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Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) acknowledged Tuesday that he had “violated the vows” of marriage by having an affair with a campaign staffer.

The admission — made in a televised appearance in Las Vegas — shocked Ensign’s Senate colleagues and delivered a serious blow to any hopes he might have had of seeking the GOP presidential nomination in 2012.

Political insiders in the Senate and in Nevada told POLITICO that Ensign began the affair with the staffer several months after he separated from his wife, Darlene. When Ensign reconciled with his wife, the sources said, he gave the aide a severance package, and the two parted ways.

Some time later, a Nevada source said, Ensign met with the husband of the woman involved and had what this source described as a positive encounter. Sources said that the man subsequently asked Ensign for a substantial sum of money — at which point Ensign decided to make the affair public.

Ensign did not provide specifics about the affair Tuesday, nor did he identify the woman involved, except to say that she and her husband “were close friends, and both of them worked for me.”

“Last year, I had an affair,” Ensign said. “I violated the vows of my marriage. It is the worst thing I have ever done in my life. If there was ever anything in my life that I could take back, this would be it. I take full responsibility for my actions.”

Ensign said he deeply regretted the affair — and that he remains committed to his Senate duties.

In a statement to the Las Vegas Sun, Darlene Ensign said: “Since we found out last year, we have worked through the situation, and we have come to a reconciliation. This has been difficult on both families. With the help of our family and close friends, our marriage has become stronger.”

Ensign informed fellow Nevadan Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader, about his situation prior to making his public announcement.

“I don’t know the details. I talked with him today,” Reid told POLITICO Tuesday afternoon. “Of course, he’s my friend. This is a private, family matter. I just hope that Darlene and he work things out.”

Reid said he didn’t offer any advice on how to handle the situation. “I didn’t give him any advice,” he said. “I just told him he’s my friend. I’m pulling for him. Anything I can do to help, let me know.”

Ensign is chairman of the GOP Policy Committee, making him the highest-ranking Republican senator in Nevada’s history.

Ensign was absent from Capitol Hill on Tuesday, skipping the weekly lunch that his committee hosts for GOP senators and its ensuing news conference, where party leaders espouse their weekly message.

His announcement stunned colleagues, who were preparing for this summer’s big battles over the Supreme Court nomination of Sonia Sotomayor and health care reform but now have to contend with a drama hovering over one of their leaders.

Elected in 2000, the 51-year-old Ensign has moved up the leadership chain in the Senate. As chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee in 2008, Ensign oversaw the devastating losses by GOP candidates. But his party largely spared him of blame, casting it instead on an unpopular president who dragged down the party’s brand. Since then, Ensign has sought to articulate conservative principles and is a mainstay at GOP news conferences deriding Democrats’ domestic policies.

Ensign ran for the Senate in 1998 against Reid in a nasty cliffhanger race that Reid won by a razor-thin 428 votes. Reid and Ensign have since reached a détente; neither man criticizes the other by name back home.

A staunch fiscal and social conservative, Ensign has been considered a rising star in his party, recently making headlines by speaking at events in Iowa, raising speculation about his interest in a run for the GOP presidential nomination in 2012.

A born-again Christian, Ensign has been a member of the Promise Keepers, a male evangelical group that promotes marital fidelity.

When former Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) was arrested in an airport men’s room in the summer of 2007, Ensign was among Craig’s toughest critics, saying Craig should step down because he had been charged with a crime.

“I wouldn’t put myself, hopefully, in that kind of position, but if I was in a position like that, that’s what I would do,” Ensign told The Associated Press at the time.

During the 1998 impeachment of President Bill Clinton, Ensign, then a Senate candidate, called on Clinton to resign.

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Hmmm...anyone believe the story that he was already separated from his wife when the A began?

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Someone on MB, years ago, posted an article or some research about the higher incidence of affairs among men in positions of power. It's tied to the sense of entitlement that comes with wealth and power. I

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What I find so hard to fathom is the idea that being honest, ending the affair, working to heal his marriage, apparently apologize to the AP's spouse AND to come forward voluntarily will likely spell the end of his political hopes. But those in the know will look the other way as long as you don't get caught. Bizarre.

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higher incidence of affairs among men in positions of power. It's tied to the sense of entitlement that comes with wealth and power

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being honest, ending the affair, working to heal his marriage, apparently apologize to the AP's spouse AND to come forward voluntarily will likely spell the end of his political hopes

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I think most people who have affairs believed in their core that they would never do that, then do it.

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It's tied to the sense of entitlement that comes with wealth and power.

Sandy

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I would rather have someone who has made mistakes, learned from them, and become a man of higher integrity, compassion, and honesty -- by learning the depths of his own humanity -- as President than any innocent.

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Reporting from Las Vegas -- Nevada Sen. John Ensign's admission of an extramarital affair has turned into something of a saga here, with his aides on Friday accusing the husband of his former mistress of trying to weasel money from the once-rising GOP star.

Tory Mazzola, an Ensign spokesman, said in an e-mail that the husband, Doug Hampton, had recently through an attorney made exorbitant demands for "cash and other financial benefits."

