Do you think that this rising star of a political wordsmith was fired for engaging in frat-boy behavior that harkens back to some of the worst "good old boy" days? Or do you think that he has been "blacklisted" by feminist groups or other such political or civil-rights entities?
Nope. Because the groper is Jon Favreau (not the actor), speechwriter for President-elect Barack Obama. And because of that, he apparently gets a pass on his laddie behavior. In fact, Senator Clinton's team is using the photo to demonstrate that the primary-season rivalry between Clinton and Obama has been smoothed over: "Clinton senior adviser Philippe Reines cast the photos as evidence of increased bonhomie between the formerly rival camps."
And hey, I've got no problem with Favreau's stunt: people engage in such silly behavior all the time. Doesn't mean he's a sexist pig; doesn't mean that he's a bad guy. Men AND women engage in such nonsense all the time - in jest. There's a time and place for light-hearted fun, even if it is offensive on some level or to some people. Favreau would never attempt such a groping with the real Senator Clinton (one commenter pointed out that even Bill doesn't dare get that close), and politically, I suspect that Favreau admires Clinton and wouldn't hesitate to write speeches for her.
But let's face it: if this guy had been the speechwriter for, say, John McCain or Sarah Palin, or a staffer for the RNC, or a political strategist for anyone OTHER than President-elect Barack Obama, he would have been thrown under the bus in an instant. Outrage would be order of the day, and it would be the lead story on the cable-news outlets for at least a day or two.
