Integrity is the willingness of an individual to stand by their moral convictions regardless of the consequences that he/she might have to endure. This week, in response to the release of Donald Trump's vulgar tape describing his abuse of women, many Republicans are withdrawing their endorsement of Trump as their party's Presidential Candidate.
Some might applaud their integrity, potentially risking the loss of support from Trump's core constituency and financial support from Conservative PACs. Others might see their reaction as pure political theater, distancing themselves from the "down-ticket" damage that Trump might inflict; after all, they seemed to condone Trump's racism, sexism and narcissism throughout the Republican Primary.
Indeed, it is the rare statesman who demonstrates political integrity, foregoing party tribalism and supporting candidates purely on the basis of their character and qualifications. Unfortunately, the words politician and integrity are not often used in the same sentence (except, of course, by politicians themselves).
