Do you believe a politician’s personal life and business activities should be made public knowledge.......?

Question

Do you believe a politician’s personal life and business activities should be made public knowledge
during his/her campaign?

Answer 1

Yes. If you are going to be in the public eye as an elected official, then your personal life and business activities are RELEVANT. If you do not like it, don't run for office.

It is different than with celebrities. A celebrity's personal life does not affect your life. They are just there for entertainment. You can make a good argument toward why we should not pry into their personal lives. A politicians business activities and personal life, however, can have a direct correlation toward how they will run your government. If a politician practices illegal or unfair business practices, he/she is likely going to practice illegal or unfair business in the government. You, as a citizen, have a right to know if this is likely to happen so you can vote appropriately.

Regarding public life, Dick Cheney is the perfect example. He is a neo-conservative Republican. He believes, amongst other things, that gays should not have legal rights. Yet his daughter is a lesbian, has a lover AND a child, and he has no problem with it. It is only OTHER people's children who are not allowed to be gay. That is hypocrisy, whether you support gay rights or not. As a citizen, you should have a right to know this when you vote. You do not have to vote against him (or for him) based on this information, but to make an informed decision, you should know these things. It is necessary.

Is it fair to the politician? Perhaps not. That said, they know the consequences of entering the political ring. I don't feel sorry for them in the least. They get paid really well, and they have power. There are going to be consequences to being in that position. They are responsible for our well-being, and their personal lives and business activities reflect their views on how things should be done. You MUST know these things about someone before you can make a proper decision in voting for these people. The fact that so few people bother to find out is one of the reasons we have so many problems in our government in the first place. Take away knowledge of a candidates personal life, and it becomes even more of a crap-shoot than it already is.

Answer 2

Yes definately, i also believe indescressions in that area should be treated equally by the media.

I find it amazing how an unpopular president may have something in their personal life that is questionable, not out right immoral or illegal, just questionable and it is harped on as a reason they are a bad president. The best example is the current vice president who used to be an executive with Haliburton, which is treated as 'scandelous'. Last time i checked Haliburton was a legitimate company and being successful was not a crime.

Then again a popular president can do incredible things, look at Clinton and that's ok. President Clinton cheated on his wife in the Oval Office with an intern so young that they'd be wondering if it's a sex crime if he were less popular. He went on to commit purgery about that action, which is a crime and was impeached for it. All of that is ok, it's his personal life.

I liked Clinton, i voted for him twice but this double standard is an outrage.

Answer 3

Business Activities - Absolutely, there is a lot opportunity for conflict of interest here.
Personal Life - To an extent, yes. Remember Segregationist senator Strom Thurmond had an illegitimate daughter with an African-American maid? When what your legislating for your constituents is totally different than how you conduct your own personal life, the public should know what a hypocrit you are.

Answer 4

No I dont, and it's only been in the last 20 years or so that it's been acceptable for a ploiticians past and /or personal life to be delved into.

It's mostly been the right wing trying to discredit liberal this way.. loved it when Larry Flint offered that million dollars -it was great.

Answer 5

Personal life is exactly that - personal.
Business life and interests should be made public.

Answer 6

Unless it should be of concern to the public, such as criminal history, I think not. Same as celebrities, I don't understand, why the publicity?