At best Tim Murphy looks like a hypocrite

Republican lawmaker Tim Murphy is out.  The story is appalling.  Apparently, he tried to press his mistress to have an abortion (it later turned out she wasn't pregnant).  When she called him out on it, he responded that he doesn't even write all that pro-life stuff, it's his staff that does so.

At best, if the charges are true, he's a hypocrite.  A person who wants to impose values on others that he has no desire to live himself is a hypocrite.  And that's not even counting the mistress part.

At worst, he's also an example of what many social conservatives fear about the GOP - that it pays lip service to the concerns of traditional Americans once every two, four or six years, and then promptly goes about with the modern, progressive political and social world that gets you invited to all the best parties.

I know, I know.  Already some are pointing out that these tweets were miraculously released right as congress was pushing through Murphy's cosponsored anti-abortion bill.  I'm sure it's no coincidence.

But that doesn't change anything about Murphy, what he did, and what he represents.  Of course it doesn't mean anything about the pro-life movement, other conservatives or Republicans either.  Fair is fair.

But barring a revelation that this was all false, and he did no such thing (such as stupidly tweeting such things that can later be found and used against him), then his is a guilt that demands mercy, but also justice.  And that means calling it wrong, expecting him to pay, and understanding that wrong is wrong, outside of any political or ideological boundaries.