Why politicians don't resign in shame anymore

Why is it happening? Part of it is “the atomized, 24-second news cycle where the speed of digitized platforms and the compressed attention spans of the audience have us careening from one controversy and outrage to the next,” says Kevin Madden, a veteran GOP strategist who worked on Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign.

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But it’s also because scandal-ridden politicians can use social media to mobilize their supporters: “If Richard Nixon had Fox News or Twitter, would he have felt as much public pressure to ultimately resign?”

And to Michael Feldman, a Democratic strategist who worked on Al Gore’s presidential campaign, it’s also a sign that we’re just surrounded by so much scandal — starting with Trump’s Russia investigation and other scandals — that the shock value has worn off.

“We are more hardened, we are more distracted, and if you’re under siege, you have reason to believe that everyone might move on,” Feldman said. “The president is the ultimate example.”

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