Comparing Harvey Weinstein To Jack Abramoff: From Hollywood To Politics
It does not take long for Democrats to quickly cut the ties with their longtime donor, Harvey Weinstein. As his sexual assault case grows bigger, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama quickly condemned him. Now, the 65-year-old movie producer is experiencing a similar treatment from politicians to what Jack Abramoff received from the Republicans in the early 2000s.
In order to maintain their good image, politicians always try to keep their dirt hidden. They want the public to see them as a person with good moral conduct. Therefore, they have to cut ties with people who potentially endanger their good image. It does not matter how valuable those people are to their political career, like Weinstein.
According to Business Insider, Weinstein has donated more than $1 million to the Democrats since the year 2000. He has also organized many bundled donations from his peers in the total amount of $1.5 million to Bill and Hillary Clinton, as well as Obama. The donations were aimed to influence the government’s decision in favor of Weinstein and his business associates.
Weinstein could have remained comfortable in that position, rubbing shoulders with high-ranking politicians, if he kept his illicit behavior in the dark. However, when his accusers came to light to reveal his sexual assault, that was the end of his lobbying career. This is somewhat similar to Abramoff’s case a decade earlier.
Similar to Weinstein, Abramoff began his career as a movie producer. But in 1994, Abramoff left Hollywood to become a full-time lobbyist. During that time, Weinstein just began his new project as an executive producer of the blockbuster movie Pulp Fiction for Miramax.
When Weinstein founded his own production company in 2005, he had become a well-known donor to Democrats. Although he took a different path from Abramoff, they both work in the same field of political lobbying.
One particular difference between Abramoff and Weinstein is the problem that entangled them. Abramoff was caught in the illegal funneling of political money, while for Weinstein was his sexual misconduct.
It is likely that Obama Bill and Hillary Clinton knew about Weinstein’s sexual misconduct. But they might possibly choose to turn the blind eyes from it. Moreover, as New York Times reported, Weinstein has paid the settlement to his accusers for three decades.
Abramoff and Weinstein were initially able to hide their mischiefs for years. The Republican and Democratic politicians whom they supported were fine with such misconduct until they were exposed. As soon as the media uncovered them as crooks, those politicians considered them as excess baggage that needed to be disposed of.
Both Abramoff and Weinstein shared similar treatment in their journey from Hollywood to politics. In order to refresh our memory of the Abramoff’s case, here is the interview between Lesley Stahl from CBS with Abramoff in 2011.
[Featured Image by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP Image]
