I like Carol’s outlook. Let her say what we all feel. To the original question, in the immortal words of Whitney, “Hell to the no”. She should take her daughters and go. Getting cheated on is bad of enough, but to have to see your face be plastered everywhere has got to be rough. In no way does she deserve this.

Why do these humiliated women make the decision to LITERALLY stand by their man at these press conferences? I wish just one of them would make a statement and NOT BE THERE. I hope Silda leaves him high and dry and shows her daughters that a strong woman stands on her own when her man cheats!

Someone on Gene Weingarten’s “Funny” chat today had the perfect scenario…that Mrs. Spitzer should have whacked her husband upside the head with a folding chair during yesterday’s apology speech. No woman should be denigrated by being forced to stand up there and feel publicly humiliated while her husband describes his infidelities!

Just as it would have been inappropriate for Spitzer’s daughters to stand beside him as he made his statement, there was no reason on earth that Silda should have been subjected to appearing before the public in such a horrific situation which Eliot brought on entirely himself. Of course, if it was Silda’s decision to do so, as Dina McGreevy said it was in her situation, that’s her choice. I just hope she wasn’t pressured to stand there by her husband or his staff.

Hillary Clinton got chastized royally for standing beside her man…..President Clinton. It’s almost a damned if you do damned if you dont type of situation. But it is her decsion in the end and she and the family need love and support at this moment no matter what the final outcome will be. It is an unfortuante situation and perhaps a reminder to us all to take a step back and look at our married or attached situations and question ourselves……..what would we do

As a former journalist, I continue to be baffled by the blurring of lines between what is news—i.e.what Spitzer did—and those things that are not news—in this case, how family members feel about what he did. And an editor’s argument that the public wants to know doesn’t excuse the blurring. Silda Spiter should do whatever works for her and her children. But as long as we’re having opinions here, I really hate it when these woman, as one of you said, literally stand by their man when they face the media and make their declaration of regret. It fools no one—and risks making the wife look the fool. What a powerful statement it would be if they refused to attend.

On the personal side, I think Silda Spitzer had to endure extreme humiliation. I also think she deserves a HUGE settlement. In view of the Spitzer Family wealth, this shouldn’t be too difficult. On the public side, I think the worst thing is the hypocracy of the self righteous “Eliot Ness” who promised a government on the highest moral plane, and prosecuted people for doing exactly what he did.

I just don’t get the stand by your man routine. The dutiful wife at his side woefully glancing up at the creep while he does damage control facing the aggrieved public. I say feed him to the angry mob. This situation is not one of infidelity or unfaithfulness; that would be between the couple themselves. This was a criminal offense. By standing by their men these women act as shock absorbers defusing and confusing us (the public). Silda, the governor’s wife looked as though she had been thrown under the bus. I could not help but feel sympathy for her. But under the bus is preferable to his debauched side. I say 86 client #9, and walk away with your dignity. Let him take the full impact, head on. Jo-Ann Tiranno

Should Silda leave Eliot? Only she can decide that. It’s a lot more complicated decision than it looks on the surface and no one else can presume to know what the deciding factors are. Should she have had to stand next to him in her demure powder blue jacket and pearls looking like the supportive wife after it’s been published that he paid for a prostitute who would not insist on a condom? No! What a bizarre political rodeo we have created when all of these randy males get caught and insist on having their wives stand next to them for the requisite press conference. You asked for the sex by yourself, take the punishment by yourself.

Silda should not have endured that photo op. Her husband co-opted family funds to the tune of $4,300 for that less than two hour sex romp. He apparently had used the service 7+ times before, each paid out of joint marital funds? The text messages and voice transcripts show the pimp/madam was trying to delicately force him to come up with the cash! He wanted the sex, booked a room but could not come up with the cash. He had $500 ON ACCOUNT with them. The hypocrisy knows no bounds. For the sake of her three girls, Silda should unceremoniously kick him to the curb and ask for, in the divorce settlement, full reimbursement of funds he spent on prostitutes.

Personally, I can’t imagine staying with a guy like that, and I certainly wouldn’t stand up there next to him at the press conference. But the political wives always do. Why? What kind of hold does he have over her? It’s very distressing to me as a woman, to see these other women publicly humiliated like this, over and over. Wish we could make them stop. Maybe it’s just me, but contrary to Lesly Stahl’s theory of the “inoculation” effect, these public humiliations of the wives make me more, not less angry at the idiots.

I feel for his wife and daughters…unfortunately,Spitzer does not have many friends because he was so arrogant. He did break the law—the Mann Act which prohibits the movement of prostitutes between states or to foreign countries….the law was apparently meant to protect women who were forced to travel against their will; it is rarely used. It is such a personal choice; if you love your spouse, maybe you can search for something deeper….what would a man do in some kind of similar situation….though it is tough to think of a sexual issue quite like this; maybe a wife who owned a prostitute ring??

This is really none of our business. Discussing other people’s marriages is unseemly.

What is with these guys? What a fool to waste the prime of his life, his family and career for this? How pathetic. I agree with Marlow, you did it by yourself now get out it by yourself… these are the consequences. Men can be such dogs……

Another man gets caught with his hand in the cookie jar. It’s one thing for a man to have sex outside his marriage, not a big surprise, but another for his wife to be further humiliated by being required to “stand by her man.” I’m so sick of the level of degradation that women feel is necessary to be considered a “good wife and mother.” The message that this sends is harmful for young women and downright demeaning for us all. Spitzer’s wife seemed to have the customary “deer in the headlights” look. Unfortunately, standing by your man means falling for the patriachial flimflam scam of wives being treated as property. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for reconciliation behind closed doors. But was it necessary for Mrs. Spitzer to be paraded out for the cameras? No, she deserved better and should have refused to stand beside him. He created this and he should be man enough to stand alone and face the music.