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

Thumbnails

Photo 1 of 9

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

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.

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]

President Obama's New Cabinet Could be "Less Diverse Than Bush's"

Members are stepping down, being replaced

The White House will announce a handful of new Cabinet nominees this week, and President Obama has handpicked Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) to replace Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State, White House counterterrorism and homeland security adviser John Brennan to replace disgraced General Petraeus as CIA director, and former Senator Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) to replace Leon Panetta who is stepping down as Secretary of Defense. 

It has not gone unnoticed that the nominees are all, indeed, white men, as NYU professor Paul Light, who studies political appointments, said, “It’s evident that he’s going to have a less diverse cabinet this term, possibly even less diverse than the George W. Bush cabinet."

Additionally, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, a Chinese-American, could be replaced by a white man, too, Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. Granted, Obama's first choice to replace Clinton was U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, a black woman, but she dropped out of the running, and it is still possible that the replacement for Lisa Jackson, the first black woman to serve as Environmental Protection Agency administrator, may be a woman, and that the now-vacant Commerce secretary slot will go to Xerox chief Ursula Burns, also a black woman. (Washington Post)

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]

Loop 411: Sex, Sex, Sex and More

Here's what we were talking about this week

Petraeus: CIA Knew Almost Immediately Terrorists Were Behind Libya Attacks

The general and former CIA head says intelligence agencies knew early who was to blame

Former CIA Director David Petraeus said intelligence agencies knew the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya was a terrorist ploy almost immediately, but the administration withheld the information to avoid tipping off suspected al-Qaida affiliates. Petraeus gave the testimony to Congress yesterday in a closed-door hearing and news was reported by the Associated Press, citing information from lawmakers who attended the hearings.

Petraeus also said it was not initially known whether the attackers had infiltrated a demonstration to cover their plot.

[ALSO READ:Obama Pushes Back On Susan Rice's Libya Critics]

Lawmakers who questioned the general said he testified that the CIA's first draft of talking points about the assault that killed four Americans called it as a terrorist attack. Petraeus said that reference was removed from the final version, but he wasn't sure which federal agency deleted it.

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]

Report: Ex-CIA Director Petraeus Will Testify on Benghazi

Director of Senate Intelligence Committee says Petraeus will testify

Senator Diane Feinstein, who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee, says former CIA Director David Petraeus has agreed to testify about the attacks on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans to Congress.

Petraeus resigned from the CIA Friday citing an extra-marital affair, but has reportedly indicated he is willing to testify.

[ALSO READ: FBI Now Investigating Ex-CIA Director's Alleged Mistress]

Sen. Feinstein. told the Associated Press today that the former director, who began his term as head of the CIA on Sept. 6, 2011, indicated his readiness.

"He is very willing and interested in talking to the committee," she said. No date for his testimony has been set.

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]

In The Loop: Is Cheating OK?

Matt Simon hits the streets in search of your opinion.

Oxytocin Said to Help Prevent Men From Cheating

Hormone deters men in monogamous relationships from straying

If the government released a cloud of oxytocin, a brain chemical found to promote trust and bonding, it might prevent future cheating and infidelity scandals like the Gen. David Petraeus affair, new research suggests. A study, published Tuesday in the Journal of Neuroscience, found that men in monogamous relationship who got a whiff of oxytocin stayed away from an attractive woman they’d just met. However, the chemical didn’t have the same effect on single heterosexual men. The finding suggests that oxytocin, said to flood the body in response to orgasm and early romance, acts more subtly in humans than previously understood. In other words, the more oxytocin present, the more likely a man will reject urges for sex with an attractive woman he just met. Ladies, this stuff is not currently on sale over-the-counter. (Los Angeles Times)

[ALSO READ: Top Jobs That Lead Men & Women To Cheat]

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]

10 Things You Need To Know For Wednesday

While the rest of the country awaits the U.S. Supreme Court's decision on the Affordable Care Act and the future of health care costs, the residents of Rushville, Ill., have much less to worry about when its comes to the cost of a visit to their local doctor. Russell Dohner, the town's doctor since 1955, charges his patients just $5 -- not for a co-pay but for the entire cost of the doctor visit, according to KSDK News. The low price isn't the only thing at Dohner's office that's remained constant for decades. The office hasn't been remodeled, nurses haven't been replaced and staff members haven't ditched their old-school method of writing medical records on index cards in favor of more modern technology.

