Where Scandal Finds Influence: Top Scandals on Capitol Hill
"Scandal" vs. real life presidential scandals.
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Scandal's Scandals - One of the hottest TV series out of Capitol Hill, Shonda Rhimes’ Scandal returns to ABC tonight for its third season of sex, lies and politics. As Scandal fans anticipate tonight’s scandal-icious premiere, BET.com takes a look at real life scandals on Capitol Hill. — Dominique Zonyéé(Photo: Courtesy of ABC)
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Mr. President, Mr. Adulterer - Olivia Pope is not the first — and likely won’t be the last — person on Capitol Hill to sleep with an adulterer. President Andrew Jackson married Rachel Donelson in 1791 under the assumption that she was divorced. However, that was not the case. Donelson’s first husband charged her with adultery and she and Jackson could not legally marry until 1794.(Photo: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
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“Defiance” - We learned how rigged voting stations got President Fitzgerald Grant into the White House in season one. Who else recalls the real-life voting scandal in Florida during the 2000 presidential race that introduced hanging chads into our vocabulary?(Photo: Robert King/Newsmakers/Getty Images)
Photo By Photo: Robert King/Newsmakers/Getty Images
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The President’s Other Child - Although we all know President Grant is sleeping with Olivia, season one revealed that Grant impregnated another mistress. When Grover Cleveland ran for president in 1884, he discovered that he fathered an illegitimate child. The scandal ignited the song, “Ma, Ma, where's my Pa? Gone to the White House, ha, ha, ha," that followed Cleveland all the way into the White House.(Photo: National Archive/Newsmakers/Getty Images)
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The Name’s Olivia, Not Monica - President Bill Clinton was impeached in 1998 for lying about his affair with White House employee Monica Lewinsky; but that will never happen to President Grant. Just as season two came to an end, he professed his love for Olivia to his wife Millie. Grant even toyed with the idea of divorcing Millie to marry Liv. (Photo: Getty Images)
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The Mole - Espionage is not new to Capitol Hill, throughout American history there have been several “moles,” similar to the “mole” on Scandal (whose identity will hopefully be revealed this season). Col. Lawrence Franklin’s espionage scandal made headlines in 2005 when the FBI suspected him of turning classified U.S. documents over to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.(Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
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Cyrus Is Watergate - Cyrus Beene, Grant’s right hand man, is also known as Mr. Fix It by Any Means Necessary. While President Richard Nixon was forced to retire when it was revealed he tried to cover up break ins at the Watergate Complex in 1972, Cyrus is still open for business. In season three, he continues to clean up Grant’s screw ups with blood.(Photo: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)