In Europe, no one would care about the Governors sexual orientation. The fact that he was unfaithful to his wife would be "handled" and dismissed; life would go on. the job favoritism would become the issue, as I suspect it will here.
I suspect you are absolutely right about that, and I don't think the reaction will be much different here than it would have been in Europe (we are talking about New Jersey, after all, not traditionally a very conservative state). I can see the job favoritism as a big issue, also from what I've read, it looks likely to me that McGreevy's lover may have been trying to blackmail him, and that could easily become a criminal matter. What other secrets may come out remain to be seen, but remember that McGreevy's administration had hardly been scandal-free before this issue arose.
The other area where I see McGreevy as likely to take some heat is from the obvious political maneuver of delaying his resignation until November 15, because an earlier resignation would have mandated a special election in which the people of New Jersey would actually have had the opportunity to choose their new governor. As it is, the Democrats will manage to bypass the will of the people and maintain power.
The media and the fundamentalist Christians; the right wing and THE JEHOVAHS WITNESSES will make a big issue of this.
I suppose some might, but as a Christian myself, I don't think it's all that big a deal. Yes, the Bible calls homosexual behavior a sin, as it does many other behaviors. Was there ever any doubt that McGreevy was a sinner? So his sin is different than mine, so what? Frankly, I'm more impressed now by McGreevy's forthrightness about himself and his situation than I ever was by anything he did as governor. Of course, the other issues we have been discussing demonstrate that it is better for him to step down, but not particularly because he is gay.
I certainly have more respect for McGreevy at this point than for Bill Clinton, who, while apparently 100% heterosexual, was willing to lie and stonewall through his scandals, even to the point of perjuring himself - anything to maintain power.
