We’ve got the vote on cap and trade coming up, volatility in Iran, and a big fight brewing over the President’s health care plan.

Which is precisely why we’ll spend the next few days talking about yet another politician who can’t keep his dick in his pants.

The jerk disgraced himself, embarrassed his family, made fools of his staff, and put the GOP in a horrible position for these upcoming battles. Which isn’t to say that I thought his apology was anything less than sincere (I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt on that), but that making the right decision in the first place would have been much nicer than a decent apology.

For anyone confused on the subject, refer to “Rules for the Elect, #1.”

Update: Originally, I was going to suggest that Sanford needs to resign his position and only left it out because I wanted this to remain kind of lightweight. But I do think that resigning is the right thing for him to do--and if he won’t, then removing him from office would be justified. Here’s why (and, yes, I’m letting someone else’s words do the talking since I think they got it precisely right):

And resigning from the Republican Governors’ Association chairmanship is not going to do it, and the reason is that there is a dereliction of duty here. I know there’s the titillation of the reason for [his disappearance], but even apart from that, he is the governor of the state.

The governor of the state is chief executive, and if there is a disaster in the state, and this guy is incommunicado, he is nowhere to be seen and he doesn’t transfer authority to his lieutenant governor who calls out the National Guard, you cannot recover from that. I think he doesn’t last a week in the office of governor.

Having the affair is bad enough, although not necessarily a reason to resign. Failing so dramatically to do your job as the chief executive of your state, however, is reason enough to say that he is not fit for the position. The term “bad judgement” doesn’t really begin to describe the ridiculous series of choices that lead him to go AWOL.

If he would spare his family even more embarrassment (and the people of his state the trouble of recalling him), then he should step down. Having shown such tremendous selfishness already, though, I don’t expect that he’ll see the honor in that path.

Updated Again: The funniest thing written about the Sanford affair.

...[O]f all the things we can now sadly say about the Governor, who among us would dare say Sanford doesn’t have game? Although he used that game for badness and naughty mistress email, fairness requires we recognize Sanford’s obvious talent for erotic verse.

In Shawn we trust.