John Ensign is still a United States Senator. He's still a reliable vote for obstruction in the GOP Caucus. In DC, he's one of the elite. Back home in Nevada, he's getting pummeled in the press. Yesterday, we had Jon Ralston's column about a potential indictment. Today, we've got this brutal, just brutal, article from the Las Vegas Sun:
In interviews with the Las Vegas Sun, more than a dozen friends, associates and Republican allies, some of whom have known Ensign for years, describe him as a politician who has grown narcissistic and reckless — a detached, self-righteous figure with almost no regard for those who helped send him to Washington or keep him there.Capitol Hill is filled with narcissists. But, Ensign really has taken it to a new plane. He's probably on the verge of an indictment, yet keeps plugging along, seemingly unfazed. We'll never hear a peep from any of his GOP Senate colleagues. Members on the Hill protect each other (although the GOPers did try to throw Larry Craig under the bus, but his scandal was gay-themed.)
Ensign’s actions in the wake of the affair, and the resulting investigations by the Justice Department and the Senate Ethics Committee have bled into the lives of his once-closest aides, associates and friends, as well as largely innocent bystanders and his family.
The sources, most of whom spoke to the Sun on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigations, said what rankles so many in Republican circles is that Ensign seems oblivious to the collateral damage caused by his actions, and unwilling to make the matter disappear by resigning.
One of the best lines from the article:
Ensign was active in Promise Keepers and openly evangelical, gushing with pious intonations.And, still a Senator.
