9 Women Who Brought Down Politically Powerful Men

The former head of the CIA, Gen. David Petraeus, resigned from his post because of an affair with his biographer Paula Broadwell (center), who triggered an investigation into their relationship by sending threatening emails to Florida socialite Jill Kelley (right). Loop 21/Getty

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Study finds political sex scandals play out worse for blacks than whites

Man with a zipper problem. Man thinking with the wrong head. Habitual cookie-jar intruder. Hummingbird among flowers.

Whatever clever term you use to describe the polyamorous man, particularly those of the political variety, it’s clear that none of them have ever learned from the others who came before them.

With the world – or maybe just the busybodies in Washington, D.C. -- now following every detail of the sex scandal involving Gen. David Petraeus and his biographer Paula Broadwell, now’s a good time as any to remind you how pervasive these things are in American politics. (See the gallery above for some of the more infamous trysts.)

But before you do that … did you know that sex scandals affect black politicians worse than white politicians? According to a 2010 survey done by the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Participation at the University of Texas, Austin, favorable judgments of black candidates drop more substantially than those for white candidates who are caught with their pants down.

What do you think? Do you agree that white politicians survive scandals better than black politicos?

Tell us in the comment section below.

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