# John Boehner sex scandal **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 10, 2011, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853 "2011-02-10T03:48:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/1 "2011-02-10T03:48:01Z")
Anyone heard of the possible sex scandal brewing for John Boehner? Not a lot of major news sources have picked it up yet. > [@](#): > > Capitol Hill insiders and political bloggers have been buzzing about an upcoming New York Times probe - detailing an alleged affair that the 61-year-old married father of two had with pretty Washington lobbyist LISBETH LYONS. -From [here](http://www.nationalenquirer.com/john_boehner_house_speaker_sex_scandal_two_women/celebrity/70110). The first thing you’ll notice is that this story broke in the National Enquirer, but before you dismiss it, remember that the John Edwards scandal broke in the Enquirer too. If this turns out to be legit, will it cause any uproar? Will/should he step down? Personally, I don’t give a damn what anyone does in their personal life, except for the enraging hypocrisy of how often this stuff comes out of “the party of morals.” ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/2 "2011-02-10T03:58:19Z")
> [@](#): > > The first thing you’ll notice is that this story broke in the National Enquirer, but before you dismiss it, remember that the John Edwards scandal broke in the Enquirer too. Well, they’ve broken lots of stories that were BS, to. And the language is kinda weird, a “New York Times probe?”. I usually associate the word “probe” with legal investigations, the newspaper equivalent would be a “story” or an “investigation”. I’d be surprised if this turns out to be true, though I guess you never know. And the opportunities for puns on his last name would keep latenight comedians supplied with easy jokes for the rest of the year. > [@](#): > > If this turns out to be legit, will it cause any uproar? Will/should he step down? I imagine he’d step down from the leadership, anyways. > [@](#): > > Personally, I don’t give a damn what anyone does in their personal life, except for the enraging hypocrisy of how often this stuff comes out of “the party of morals.” Well, a Congressman having a secret relationship with a lobbyist is immoral for reasons beyond hypocrisy, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/3 "2011-02-10T04:58:06Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Personally, I don’t give a damn what anyone does in their personal life, except for the enraging hypocrisy of how often this stuff comes out of “the party of morals.” I actually DO care what politicians do in their personal life if they lie about it. Pretty much by definition an affair is going to involve lying. If a pol is into goat felching, hey whatever as long as it is legal and they are open about it. However, chasing every skirt in sight while being married and lying about it shows a distinct lack of character. Unless, of course, the pol has an open marriage and is honest about it (like any pol would ever admit that… ) The people we elect should be honest. And smart. Having an affair is dishonest and dumb. My theory is that any politician caught lying about anything\* should be run out of office. The problem, however, is that voters tend to ignore this kind of behavior if ‘their’ guy does it. The other side has a field day if someone in the opposition is caught doing this kind of crap yet we all know that a large portion of politicians on both sides of the aisle are full on lying bastards. Caught in an affair? Kick 'em out. Caught cheating on taxes? Throw 'em out. Caught doing dirty business deals? Toss the bastard out. Slee \*Of course, this can get tricky for a pol who honestly changes their opinion on an issue. But they should be able to justify their change of heart. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/4 "2011-02-10T05:01:50Z")
If it’s true, he would probably be “asked” to step aside. But there’s not very much to go on here. (EDIT: To put another way, nobody has provided any reason to think this story is true.) We’ll see if anyone else thinks it’s a credible story. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/5 "2011-02-10T05:09:23Z")
Did John Boneher? ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/6 "2011-02-10T05:16:08Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Did John Boneher? And so it begins… ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/7 "2011-02-10T05:17:47Z")
Couldn’t resist. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/8 "2011-02-10T05:37:15Z")
I imagine his chickie on the side must have been a Guidette who loved his orange skin. ---
**Author:** ![Kolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e56c9b/32.png) [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/9 "2011-02-10T05:44:42Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I imagine his chickie on the side must have been a Guidette who loved his orange skin. Snooki? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/10 "2011-02-10T05:53:33Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I imagine his chickie on the side must have been a Guidette who loved his orange skin. Hey, there must be _somebody_ out there who thinks Oompa-Loompas are hot. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/11 "2011-02-10T06:00:43Z")
deleted ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/12 "2011-02-10T06:22:10Z")
He can pray it away. Or he may appear on TV and cry so much ,we will all feel sorry for him and forgive his sins. I really don’t expect much in the personal lives of politicians. They have some spectacular groupies who think sleeping with a politician will give them some of his power and respect. The kind of ego required to run for office and the ability to lie to everyone are not the characteristics of person who will not take advantage of everything that comes their way. It is different when you are a member of a party that proclaims it is the bastion of religion and values. Thom Hartmann has had a contest this week. The best email by a person who is willing to sleep with Boehner for 350,000 bucks. that is the beginning rate for a lobbyist. That is what he says the girl is. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/13 "2011-02-10T12:35:58Z")
