Steve Lopez: The real outrage behind the Whitman 'whore' remark

All right, sure. I think we can all agree that it's inappropriate for either Jerry Brown or one of his staffers to refer to Meg Whitman, his rival, as a whore.

What are all the impressionable young students in civics classes supposed to think? Wait, do we still fund civics classes in California?

If you saw the story about a recorded phone conversation Brown had with the Los Angeles Police Protective League, whose endorsement he was shopping for, it's not clear whether it was Brown or one of his snarky minions who used the "prostitute" reference.

But here's the deal: The endorsement went to Whitman, who would have you believe that public-employee unions are public enemy No. 1 and that they've got Brown in their pocket, making him incapable of reining in spending or balancing a budget.

And yet Meg had agreed to exempt public-safety employees from a pension reform plan in which she would move state workers into 401(k)s. Yeah, she's tough as nails, but she'll sell her soul for an endorsement.

If "whore" is the wrong word for that, is "hypocrite" the right one? You be the judge.

Talk to me, California.

-- Steve Lopez

Photos: Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown. Credit: Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Harry]

I disagree with the idea of lumping Whitman in with the poor, defenseless whores. At least they're upfront about what they're offering. And while we're on the subject, why stop at prop 19, let's legalize and tax prostitution as well.

[Ross]

Oh I see how this works. And Jerry has never been a "whore" for votes?

[Diz Pareunia]

Expecting a politician not to whore is like expecting a snake not to slither.

[tumtum]

It's an abomination. Jerry Brown should not be allowed to get away with this. Their campaign should pay. It's a huge insult to whores , especially the working girls of California. Compare Whitman to dogs if you wish - but keep wholesome whores out of it.

[Jon Rokke]

Sorry Steve but I think "Whore" is the correct term. The term "hypocrite" seems to be a badge of honor for Republicans these days. There is no honor to be had for Whitman.

[Bud32]

What i want to know is this. Why is Whitman making back room deals that promise not to "touch" law enforcement pensions ? Especially when the state is in the financial flusher due to those pensions. How exactly is she going to "get tough" with the unions. After making such a deal ??????

[Alan]

The public employee unions are the biggest problem for California and every candidate for governor should strongly criticize them.

[CV]

I agree with your comments Steve...
It seems to me that Brown is quite an honest and capable fellow and all the women in our family, including myself, are comfortable enough with the "context" (the language was not meant as a personal slur) of the audio conversation which was, of course, never intended for public consumption.

[Peter Wexler]

Whore is a strong word.

To describe Meg Whitman, See You Next Tuesday is all I can say. See you next Tuesday!

=>PW

[Leslie Brooks]

Meg Whitman's principles, such as they are, ARE compromised by her making a deal with this union and winning its support after all she has said about Jerry Brown and unions. So, yes, she is a whore in that sense of the word. Ignorance of the English language shouldn't blacken the reputation of someone who lnows proper English, and the attempt to do so is just another Republican smear based on cynical exploitattio of the uneducated and uninformed. It's like using ignorance of the Constitution to blacken the reputation of those who know what is in the Constitution, or ignorance of the definitions of fascism or socialism to use those words wherever they like, with no regard to facts or truth. Republicans are running on ignorance and fear and smears. Meg Whitman's commercials are full of lies and scare tactics calculated to manipulate the Chicken Little part of the population who think and probably vote with their gizzards instead of their brains. I find them so offensive i can't listen or watch.

[harold dominguez]

You missed the correct term. I think Webster clearly identifies the word as hypothetical prostitute. She is will try to give something for getting something in return.

[conraddobler]

". Republicans embrace us for our intelligence, academic achievements, family values and good citizenshi"

Now that I'm finished laughing my a*s off at your "dinesh distorta" type of diatribe let's look at facts. This country has LONG PROSPERED before "you" types decided to get off the ratdiet and cow deity. No matter how much "you" try to paint yourselves as "All-American" the OBVIOUS is always abound and just like DINESH DISTORTA "you" all will be what Nikki Haley's fellow South Carolina ReTHUGlicans referred to her as...so solly....

[Senorita Bonita]

I think ho might be more accurate

[Vivien]

Since it was a private conversation -- who cares? Politicians ARE ALL WHORES. Attention whores, power whores ... at least someone finally said the first honest thing during this whole election cycle.

