Remember Jack Ryan the Senate candidate, as opposed to Jack Ryan, the fictional creation of author Tom Clancy? No, we didn’t think you would.
Mr. Ryan, a Republican, dropped out of the 2004 race for a Senate seat in Illinois after a court order unsealed the records of his 1999 divorce from actress Jeri Ryan, most famous for her role as a freed drone in the series “Star Trek: Voyager.” The records revealed that his soon-to-be-ex wife had accused Ryan of asking her to perform sexual acts in public at “bizarre” clubs throughout the US. Some of these clubs featured whips, chains, and other amusement accessories, Mrs. Ryan alleged.
Ryan, in a tough race to begin with, decided to just go away. He dropped out almost immediately, characterizing release of the old records as a “new low in American politics.”
His Democratic opponent, Barack Obama, won the Senate seat easily over replacement GOP candidate Alan Keyes.
