Exposing the Corruption of the "Family Values" Party
Tom Schedler was the Louisiana Secretary of State. In 2018, he was sued for sexual harassment by his subordinate. He sent her several suggestive emails and cards and she claims he retaliated when she rebuffed him. He claims he had a consensual sexual relationship with her, but she denies it. He tried to tough it out, refusing to resign, and promising not to run for re-election, but eventually gave into public outrage and resigned.
Bill Dix was Majority Leader of the Iowa Senate when Kirsten Anderson was awarded $2.2 million in a sexual harassment suit. She settled for $1.75 million. When he announced the settlement he continued to insist she was fired for poor performance despite her being fired seven hours after she sent a memo detailing harassment in the office. He said he believed her allegations as well. Several Iowa politicians plus staff were revealed in testimony to have sexually harassed or been inappropriate with women in the office.
Clint Reed was the Arkansas Republican Party director before he was hired by Sen. Mark Rubio as his Chief of Staff for sexual misconduct. Rubio was made aware of the misconduct, did an investigation with his general counsel, found there were some threats of withholding employment benefits and improper conduct between a supervisor and subordinates. Reed was fired the next day.
Florida Rep. Ritch Workman was appointed to the Public Service Commission that regulates Florida utilities but before he could serve, a state senator, a fellow Republican, came forward with an allegation of sexual misconduct. His resignation came just a few minutes after state Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, said she repeatedly made “vulgar and inappropriate’ gestures toward her at an event.
Jack Tate was a Republican state senator in Colorado when he was accused of sexual harassment. The accuser alleged he leered at her and made comments about what she was wearing. She was only eighteen and working at the capitol as an intern. An independent firm was contracted to investigate and determined that the allegations were credible, or more likely to have happened than not. The state’s leading Republican released a letter that stated that even though her allegations were likely true, they don’t rise to the level of sexual harassment and don’t break employment law.
Larry Crowder was a Colorado Republican state senator whose term ended when he was term limited out in 2021. He was accused of sexual harassment by a Democratic representative who alleged that he pinched her buttocks and made sexual comments. After the matter was reported and investigated and the investigation found them credible, she went public. He claimed no memory of it and didn’t think his comments were inappropriate at the time.
Mark Meadows was a Republican Congressman from North Carolina before becoming Trump’s Chief of Staff. During his tenure in Congress, he was censured for his handling of sexual harassment complaints against his Chief of Staff Kenny West. He learned of his behavior in late 2014, but did not act until staff went to him in 2015. He then moved West to his district office so that he no longer supervised women in the DC office. He finally terminated him in May 2015 but paid him until August. Payments beyond his end date were not permissible.
Kenny West was the Chief of Staff for Rep. Mark Meadows of California. He had originally run against Meadows in the primary in 2012 but didn’t raise much money and lost. When Meadows won the general election, West became his Chief of Staff. He made the women who worked in Meadows office uncomfortable, staring at them, talking about their clothing and appearance, and insisting they hold his hand while he prayed for them. This created a dilemma as the person they were required to report sexual harassment allegations to was the person who sexually harassed them.
Rep. David Byrd was embroiled in a scandal that began when three women alleged sexual misconduct while they were high school students and he was their coach. It is grossly inappropriate to ask teenagers to wear a shirt that promotes any political candidate, especially someone accused of sexually assaulting teenagers. Byrd’s nephew, Ryan Franks, is the principal of Frank Hughes High School.
David Byrd is a Tennessee state representative. He has been re-elected since three women came forward and alleged he sexually assaulted them when they were on the high school basketball team while he was their coach. He admitted it on video, but refused calls from both Democrats and Republicans to resign.