If Meg's too thin-skinned to deal with being called a whore without all the breast-beating, then she will never make it in Sacramento.

BTW - Jerry B. Just to be fair -- you're a whore too. Now I can be in the news and Jerry will get his cry session on the news. WAAAAHHHH!

[Big Dude]

A rose by any other name...Sad to see and hear public officials use this kind of language. It illustrates how base and boorish our society has become these days. Civilty and respect are a dead trait in America ( the world). Am i naive? most assuredly, still i long for grown ups to act accordingly.

[Christine in LA]

So was Jerry soliciting endorsements for his campaign during time he was supposed to be working as state AG ? How much time is he taking from his current public service job to campaign?

[janjamm]

Off the record, un-canned conversation and language in intense environments is full of colorful and raunchy expressions. Very few of us would want our private language and opinions publicized. The real hypocrites here are all those who express outrage when they are fully aware that this is the reality of private speech. Ginning up one more "scandal" to further charge the atmosphere can have only one result, more bad, thoughtless language. Just read some of these posts.

[CathyH]

Steve, it's unfortunate it happened in the Brown campaign so soon to the election that it will be a distraction. But it doesn't change the facts that yes, Whitman is a HYPOCRITE.

However, re the "W" word specifically, the average person probably doesn't realize how common its use has become. For example, both the "Balloon Boy" dad and Tareq and Michaela Salahi (the White House gatecrashers) were widely branded as "fame whores". And after those incidents, I began to see the term's use widen, at least by younger scribes on the web. So although the word is pejorative, it has nothing to do with a lack of sexual morality.

I'm a 65-yr-old feminist (female) and think this is a tempest in a teapot.

[Big Jim Slade]

Gee, I wonder if you're as "outraged" about all the union grandfathering in the state budget legislation GOING ON RIGHT NOW IN SACRAMENTO?

Obviously not, because Democrats are involved or you're not paying the slightest bit of attention!

[Sarah]

As much as I respect our public safety employees, Whitman's catering to special interests of all kinds makes Brown look oh so much more attractive as a candidate. As a registered Republican, Brown gets my vote this year.

Hmmm, perhaps we could use Fiorina to outsource Whitman (and herself) to China! Bet they could use some political aid over there.

[mansterEZ1]

When the neo morality embraces greed, graft, fraud, corruption promoted by mysticism, fabrication & misrepresentation driven home by innuendo, distortion and outright lies the gloves might as well come off with regard to language. Today's politics has completely fallen into the gutter so better to tell it like it is without mincing words. Appealing to the lowest common denominator has become socially acceptable and I hear profanity used all the time in the course of conversation in public places. Ethics is anything goes in survival of the fittest. If anyone thinks the abhorrent rhetoric will cease when the upcoming election is over; think again. It will only get worse because campaigning has become a full time job thanks to cuzzin Karl Rove. We should all be worried about foreign money tainting our democratic process. That's a much bigger problem.

[Mark]

Steve, I think you are right on. Maybe the term was inappropriate for public airing but then it wasn't intended for public airing. I have no doubt that both Mr. Brown and Ms. Whitman have been called worse. Besides the term "hypocrite" just doesn't quite seem to fit Ms. Whitman. Nor does "opportunist." She's so much more. And what about all of her misleading campaign ads. What term do we use for those half-truths and even complete falsifications? Hopefully, the voting public is smart enough and willing to dig down through the "BS" and elect the one who has the best qualifications and greatest commitment and dedication to help guide this state out of its current dismal status and back to the prominence it once held.

[prolgazinternet]

My naive friends, the term "whore" as in "political whore" has no basis in gender, male or female. There are websites dedicated to the term political whore. The reference to Whitman as a political whore could just as easily have been against Brown. See www.politicalwhores.org/ and www.politicalwhore.com/

[Tom]

merriam-webster.com defines whore as:

1
: a woman who engages in sexual acts for money : prostitute; also : a promiscuous or immoral woman
2
: a male who engages in sexual acts for money
3
: a venal or unscrupulous person

Definition 3 seems to apply.

[Yourtechpeopleareworthless]

You know, I didn't even read this story. I just want to say this whole goddamn system of having to log into a third party site just to post a comment on some pages but not others is f--king stupid. It doesn't even work or let me log in half the goddamn time. Your IT people or Webmasters or whoever they are are useless... Worst technically run website since Myspace.