Marital Woes Strike Ensign's Ex-Housemate

John Ensign, Chip Pickering, Mark Sanford all prayed at C Street

(NEWSER) - When they learned of his affair, John Ensign’s housemates confronted him. They told him he was ruining his marriage, and offending God. In attendance, as Ensign broke down crying, were Republicans and Democrats alike, all residents of 133 C Street, a kind of boarding house for Christian lawmakers. Chip Pickering lived there, too, and Mark Sanford came often to pray, so when their respective sex scandals became public, the house, and the secretive organization that runs it, became in the public imagination a kind of rambunctious, Bible-thumping frat house. Residents began to flee the place. More»

C Street House members believe they 'transcend morality'

(NEWSER) - The C Street House, the Capitol Hill religious enclave that Mark Sanford, John Ensign, and Chip Pickering have in common, is more than a residence that happened to shelter three lawmakers involved in recent sex scandals, writes Jeff Sharlet in Salon. "If sexual license was all the Family offered the C Street men, that would merely be seedy and self-serving. But Family men are ... followers of a political religion that embraces elitism, disdains democracy, and pursues power for its members the better to 'advance the Kingdom.'" More»

Governor kept evenings free, shopped around during state trip

(NEWSER) - Mark Sanford requested meetings with real estate agents during his state-funded trade mission to Argentina last year and rearranged his itinerary to ensure he had at least one free evening in Buenos Aires, according to emails obtained by the AP. The South Carolina governor has said the trip was when he first became intimate with mistress Maria Belen Chapur. More»

Jenny Sanford wins praise for not standing by her man

(NEWSER) - In the traditional narrative of the philandering politician, the wronged wife is forced to stand by her man and offer unconditional forgiveness. But Jenny Sanford is forging a new path. She has publicly flayed the South Carolina governor—"His career is not a concern of mine," she told reporters recently—and has won huge respect from the state's voters in the process, reports the Washington Post. More»

Jessica Alba, Johnny Depp, survey shows

(NEWSER) - Dating site AshleyMadison.com, where you can go in search of an extramarital affair, recently surveyed its members to find out which celebrities they'd most like to cheat with. Fox News reports on the findings from 30,000 US members. The women:

1. Jessica Alba: Fifteen percent of the males surveyed chose the pregnant actress as their top choice.
2. Megan Fox: 14.4%
3. Angelina Jolie: 10.5%
4. Scarlett Johansson: Fox News notes that she was "the only blonde to make the cut," receiving 10.3% of the vote.
5. Halle Berry: 7.9%