Kevin Spacey lost his job. Harvey Weinstein lost his job. Matt Lauer lost his job. Roy Moore was endorsed by the President of the United States and the people of Alabama said he wasn’t good enough to represent them.

All these men found themselves accused of sexual harassment or assault. They acted inappropriately and in response, they lost their jobs.

Well, most of them.

Roy Moore was endorsed by the President (who has also been accused of sexual harassment) for the Alabama senate – a campaign which came down to a single percent in Doug Jones’ favor. A single percentage point. Well over half a million Alabamians said sexual harassment accusations were not disturbing enough for Moore to lose their vote.

But in Hollywood, men lose their careers immediately. How can it be that the film industry is more severe with its punishments than our government? These are the people who we elect to represent us, to vouch for us, and to make decisions on our behalf. So why is it these elected officials can stay in office after such allegations break, but the men in Hollywood lost their jobs, their reputations, and their futures almost immediately?

The simple answer: democracy. The democratic process insulates incumbents from getting removed right away. Unless they succumb to the pressure to resign, the process to remove them is very lengthy and slow.

Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., wants to take steps towards expediting the process. In an interview with NPR, Speier explained her goals with an analogy about a big business.

“When a CEO of a company is found to have sexually harassed an employee, they don’t wait until the next annual meeting so that the shareholders can determine whether or not he should go. It’s determined by the board of directors.”

That being said, nothing can excuse Trump’s latest media mistake: his endorsement of Moore. Moore has been accused of praying on and sexually abusing under-aged girls and sexually assaulting them while he was in his 30s. Trump claims the endorsement stems from a desire to maintain a Republican majority so he pass his tax bill. So naturally, put a child molester in Congress, right?

Though Moore (and Trump) lost, he should have never had the opportunity to be an elected official. There is absolutely no excuse to allow sexual offenders to serve in any type of leadership role. Hollywood proved that times have changed and that they are willing to punish those who had broken the law, so why should Congress be any different?

There is no place for criminals, pedophiles, or assaulters in any position of respect.

There is no excuse for permitting an abuser to hold higher power than his abused.

There is no party loyalty great enough to trump inappropriate behavior.

The men found guilty for sexual assault or harassment deserve to lose their jobs. They deserve to be blacklisted and to lose future as well as current opportunities.

Any person found guilty of these charges needs to be held accountable and face the consequences. So why would the government be any different?