"This public-marriage, private-divorce plan they've cooked up isn't going to work. By their own admission, they're too likely to backslide into a sexual relationship, which, regardless of whatever emotional guardrails they may think they're putting into place, is going to muddy the waters every time. They're also spending way too much of their mental bandwidth negotiating what's okay and what isn't between them, and on remembering who to tell and who to keep it from."
"Also, divorce just isn't shameful, not even for people serving in some of the highest offices in the land (see: the twice-divorced man currently serving his second term as POTUS), and for all their flaws, Hal and Kate Wyler are entirely capable of implementing a conscious uncoupling type of divorce. They could even spin it as something they're doing for the good of the nation, which would have the added benefit of being true!"
Hal and Kate Wyler maintain a public marriage while privately negotiating a quasi-divorce arrangement that repeatedly fails to hold. Their admitted risk of backsliding into a sexual relationship complicates emotional boundaries and repeatedly muddies public and private lines. Constant negotiation over what is permitted and whom to inform consumes significant mental bandwidth. Divorce carries no inherent shame and could be managed as a conscious uncoupling that preserves dignity and public standing. Formal divorce would eliminate awkward coordination over talking points, reduce intrusive inquiries about family life, and allow clearer separation between personal and political responsibilities.
Read at Vulture
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