The XX Factor: What women really think.

My Husband Went to Argentina, and All I Got Was This Lousy Divorce

A post from DoubleX writer KJ Dell'Antonia:

Politico.com reports that days after husband Mark Sanford admitted to having an affair, Jenny Sanford filed an application to trademark her name for use in "product merchandising to be sold at online retail store featuring clothing, mugs and other household items; stickers, decals, notepads.’” Herein, a few ideas that should sell out fast. OK, we get that this kind of thing is probably exactly what Jenny Sanford is trying to prevent. But here are a few items we'd like to see in our scorned-wife-fantasy-revenge-scenario of the still- (but presumably soon-to-be-former) Mrs. Sanford's store (that would be VindictiveBitch.com):

The "My husband went to Argentina and all I got was this damn divorce?" mug ... (Read the rest of this article in DoubleX.)

"Dave Matthews Will Play Our Wedding" Is the New "Hiking the Appalachian Trail"

Emily, I agree that modern women don't really want a Don Draper, but at least he's a way better fantasy than fellow affair-havers Mark Sanford and now John Edwards. First, Sanford had that lame Appalachian Trail excuse and the even more embarrassing press conference. In a New York Times article over the weekend, it was revealed that Edwards promised mistress Rielle Hunter that he would "marry her in a rooftop ceremony in New York with an appearance by the Dave Matthews Band." What is wrong with our chronically unstylish philandering politicians? ... (Read the rest of this post, or the full thread, in DoubleX.)

Does Ben and Jerry's Make Socially Liberal, Fiscally Conservative Crunch?

A post from Double X writer KJ Dell'Antonia:

Rachael, describing my ideal GOP-ster isn't hard. She supports civil liberties, she wants the government out of its citizens' personal lives and favors smaller, effective, government-run programs where needed. She supports free trade, recognizes global warming and opposes the death penalty. No invasions, no torturing—and no bailouts. Finding her—on either side of the aisle—proved harder .... (Read more in Double X.)

Jenny Sanford Goes for the "Vogue" Treatment

Jenny Sanford has been fairly quiet in the months since her husband, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, held that bizarro, totally captivating press conference admitting to an affair with his Argentinean sweetheart. She's broken her silence by giving an interview to Vogue, of all places. Sanford gets the standard Vogue treatment: an off-hand reference to her association with the Kennedys, the implication that she's so down-to-earth, despite the million-dollar view from her island abode. But what's really notable about the article are the retrograde notions Sanford has about her husband's dalliance ... (Read more in DoubleX.)

Caitlin Flanagan's Defense of Marriage Bums Me Out

Honey, Can I Please See My Mistress

Hanna, perhaps the most enduring lesson of the Mark Sanford unraveling is that when your marriage falls apart, don't call in the AP reporters. I generally side with Ruth Marcus and have been pro-Jenny Sanford. But the danger in claiming the moral high ground is that the air starts to get thin, and the lack of oxygen makes you say stupid things ... (Read more at DoubleX.com.)

Is Jenny Sanford a Model or a Disaster?

The Op-Ed Divas have a showdown today about Jenny Sanford ... (Read more at DoubleX.com.)

Should We Admire Sanford's Honesty?

Slate’s Will Saletan has a provocative defense of Sanford today:

I feel awful for Sanford's wife and kids. But compared with all the cheaters who have gone before him, I don't think less of him for genuinely loving the other woman or for admitting it. It beats the hell out of seducing somebody, kicking her to the curb, and pretending she was nothing to you—or really meaning it.

I suppose there is some honesty in that. But let’s remember that he was doing it at a press conference ... (Read more at DoubleX.com.) 

Reactions to Mark Sanford from Around the Web, Plus Video

Sanford vs. Spitzer

Local Newspaper Uncovers Sanford Affair ... After Sitting On it For Months

A guest post from Double X intern Meredith Simons:

Sara, I agree that the way the truth about Sanford's whereabouts unfolded underscores the importance of local newspapers. But said local newspaper's release of e-mails between Sanford and Maria, the mysterious Argentinian, complicates things a little bit. The State's reporter didn't go to the Atlanta airport on a hunch. The paper had known since December that Sanford was having a transcontinental affair ... (Read more at DoubleX.com.) 

The Sanford Debacle Proves Local Newspapers Matter

Actually, what's odd to me about the Sanford train wreck is how long it took the national media to decide something was truly amiss in the increasingly bizarre explanations coming out of Sanford's office for the governor's disappearance. For a while, it seemed the press just wanted to chalk the whole incident up to Southern eccentricity. This is unfair to Southern eccentrics. Or maybe the press just didn't want to appear to pile on after the Ensign debacle; there's only so much family-values hypocrisy a country can take. But as a friend of mine joked yesterday, it was if Sanford had woken up in a hotel room with a tiger and a baby and was still trying to piece together a story of what happened for his staff ... (Read more at DoubleX.com.) 

Jenny Sanford's Hints

Emily, I suspect S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford’s wife, Jenny, was hinting at her husband’s infidelity during her interactions with the press while her husband was AWOL... (To read the rest of this post, visit our new website DoubleX.com!)

Cry For Me, South Carolina

Absent from Gov. Mark Sanford's amazing press conference: His wife, Jenny. Present: A man so utterly in the middle of a self-made disaster that he had to process it in front of us. Could it have possibly been more mortifying? Hanna, you're right, Sanford just couldn't save himself from total mortification even when the press threw him a rope. In the middle of one of the most unfortunate and self-indulgent bits, when Sanford was going on about how he met his "dear dear friend," a reporter tried to ask a question. "Wait, let me finish," the governor said, holding up his hand. Oh no no... (To read the rest of this post, visit our new website DoubleX.com!)