One of the candidates for the governorship of Virginia would like to occasionally prosecute people for extramarital affairs. Politico reports:
Note, however, what the spokesperson did not say: You are misrepresenting the tone and context of Mr. Cuccinelli's remarks. Ken Cuccinelli did not and does not want actual enforcement of anti-adultery laws; he was just making the point, in a humorous way, that people could use a little nudging to respect the institution of marriage more than it is currently.
I was ready to dismiss this story as hyperbole until the spokesperson's statement made me do a mental double-take. Does Mr. Cuccinelli actually believe that anti-adultery laws should be enforced from time to time to keep marriages honest? Seriously?
Of course, one can't imagine local law enforcement officials engaging in an "occasional prosecution or two" against anyone in the political or economic elite, so who would be subject to the law's actual and deterrent power?
Luckily for Mr. Cuccinelli, he is safe from being put to the test by the American judges, who would likely strike down any actual enforcement of anti-adultery laws as unconstitutional in a post-Lawrence v. Texas world.
I did not consult any polls before writing this, but I can guesstimate that a high majority of Virginians-- in particular, the citizens of northern Virginia and others who are turning Virginia purple-- think that wanting to revive the enforcement of laws criminalizing consensual adult behavior is, to use the technical term, bonkers.
UPDATE: This story should also be considered in the context of Mr. Cuccinelli's current campaign to bring back Virginia's anti-sodomy law.
Links:
Article in Politico (July 23, 2013): Ken Cuccinelli once backed anti-adultry laws
Article in Style Weekly (May 28, 2008): Adult Supervision
Article in The Huffington Post (July 23, 2013): Ken Cuccinelli's War on Oral Sex
Link to Ken Cuccinelli's web site promoting the reinstatement of Virginia's anti-sodomy law
Virginia gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli once suggested that society would benefit from enforcing anti-adultery laws, according to a report dating to the Republican’s days as a state senator.
Speaking to Richmond’s Style Weekly magazine back in 2008, Cuccinelli defended laws criminalizing extramarital sex, saying that such restrictions “ought to stay on the books.”
“Frankly it wouldn’t hurt to enforce them more,” Cuccinelli is quoted saying. The magazine paraphrased Cuccinelli drawing a comparison to “perjury inasmuch as the occasional prosecution or two would get people thinking twice.”
Cuccinelli's spokesperson issued the following statement to Politico:
Ken Cuccinelli is someone who believes in and supports the institution of marriage. The campaign for the governorship in Virginia is about the concerns of voters, which include first and foremost creating jobs and growing the economy.As a response, this isn't bad: Politico, you are raising an nonissue; the voters want us to focus on things that matter to them; this is a distraction.
Note, however, what the spokesperson did not say: You are misrepresenting the tone and context of Mr. Cuccinelli's remarks. Ken Cuccinelli did not and does not want actual enforcement of anti-adultery laws; he was just making the point, in a humorous way, that people could use a little nudging to respect the institution of marriage more than it is currently.
I was ready to dismiss this story as hyperbole until the spokesperson's statement made me do a mental double-take. Does Mr. Cuccinelli actually believe that anti-adultery laws should be enforced from time to time to keep marriages honest? Seriously?
Of course, one can't imagine local law enforcement officials engaging in an "occasional prosecution or two" against anyone in the political or economic elite, so who would be subject to the law's actual and deterrent power?
Luckily for Mr. Cuccinelli, he is safe from being put to the test by the American judges, who would likely strike down any actual enforcement of anti-adultery laws as unconstitutional in a post-Lawrence v. Texas world.
I did not consult any polls before writing this, but I can guesstimate that a high majority of Virginians-- in particular, the citizens of northern Virginia and others who are turning Virginia purple-- think that wanting to revive the enforcement of laws criminalizing consensual adult behavior is, to use the technical term, bonkers.
UPDATE: This story should also be considered in the context of Mr. Cuccinelli's current campaign to bring back Virginia's anti-sodomy law.
Links:
Article in Politico (July 23, 2013): Ken Cuccinelli once backed anti-adultry laws
Article in Style Weekly (May 28, 2008): Adult Supervision
Article in The Huffington Post (July 23, 2013): Ken Cuccinelli's War on Oral Sex
Link to Ken Cuccinelli's web site promoting the reinstatement of Virginia's anti-sodomy law
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