- In the wake of closeted Sen. Larry Craig's self-outing
in an airport men's room this summer, word from <http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/61107/>
Washington says more revelations are coming about the secret sexual identities
of two leading GOP senators, while two allegedly gay Republican congressmen
are making headlines and drawing unwelcome attention to themselves, the
timing of which could not be worse.
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- The senators are Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and
Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader, from Kentucky. More about
them below but first let's look at two allegedly closeted members of the
House, representatives Patrick McHenry and David Drier, who have been in
the news lately.
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- Rep. Patrick McHenry's Connection to Gay Murderer Confirmed
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- Rep. McHenry was one of the chief spinmeisters sent out
by the House GOP leadership to do damage control after the outing of Rep.
Mark Foley last year. McHenry was an interesting choice to spin away the
leadership's culpability in enabling Foley's misbehavior because, like
Foley, there have been persistent rumors about McHenry's sexuality in the
capitol and in North Carolina for years.
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- The rumors came to a boil in May when one of McHenry's
aides - who also shared digs with him - Michael Aaron Lay, 26, was indicted
for voter fraud in North Carolina:
-
-
- http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2007/05/11/primarysource/entry2793560.shtml
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-
- The indictment charges that [Lay] illegally cast his
ballot in two 2004 Congressional primary run-offs in which McHenry was
a candidate. The charges indicate that Lay voted in a district where it
was not legal for him to vote.
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- At the time Lay was listed as a resident in a home owned
by 32-year-old McHenry but campaign records indicate Lay's paychecks were
sent to an address in Tennessee. McHenry won the primary by only 86 votes.
According to Gaston County, North Carolina District Attorney Locke Bell,
Lay was indicted on Monday, May 7 by a local grand jury.
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- Now McHenry has been connected to the triple
-
-
- http://www.pensitoreview.com/2007/08/24/murder-suicide-claims-gop-strategis
t-gaydars-going-wild/
-
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- murder-suicide in Orlando last month in which the closeted
gay former executive director of the Georgia GOP, Ralph Gonzalez, and his
straight roommate, David Abrami, were shot by Jason Robert Drake, a gay
ex-Marine.
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- http://www.pensitoreview.com/images/photo-japrson-drpake.jpg
-
-
- Originally portrayed as a lover's quarrel among
the three men, recently developed particulars of the case have revealed
Drake's entanglement with a murder related to gay prostitution services
in the Washington, D.C., area. It has also come to light that Rep. McHenry
was an associate of Gonzalez and Gonzalez' killer:
-
-
- http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2007/09/dont-
- think-larry-craigs-resigna tion-is.html
-
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- When I spoke to McHenry's office about this they at first
insisted they never heard of Drake then, confronted with specifics, admitted
they know him. They refused to put Congressman McHenry on the phone. There
is every indication that McHenry may have been one of the Republican elected
officials who was using the services of the gay prostitution agency connected
to Drake.
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- The North Carolina Conservative has more -
-
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- http://www.northcarolinaconservative.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=11
88428152&archive=&start_from=&ucat=&
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- Another, more sinister motive [for the triple suicide-murders]
has been put forth by several sources, including CrimeBlog.us. Reporters
there say that Drake was associated with the owner of a gay escort service
in the Virginia Beach area. The owners of that escort service are facing
charges that they murdered the owner of a rival company catering to the
gay community.
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- Sources tell The North Carolina Conservative that Drake
volunteered on several Republican campaigns in western North Carolina,
and was an associate of Congressman Patrick McHenry. Gonzalez is also believed
to have been associated with McHenry in the past. Since being elected,
McHenry has attempted to insure that all elected officials in his district
are his supporters and cronies. This has caused a very nasty political
war of attrition in the 10th District. Sources say that Drake worked on
these campaigns as a surrogate of McHenry.
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- Aside from the gay angle, the murders of Gonzalez and
Abrami have been <<http://www.bradblog.com/?p=4995>http://www.bradblog.com/?p=4995>
tied to a suspicious suicide through Gonzalez' connection to allegedly
corrupt Rep. Tom Feeney, R-Florida. Gonzalez also worked with Christian
politico Ralph Reed and Sheri McInvale, an indicted state pol in Florida.
-
- __________
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- Rep. David Dreier Gets Comfy Addressing Colombian Congress
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- http://www.pensitoreview.com/images/photo-drprier-colombia.jpg
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- Rep. Dreier, a senior House Republican was outed in 2004,
but the public didn't seem to notice. If he wants to keep it that way,
he should avoid making <http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN3042486720070830>
a spectacle of himself, as he did last week in front of the Colombian legislature:
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- A U.S. congressman said on Thursday he meant no offense
when he hoisted himself onto the lectern of Colombia's lower house to address
his Andean colleagues, some of whom were offended or simply amused by the
faux pas.
