LAS VEGAS AND SAN FRANCISCO — Nevada Sen. John Ensign's wealthy parents gave his mistress and her family $96,000, the conservative lawmaker revealed Thursday, an admission that further darkened his once-bright career and caused even allies to question his continued effectiveness as a U.S. senator.
The gifts to Cynthia Hampton; her husband, Doug; and two of their children were made "out of concern for the well-being of longtime family friends during a difficult time," said a statement from Ensign's attorney. The money was paid in $12,000 increments in April 2008, the month that both Hamptons left Ensign's employ.
The payments were "consistent with a pattern of generosity" by Ensign's parents, the statement said. Ensign's father, Michael, is a former casino mogul who helped bankroll his son's rise from congressman to onetime GOP White House aspirant.
The admission came after Doug Hampton alleged in a television interview this week that Ensign had paid his wife "a lot more than" $25,000 in severance when she left his campaign and political action committee. Doug Hampton also worked for Ensign, as his top aide. A watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, asked the Justice Department to investigate the allegation because neither the campaign nor the PAC had reported the expenditure.
Ensign lawyer Paul Coggins, a former U.S. attorney who specializes in white-collar criminal defense, said Thursday that it was the parents who paid the Hamptons, and that Ensign had followed "all applicable laws and Senate ethics rules."
The latest revelations into Ensign's affair follow the interview, aired Wednesday and Thursday, that Doug Hampton gave to Jon Ralston, a political commentator and Las Vegas TV host. Hampton painted Ensign as something of a "Desperate Housewives" character: the unrepentant wife-chaser who tried to buy his mistress' silence.
"Nevadans are very forgiving," said conservative activist Chuck Muth, who called the financial revelations highly damaging. "Live and let live -- what doesn't affect me doesn't affect me. But the fact this occurred with someone who worked for Sen. Ensign and may have felt coerced . . . make this a whole different story altogether."
Politically, Ensign may be saved by the poor state of the Nevada Republican Party. GOP Gov. Jim Gibbons has faced his own set of scandals, including accusations of infidelity. Lacking strong leadership and absent an obvious candidate to replace him, the state party establishment is not likely to pressure Ensign to step aside.
