Schock Shock
See his quote on the right side?
"Do your best to be an example to people."
He nailed that from a fitness guru standpoint.
But failed miserably from a politician standpoint.
Aaron Schock's political career is over.
And who knows what he faces next?
Maybe jail time before this is all over?
What a mess. How sad.
The Chicago Tribune nailed it:
FALL OF THE PHENOM
He was easily the most sophistica-ed person in the room. Surrounded by a gaggle of reporters at the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, a tanned Aaron Schock in a tailored suit and stylish necktie breezily answered questions about Illinois and national politics.
Among the crowd of older Republican delegates preoccupied with the breakfast buffet, Schock represented promise for a political party teeming with backbenchers. He was considering a run for Illinois governor.
Throughout the convention, he served as a Mitt Romney surrogate on national talk shows. He was in demand. He was raising money for his fellow congressmen, volunteering his staff to campaign for them and building the network of payback any ambitious politician must assemble.
But none of that relationship-building can help him now.
Schock resigned from the U.S. House on Tuesday, acknowledging a scandal that was becoming a daily distraction for the 33-year-old phenom. By resigning, he dodged a congressional ethics inquiry into allegations he used taxpayer and campaign money to satisfy his jet-setting lifestyle, and that he over-reported mileage on his congressional vehicle to bulk up his federal reimbursements. This was after he was forced to pay $40,000 from his own pocket to cover the cost of a lavish remodel of his Capitol office.
The drip-drip-drip of news stories during the last six weeks included questions about lavish trips to New York and London, concert tickets and helicopter rides, and questionable real estate deals with donors.
"I do this with a heavy heart," Schock wrote in his resignation letter, which his office released shortly after noon Illinois time. "Serving the people of the 18th District is the highest and greatest honor I have had in my life. … But the constant questions over the last six weeks have proven a great distraction that has made it too difficult for me to serve the people of the 18th District with the high standards that they deserve and which I have set for myself."
There it was, the thud of his fast and furious fall from grace. By 3 p.m., his Wikipedia page already included his resignation, effective March 31.
Congress and Illinois are losing a capable, ambitious, wonky wonder kid.
Throughout his rise in politics, Schock represented a blend of farm boy — he grew up growing and selling strawberries — and trendy hipster, someone who invests heavily in his appearance. Schock had the abs to prove it — which he once bared on the cover of a magazine, raising questions about his readiness for the big leagues.
His forgiving constituents looked past the lack of gravitas and continued to vote for him, starting when he was 19 years old and won a write-in campaign for the Peoria school board. He then spent four years in the state House before heading to Congress at age 27.
But only a few years in, he began to doubt if Congress suited him. He struggled with the constant commute to Washington, and the demanding and restrictive schedule. He started to test public opinion, and donor support, for a gubernatorial bid. At that Republican National Convention, he was the wild card, working the room alongside then-Treasurer Dan Rutherford, state Sen. Bill Brady, then-state Sen. Kirk Dillard and, of course, governor-to-be Bruce Rauner.
Schock toyed with the idea for months — and in so doing, raised millions for his campaign fund. He eventually decided against it, ran for another term in Congress and made a conscious decision to make the job more enjoyable. Schock traveled the globe during breaks, posted photos of his adventures on Instagram and developed a following of vicarious admirers on social media. He also negotiated his way to a seat on the influential House Committee on Ways and Means.
All that glamour and attention invited unprecedented scrutiny. Reporters started poking around and raising questions about his finances. Schock said he followed ethics rules carefully. He hired a team of experts to comb through his expenses — basically, a self-audit.
But if any of the allegations involving Schock hold merit, they would raise disturbing questions about his judgment.
Sadly, we've been here before.
Former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.admitted to misspending campaign funds and disguising that on his federal disclosure forms. He pleaded guilty to federal wire and mail fraud and is now imprisoned; his wife, Sandi, will serve a term for filing false tax returns. They satiated their material desires on illegal spending sprees: flat-screen TVs, cruises, dinners, stuffed elk heads and even Michael Jackson's fedora.
Schock isn't accused of any crime. But greed, a force if not an offense, has no political affiliation. Said Socrates: "He who is not contented with what he has would not be contented with what he would like to have."
Schock desired political stature and achieved it. Now he's another once-rising star shamed by his lust.
I'll still leave up his yard sign in my garage though:
Out for now......
Matt
