[Vision2020] 08-12-04 CNN: New Jersey governor quits, comes out as gay

[Art Deco aka W. Fox]

New Jersey governor quits, comes out as gay
McGreevey announces resignation after telling of affair
Thursday, August 12, 2004 Posted: 6:54 PM EDT (2254 GMT)


(CNN) -- Dropping a political bombshell, New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey announced
his resignation Thursday after revealing that he is gay and that he had an
adulterous affair with a man.

With his wife standing quietly by his side, McGreevey -- a father of two -- 
spoke in calm tones as he described his struggle with his sexuality, "a certain
sense that separated me from others." It was something that he said began as a
child.

"At a point in every person's life, one has to look deeply into the mirror of
one's soul and decide one's unique truth in the world, not as we may want to see
it or hope to see it, but as it is," McGreevey, a Democrat, said.

"And so, my truth is that I am a gay American," McGreevey said.

Speaking at a packed news conference in the Statehouse in Trenton, New Jersey,
McGreevey admitted to an affair with a man and asked for his family's
forgiveness.

"It was wrong. It was foolish. It was inexcusable," he said.

And McGreevey said he was stepping down from the state's highest office.

'"Given the circumstances surrounding the affair and its likely impact upon my
family and my ability to govern, I have decided the right course of action is to
resign," McGreevey said.

His resignation will take effect November 15, and State Senate President Richard
Codey, a fellow Democrat, will serve the the remainder of his term, which ends
in January 2006.

If McGreevey's resignation had taken effect before September 15, state law would
have required a special gubernatorial election on November 2.

McGreevey said his affair and sexuality -- "if kept secret" -- would leave the
governor's office "vulnerable to rumors, false allegations and threats of
disclosure."

The Associated Press reported that the man involved in the affair, a former
government employee, demanded "an exorbitant sum of money to make it go away," a
high-ranking administration official told the wire service. Cabinet members and
administration officials learned of that threat Wednesday night, the source
said.

Rumors, the AP reported, had been circulating for several years that McGreevey
was gay, reaching the level of open hints on New Jersey talk radio shows.

Even as he acknowledged his sexuality, McGreevey spoke of the "suffering and
anguish" he had brought to his family and friends, saying he would "almost
rather have this moment pass.

"For this is an intensely personal decision and not one typically for the public
domain," McGreevey said of his revelation. "Yet, it cannot and should not pass."

Once considered a rising star in Democratic circles, McGreevey, 47, served in
the state Legislature and as mayor of the town of Woodbridge, New Jersey, before
winning the governorship.

McGreevey won the seat in 2001 by a wide margin over former Jersey City Mayor
Bret Schundler and took office in January 2002.

His administration has been buffeted by some scandal.

A Quinnipiac University poll released August 4 showed McGreevey's approval among
state voters fell sharply after two Democratic fund-raisers were indicted on
federal charges in July -- one of them accused of lining up prostitutes to
discredit a witness in a tax fraud investigation, the other accused of
extortion.

McGreevey and his wife, Dina, have a 2-year-old daughter, and he has another
daughter from a previous marriage.
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