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Thursday, October 5, 2017

There's No Disgrace Like Home (Life): Tim Murphy vs. Scott DesJarlais

Pro-Life Congressman Tim Murphy (R-PA) announced he will not run for re-election after multiple outlets broke that he urged his mistress to get an abortion while simultaneously voting against abortion. Murphy's scandal broke after outlets revealed a number of text messages between Murphy and his mistress. Murphy's scandal trended on Facebook news, and remained the top result there for days.

Compare this with Scott DesJarlais (R-TN). DesJarlais similarly advised his ex-wife to get an abortion in 2000. He also "instructed a patient — 24 years his junior — with whom he was having an affair with to get an abortion as well" within the same time frame. Nevertheless, DesJarlais continues to serve in the House. There are a few differences between the Congressmen and their scandals.

1) DesJarlais's district is redder. Both districts strongly favor Republicans, but a Democrat could foreseeably win Murphy's Western PA district, especially if Pres. Trump is unable to bring back the jobs he promised to the rust belt. By contrast, DesJarlais's R+20 (according to Cook PVI) is as safe as it gets.

2) DesJarlais's scandal broke in mid-October, during an election cycle. When the tapes were released, it was too late for DesJarlais to back out of the race and for Reps to replace him with someone of higher character. By the time the 2012 election came and went, Reps saw that despite the scandal, DesJarlais easily won re-election by double digits. By contrast, Murphy's scandal broke far enough away from an election cycle that NRCC has a chance to replace him with another primary challenger.

3) While DesJarlais's offense happened long before he held Congressional office, Murphy's scandal happened while he was a representative in Congress.

When it comes to measuring the offensiveness of these two candidates, both commit serious personal blunders and ought to be held accountable. DesJarlais's offenses, however, seem to be a shade worse than Murphy's. Nevertheless, Murphy is retiring at the end of his term, while DesJarlais is not leaving office any time soon. It is interesting to see how the electoral cycle and district maps interface with big media events, like scandals, and how they shape the political landscape of Congress.

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