Thumbnails

Photo 1 of 10

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

News in Photos: The 10 topics you should be ready to talk about today.

10 Things You Need To Know For Tuesday

Kevin Clash, the voice behind the beloved "Sesame Street" character Elmo, is accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old. Clash, 52, denies the allegations, saying he began a consensual relationship with the young man in question when he was 18 years old. The young man is now 23. However, for now, Clash is taking a leave of absence from "Sesame Street."

Thumbnails

Photo 1 of 10

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

News in Photos: The 10 topics you should be ready to talk about today.

Petraeus Affair: Do Some Jobs Lead to More Cheating?

IT/Engineer Being cooped up away from home leads to "computer love."

Thumbnails

Photo 1 of 10

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

High stress and long hours lead to more infidelity, study finds.

When President Bill Clinton got jammed up for having an extramarital affair with his aide Monica Lewinsky, the relationship became news fodder for journalists and comedians alike. Now, the former CIA director Gen. David Petraeus finds himself facing the same kind of scrutiny since he resigned his CIA post, citing an extramarital affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell.

[ALSO READ: CIA Director Quits]

Back when Clinton got in trouble during the '90s, comedian Dave Chappelle joked that powerful men in the president's position cheat with women who are close to them because they are busy.

But does a man's line of work have a direct correlation to his propensity to cheating? Believe it or not, it often does. A 2010 study by notorious adultery website AshleyMadison.com revealed the jobs that were most likely to drive a man to having an affair.

[ALSO READ: Do Black Women Accept Cheating More?]

And the ladies weren't saints either. The same study also showed what jobs were likely to make a woman step out on her husband.

Many involved careers or industries considered highly stressful and requiring long work hours:

For Men:

IT/Engineer

Financial Industry

Education

Doctors

Lawyers

For Women:

Teacher

Police Officer

Nurse

Stay-At-Home Mom

Real Estate Agent

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]

FBI Now Investigating Ex-CIA Director's Alleged Mistress

FBI believes alleged mistress may have gotten classified information

Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.

Former CIA Director David Petraeus gave up his post yesterday via a resignation letter, citing an affair he was having. In no time, the internet found that the woman he was having an affair with was his biographer, Paula Broadwell, and almost as quickly media outlets found out that Broadwell was under investigation by the FBI for receiving classified information.

[ALSO READ:CIA Director Quits]

NBC News chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel on MSNBC reports:

"The FBI investigation is seeing whether she had improper access to General Petraeus' emails and may have had access to his ... may have accidentally or deliberately had access to classified information. And so we know this investigation is taking place, and that it has identified Paula Broadwell."

According to Fox News, the FBI had already been investigating Broadwell on an unrelated case before "stumbling on the affair."

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]

CIA Director Quits

Petraeus cites extramarital affair in resignation letter presented to president

Gen. David Petraeus, the CIA director who prior to his appointment successfully commanded U.S. and NATO military forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, resigned Friday afternoon, citing his having had an extramarital affair.

The president has accepted his resignation, detailed in a letter obtained by MSNBC. The president did not ask Petraeus, who has been married to wife, Holly, for more than 37 years, to step down, MSNBC reported.

No mention was made about the Sept. 11, 2012, deaths of the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans in Benghazi, Libya, which took place while he led the CIA. The Obama administration has faced criticism about what did it know and when when it comes to who and what led to the deadly attack.

[ALSO READ: Request for Extra Security Before Benghazi Attack]

The deputy CIA director will likely take Petraeus's place until a permanent appointment is made.

[SUBSCRIBE TO LOOP 21 RSS FEED]