finished. He went on to imply that the Weiner/Abedin marriage was a threat to national security. And can you guess whose fault this peril to U.S. safety is? (Her first name is Hillary.)
“I only worry for the country in that Hillary Clinton was careless and negligent in allowing Weiner to have such close proximity to highly classified information,” Trump continued. “Who knows what he learned and who he told? It’s just another example of Hillary Clinton’s bad judgment. It is possible that our country and its security have been greatly compromised by this.”
This comes after a weekend where Trump insensitively tweeted out a comment on the murder of NBA star Dwyane Wade’s cousin, Nykea Aldridge, who was killed in a crossfire on a Chicago street where she was pushing her baby in a stroller. After initially misspelling Wade’s name in his first tweet, he corrected it, noting the shooting and ending with
“Just what I have been saying. African-Americans will VOTE TRUMP!”
No immediate condolences (that finally came several hours later). It’s all about him.
But when he uses the break-up of a someone’s marriage as political ammunition against his opponent, there’s no telling how low he will go. I’m afraid that we will find that out sooner rather than later.
