NEW YORK—Eliot Spitzer’s second TV commercial of his campaign for NYC comptroller is asking voters to forgive him for the prostitution scandal that rocked his political career five years ago.
In the 60-second commercial, released on YouTube, he opens by saying, “Look, I failed—big time. I hurt a lot of people. When you dig yourself a hole, are you gonna lie in it the rest of your life, or do something positive?”
Spitzer entered the race for comptroller in July with just one week to gather enough signatures to get on the democratic ballot. Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer is his rival in the September Democratic primaries.
Spitzer is a former attorney general, who became known as the “Sheriff of Wall Street” and “Mr. Clean” for his efforts fighting white-collar crime. In 2004, he was part of a team investigating an escort service in New York City, which led to 18 arrests, according to the Associated Press.
In 2006, he became the governor of New York, winning 69 percent of the vote. But in 2008, Spitzer was forced to resign after an FBI investigation found he had been wiring money to bank accounts linked to an expensive prostitution ring.
He ends his new commercial by saying, “Everyone, no matter who you are, deserves a fair shot. I am asking voters to give the same to me.”