Whenever I think of Orange Boehner I can’t help but think about the old joke about the guy eating cheetos and watching porn. The first thing I’d like to know is if _it_ is orange, too. The second thing I want to know is if the what motivated the girl. I’m sure if it’s true, our resident Republican apologists will bog down Google searching for Democrats who were unfaithful. If there’s anything to it, he’ll step down as Speaker and they’ll find another right winger to step in and start fighting for jobs, just as soon as they finish fighting against health care, abortion, and homosexual rights. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/14 "2011-02-10T12:49:56Z")
I could not possibly care less about what skeezy sexual situations a politician gets into with consenting adults. Even if it’s a homophobic politician illegally hiring gay male prostitutes, other than being worth a few snickers, it’s not my business. However, I do care about what relationships politicians carry on with lobbyists, for much the same reason that I care about what relationships diplomats carry on with diplomats from other countries, or what relationships judges carry on with people who appear before them. These relationships should be solely professional: any personal relationship at all has the potential to bias their judgment unacceptably. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/15 "2011-02-10T13:36:10Z")
Well, the Enquirer story has him as “ruggedly handsome.” Not sure I believe that enhances their credibility, but what do I know? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/16 "2011-02-10T13:50:01Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > He can pray it away. You must have mistaken this charge with a homosexual affair. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/17 "2011-02-10T13:59:19Z")
In a [blog post](http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2011/02/10/supersonic-demise-congressman-chris-lee)about the Chris Lee story, [FoxNews.com](http://FoxNews.com) says this: > [@FoxNews.com](#): > > Dating back to his time as House Minority Leader, current Speaker John Boehner has enforced a no-shenanigans policy among the GOP rank-and-file. But Wednesday night, Boehner said he did lean on Lee to resign. In 2008, Boehner persuaded former Rep. Vito Fossella (R-NY) to resign after a drunk driving arrest revealed that the Staten Island Republican had a secret family in Virginia. Boehner also got former Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN) to step down quickly last spring after he admitted to an affair with a Congressional aide. Initially, Souder wanted to finish out the balance of his term. > > Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) is Souder’s successor and says Lee did the right thing. > > “If someone is willing to lead a secret life away from their spouse, how can the general public trust you?” Stutzman asked. So, I guess if the _Enquirer_ story is true, it’s going to be tough for Boehner to stick around, claiming the “no shenanigans” standard doesn’t apply to him. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/18 "2011-02-10T14:06:17Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Well, the Enquirer story has him as “ruggedly handsome.” > > Not sure I believe that enhances their credibility, but what do I know? Whatever he’s doing to his skin to cause the unnatural coloration is ridiculous, but you have to hand it to Boehner in the looks department; he’s actually pretty attractive and has held up well for a guy his age. It is sometimes difficult to see, what with his pact with evil and all… The Enquirer story will probably go nowhere, but I would be surprised if Boehner hadn’t a few dalliances over the years, putting aside the potential deliciousness of yet another dish of Republican hypocrisy for the moment. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/19 "2011-02-10T14:07:07Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > So, I guess if the _Enquirer_ story is true, it’s going to be tough for Boehner to stick around, claiming the “no shenanigans” standard doesn’t apply to him. Now I want to cue Stubby Kaye: “Shenanigans, we’ll have a lot of fun, shenanigans…” (you gotta be 50+ to remember this one). ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2011, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853/20 "2011-02-10T14:14:26Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > If this turns out to be legit, will it cause any uproar? Will/should he step down? > > Personally, I don’t give a damn what anyone does in their personal life, except for the enraging hypocrisy of how often this stuff comes out of “the party of morals.” I’m torn on this one. I understand that it is inappropriate for a member of congress to have an affair with a lobbyist, but with whom in Washington _would_ it be appropriate? A staffer? A journalist? Some one from a foreign embassy? I really do not care what two consenting adults of the same species do, as long as their spouses don’t, and I certainly don’t expect them to announce private arrangements to the world. I don’t even care very much if their spouses DO care. Or if it’s three of four adults. It’s just not my business, as long as no-one is running for office at the time. (I do stick at that species issue, though.) So, without evidence her clients affected his votes, I’m leaving my pitchfork and torch at home. (Where I will chuckle gleefully about petards.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-boehner-sex-scandal/570853.md?page=2)