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- Colombian newspapers carried pictures of Rep. David Dreier,
a California Republican, sitting on top of the wooden podium and talking
with local legislators on Tuesday while on an official visit.
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- "I have the highest regard for the Congress of Colombia,"
Dreier told reporters in Bogota. "I meant absolutely no offense .
I simply wanted to demonstrate my warm feeling and affection."
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- Dreier was outed by Doug Ireland, who writes the column
Direland in the LA Weekly, who was motivated by Dreier's perfect record
of voting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Dreier against gay civil rights:
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- The "outing" was a result of Dreier coming
under increasing scrutiny from gay rights groups because of what they characterize
as an anti-gay voting record in Congress, which includes support of the
Defense of Marriage Act, as well as votes against gay adoption, and against
inclusion of homosexuality as a protected status in hate crime and employment
discrimination legislation.
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- When Tom DeLay was removed as House Majority Leader in
2005, Dreier was Speaker Dennis Hastert's pick to replace DeLay on an interim
basis, but other House leaders quashed the move because Dreier is gay.
The fact that Dreier is apparently happy to stay in a party that penalizes
him because of who he is speaks volumes.
-
- __________
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- South Carolina Republicans Would Be Unhappy to Learn
that Sen. Lindsey Graham Is Gay.
-
-
- http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2007/02/is-
- lindsey-graham-homo-does-pop e-go.html
-
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- If it were to come out that McCain's Mini-Me, Sen. Graham,
is
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- gay, his chances of being reelected in South Carolina
next year would drop to zero:
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- Lindsey Graham (R-SC), an unmarried/never married 52
year old with a funny, forced way of walking, has been far more fastidious
with his homosexuality [than former Rep. Mark Foley was]. Again, "everyone"
knows- except the voters in conservative South Carolina. Not that it doesn't
come up from time to time; people talk. In fact, the head of the Democratic
Party in South Carolina said something when the effeminate Lindsey decided
to run for Thurmond's senate seat. "He's a little too light in the
loafers" to succeed Strom Thurmond. Graham got into a really queenie
tizzy fit and loudly threatened to sue- although he didn't. (They never
do.)
-
- _________
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- Other famous never-married GOP figures in their 50s include
White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and Sec. of State Condoleeza Rice.
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- Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Won't Explain Why
He was Expelled from the Army after 10 Days
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- Howie Klein reported last spring:
-
-
- http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2007/03/
- progressives-will-not-use-mccon nells.html
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- With Kentuckians growing more and more restless with
their senator's role in perpetuating the Bush Regime's pointless "Stay
The Course" agenda in Iraq, Mitch McConnell is facing a tough re-election
battle next year. This has been exacerbated as it becomes more and more
known that he has been a closeted gay man for decades while pushing an
anti-gay agenda. He must be breathing a sign of relief today as the progressive
group Americans United for Change has made its plans known that they will
be tackling McConnell only on his role in advancing the Bush Regime's war
policies.
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- Klein told Counterpunch:
-
-
- http://www.counterpunch.org/leupp08302007.html
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- "Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's
quick expulsion from the Army - for fondling a private's privates - is
finally being discussed in Kentucky." He notes that McConnell, discharged
after just 10 days in the Army in 1967, "has consistently prevented
anyone from seeing his military discharge papers" but a Freedom of
Information suit may bring them to light. (After the revelation of Craig's
arrest and confession, McConnell cosigned a statement with other top Republican
legislators stating, "This is a serious matter" and indicating
he is examining "other aspects of the case to determine if additional
action is required.")
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- As we noted last week, Republicans painted themselves
into this gay corner when they formed their star-crossed coalition with
Christian nationalists in 1979. It was never a good fit. Country club Republicans
don't generally care about discussing family values, and going to church
is not the central focus of their lives - not hardly.
-
-
- http://www.pensitoreview.com/2007/08/31/
- republicans-painted-themselves-into -gay-corner/
-
-
- The GOP could find itself right back where it was after
Watergate. Bush and his toadying to the Christian right has driven away
the right-leaning independents. Without the support of the poor, dumbass
so-called Christians, there aren't enough country clubbers and anti-taxers
out there to win a national election. Status quo circa 1977.
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- If the secret lives of any of these men are revealed
as the election cycle ratchets up, the Christianists could well seek solace
in a third party next year, leaving the GOP's Washington elite literally
without a base to stand on.
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