As Hate Speech Pervades Politics, Many Politicians Escape Consequence

Governing: Last week, Shane Bouchard stepped down as mayor of Lewiston, Maine, after texts were revealed in which he shared racist and sexist jokes. What made this unusual was not that Bouchard was caught using offensive language but rather that he chose to resign.

Hardly a day seems to go by without revelations that a public official somewhere has said something racist, anti-Semitic or homophobic. In many cases, they either apologize or bluster their way through the situation. Only some choose to bring their own careers to an end -- even when the calls for them to resign may be loud.

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