They can be pure as snow.
It does not matter. When you have a media willing to lie, and a court system rigged to protect the media, because politicians are, by nature "public figures", the media has been able to take down most politicians who they dislike.
That is the main reason for Republicans as assistant democrats.
The list of conservative politicians taken down by the Media is long.
Look at Donald Trump as an example.
The two biggest early examples are Joseph McCarthy and Richard Nixon.
Nixon took himself down. When he covered up the Watergate nothingburger and lied to me about it, I wanted him out as much as any RAT.