"Doug Hampton's outrageous demand was referred to Sen. Ensign's legal counsel, who is handling the matter going forward," Mazzola said.

Daniel Albregts, attorney for Doug and Cynthia Hampton, declined to comment.

Meanwhile, Doug Hampton had unloaded his woes to Fox News in a distraught letter, in which he said that Ensign had "ruined our lives and careers and left my family in shambles" and that he yearned for "justice, help and restitution."


In essence, the former co-workers and golfing buddies are engaged in the kind of finger-pointing typical of a soured relationship -- only the accusations are more grave and the stakes far higher.

On Tuesday, the day after Fox received the letter, Ensign abruptly admitted to a months-long affair with aide Cynthia Hampton. On Wednesday he resigned as chairman of the Republican Policy Committee, a top Senate leadership position, after critics branded him a hypocrite for chastising others for their indiscretions -- including then-President Clinton, whom he called on to resign -- and then indulging in his own.

In his letter, printed Friday by the Las Vegas Sun, Hampton described the Ensigns as "lifelong friends." Their homes are in the same tony section of town; their children attended the same schools. The senator eventually hired both Hamptons: Doug as his administrative assistant, Cynthia for his campaign and his political action committee.

The extramarital affair began in December 2007, both sides have said. In February 2008, Hampton's letter says, he confronted Ensign at the senator's Washington home in front of a group that included Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.).

The same month, Cynthia Hampton's salary doubled, federal records show, though Ensign's camp has said she took on additional duties.

"Senator Ensign's conduct and relentless pursuit of my wife led to our dismissal in April of 2008," Hampton's letter says. "I would like to say he stopped his heinous conduct and pursuit upon our leaving but . . . his actions did not subside until August of 2008."

In the months after the Hamptons left Ensign's office, Doug Hampton landed jobs with two companies closely tied to the senator: first a consulting firm and then Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air. Ensign made calls on Hampton's behalf, the Associated Press reported.

The Hamptons' 19-year-old son, Brandon, also worked for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which Ensign chaired, from March 2008 to August 2008.

Still, Hampton's letter says, "we have lost significant income, suffered indescribable pain and emotional suffering."

In the letter, addressed to Fox News anchorwoman Megyn Kelly, dated June 11, Hampton says he has documents, phone records and witnesses to back up his claims. Tom Lowell, senior producer of the cable network's "America's Newsroom," said a show booker received the letter via e-mail on Monday.

"We followed up with him, but he seemed evasive and not credible, thus we didn't pursue it," Lowell told the Huffington Post. "We certainly weren't going to rush to air with accusations against a sitting senator without doing due diligence on the reputability of the claims."

Lowell denied that anyone at Fox News tipped off Ensign, who on Tuesday hurriedly flew from Washington to Las Vegas for a brief news conference.

"Our families were close," he told reporters. "That closeness put me into situations which led to my inappropriate behavior. We caused deep pain to both families and for that I am sorry."

On Friday, Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas) told Politico.com that she was weighing whether to challenge the social and fiscal conservative in 2012. "I think his ability to represent the state and the people who call Nevada home has been compromised dramatically," she said, though she stopped short of calling for his resignation.

Eric Herzik, chairman of the political science department at the University of Nevada at Reno, said he considered the "sex part" of the Ensign scandal over. "But if Hampton allegedly tried to extort a U.S. senator, he's either stupid or he's got something else to drop. And the longer this is in the public eye, the more damage is done to Ensign."

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Originally posted by Tiggy:
PS - And for some reason the word POLITICO really cracked me up. What a name!!! I wonder if their parent organization is KAOS and run by Maxwell Smart.

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"Would you believe I was separated from my wife when I was dating her? She was separated too!"

Ummm...missed it by THAT much.

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Tory Mazzola, an Ensign spokesman, said in an e-mail that the husband, Doug Hampton, had recently through an attorney made exorbitant demands for "cash and other financial benefits."

"Doug Hampton's outrageous demand was referred to Sen. Ensign's legal counsel, who is handling the matter going forward," Mazzola said.

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Meanwhile, Doug Hampton had unloaded his woes to Fox News in a distraught letter, in which he said that Ensign had "ruined our lives and careers and left my family in shambles" and that he yearned for "justice, help and restitution."

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"We followed up with him, but he seemed evasive and not credible, thus we didn't pursue it," Lowell told the Huffington Post. "We certainly weren't going to rush to air with accusations against a sitting senator without doing due diligence on the reputability of the claims."

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What I really wanna know is why the senator's career is ruined and Angelina Jolie's is stronger than ever?

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Yanno - Bill Harley always said to "put it on the evening news," in regard to exposure. I'm just not sure it doesn't make the BP look a wee bit insane. 'Specially since the affair was already over. Fascinating to watch though!

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Originally posted by Tiggy:
I have never quite understood the concept of exposure. With my first husband, it seemed like everyone knew about his affair and all it seemed to do is isolate me and my children. People were, of course, not in favour of the affair but didn't have a clue how they were supposed to react, so they just stayed away saying it was none of their business.