Shannon O'Brien must be furious with him. And by him, I do not mean Mitt Romney, her opponent, the man running attack ads that portray her as a sleeping watch dog, the guy trying to beat her out of a job she craves, the person who stands between her and the Corner Office.

No. The troublemaker is one R. Emmet Hayes, her husband, a man who vowed to love, honor and respect her, till death do us part.

If you ask me, he's the guy she should save her wrath for.

Leaving the toilet seat up is one thing, but acting as a registered lobbyist for companies that do business with the very state that your wife's fighting so hard to lead . . .? If you ask me, that's grounds!

As one political/marital observer noted: ``It must be like being proud of your spouse for wearing a proper suit to one of your office parties, only to find him regaling the crowd with the armpit fart version of ``The Star-Spangled Banner.''

``The phrase `I have never been so embarrassed in my life' must be on her lips almost daily. That, and `We've never had a political liability on my side of the family.' ''

I hate to be sexist, but what's with the first husbands, or the acting first husbands, or the aspiring first husbands in this state?????

Between Enron Emmet and Jane Swift's better half, the serial wedder Chuck Hunt, a gal pol can't catch a break around here.

Need I point out that on the flip side, Mitt has the perfect political spouse? She's given him a pride of handsome sons. She's made it clear she's deeply in luvvvv. And, best of all, even though she signed papers for a referendum question to create an amendment that would block gay marriage, she's best known for giggling about running out of gas after the prom.

So how did Shannon get herself in this situation? Easy. Of all the books written about meeting and marrying Mr. Right, none ever warn you to stay away from someone who could become a political liability.

Even the most famous how-to book, ``The Rules,'' is silent on the matter. The book advises women not to accept a Saturday night date after Wednesday, but nowhere do they talk about shunning men who couldn't stand on stage with you and give the Nancy Reagan gaze.

And many women, when looking for a spouse, focus on attributes such as kindness, humor or wealth, not polling numbers. They ask themselves such frivolous questions as: ``Can I picture myself growing old with him?'' ``Can I see him as the father of my children?'' No woman I know has ever wondered, ``Hmmm, will he ever put me in the position to be the subject of an attack ad?''

Actually, Shannon's man trouble is really men trouble. Even her dad, Governor's Council member Ed O'Brien, has caused her grief. Remember when he charged that the pregnant-with-twins Swift was violating the state Constitution when she presided over a Governor's Council meeting by speakerphone from her hospital bed (where she lay on doctor's orders), and Shannon had to come out and say she had no problem with it?

Gee, thanks, dad.

So how are Emmet's business relationships affecting things on the homefront? Well, I just read a story about how marital stress can lead to an increase in gum disease, so my guess is Shannon needs a really good floss.