Marital Woes Strike Ensign's Ex-Housemate

Add Chip Pickering to the list of Republicans with fidelity issues: The former congressman’s estranged wife is suing his mistress for alienation of affection—in essence, destroying the Pickerings' marriage, TPM Muckracker reports. Oddly enough, Pickering lived in a Capitol Hill home that operates as a sort of boarding house for conservative Christian congressmen, reports Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo. John Ensign lived at the "C Street facility," where Mark Sanford sought counseling.

Pickering’s affair apparently took place during the weeks he spent on the Hill when he was a congressman representing Mississippi. Some of his trysts allegedly occurred at the C Street facility. Pickering was a contender for Trent Lott’s Senate seat, but he left politics rather than running. His wife's lawsuit alleges he did so because his mistress, who he is still romantically involved with, gave him an ultimatum.