Jack Ryan's Fall From the Republican Ticket (8/31/04)

You remember the Jack Ryan story. He won the Illinois Republican primary for the U.S. Senate Seat, then got dumped from the ticket. Throughout his campaign, stories circulated about what was hidden in his sealed divorce files. Ultimately, it turned out that he'd tried to keep secret his ex-wife's charges that he took her to sex clubs, each visit increasingly worse (with the last one having whips, chains and other paraphernalia), and wanted her to have sex with him in public. At first he denied it, then later said, hey, he was only propositioning his wife and broke no commandments. He went on national television with this pitch. The Republican Party pushed him off the ticket, embarrassed by his lying to them about his divorce files. He even stalled for 6 weeks before he finally, and officially, withdrew from the ticket. News stories focused on his sexual proclivities, his dance around the truth, and his stalling tactics.

But the big story they missed was that despite his claim that he was only propositioning his wife and broke no commandments, his behavior is a glaring example of domestic violence. According to the Domestic Abuse Project, domestic violence is a pattern of coercive control that one person exercises over another. Domestic violence includes many forms of abuse. They are: physical, verbal, sexual, emotional and economic abuse and neglect. Sexual abuse includes, among other things, making degrading sexual comments, forcing a partner to have sex, and criticizing appearance. Emotional abuse includes forcing a woman to do degrading things, controlling her activities, and frightening her.

Ryan's ex-wife told him the first time he took her to a sex club that she did not want to do this. He called it romantic, and took her to at least two more sex clubs after that, despite her clear repugnance at being forced into a sex club and public sex. Furthermore, she and her mother both cited his attempts to control all aspects of her life-telling her what to wear and eat and to exercise (even criticizing her figure though she is a beautiful actress), and where she could and couldn't go. He told her that her crying at one of the sex clubs "wasn't a turn on" (close quotes) for him.

Ryan's treatment of his wife demonstrates many of the sorry and sickening elements of domestic violence, from the daily barrage about her own decisions to taking her to sex clubs. Typical of domestic violence, a so-called honeymoon period followed when he told her he was sorry and he would not do this again. Yet he did, and each time the disturbing elements of the sex club were worse. Domestic violence escalates over time as an abuser increases intimidation of the victim. The Domestic Abuse Project states: Domestic violence is a power game; its purpose is for the abuser to control the victim in whatever forms it takes.

Ryan's attempt to control the Republican Party's ticket is yet another example of his bizarre, dominating behavior. After lying to them, then agreeing to withdraw from the race, he dallied around for six weeks before formalizing it, claiming he was too busy to do so and that there was no official form (even though there is). So he forced his own party to delay choosing a replacement, losing valuable campaign time.

His former wife, the Republican Party and Illinois voters are well rid of him for many reasons, but most of all because of his domestic violence. However, reasons remain for worry about his behavior and his role modeling if he tries to return to classroom teaching.

- Judith Kohler

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