Florida Representative Matt Gaetz is only the latest “family values” Republican to be revealed as a Fascistic hypocrite.

On January 29, he released the following statement: “America is unique in the world because we acknowledge that our rights come from God, not government….And I will always stand up for family values, which includes giving a voice to the unborn.” 

Now the Justice Department is investigating Gaetz for an alleged sexual sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl in 2019.

Other “family values” hypocrites have included:

• Josh Duggar. On December 9, a federal jury found him guilty of receipt and possession of child pornography. He faces up to 20 years of imprisonment and fines up to $250,000 on each count.

In 2015, he had resigned as director of the Family Research Council, a Right-wing organization that fights sexually-oriented issues such as same-sex marriage, abortion and pornography.

The reason: The oldest son of the “all-American” Duggar family, as a 14-15 year-old, had fondled the breasts and vaginas of five underage girls—four of whom were his own sisters. And the news of this had just broken.

• Dennis Hastert. On May 28, 2015, the former Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives (1999-2007) was indicted for violating federal banking laws and lying to the FBI.

He had tried to conceal $3.5 million in hush-money payments over several years to a man who was blackmailing him.

The source of the blackmail: A homosexual—and possibly coerced–relationship that had occurred before Hastert entered Congress in 1981.

It had begun with an underage student while Hastert was a teacher and wrestling coach at Yorkville High School in Yorkville, Ill.

“I felt a special bond with our wrestlers,” Hastert wrote in his 2004 memoirs, Speaker: Lessons From Forty Years of Coaching and Politics.  “And I think they felt one with me.”

Hastert wasn’t indicted for having had a sexual relationship with an underage student. The statute of limitations had long ago run out on that offense.

He was indicted for trying to evade federal banking laws and lying to the FBI.

Dennis Hastert

The indictment did not provide specifics about Hastert’s relationship with the former student. But it clearly indicated that Hastert’s early career at Yorkville High School was material to the charges.

Jeffrey Cramer, a former federal prosecutor now head of the Chicago division of the private security company, Kroll, told the Chicago Tribune: “Three-and-a-half million is a lot of money to keep a secret hidden.”

According to the indictment, the FBI began investigating the cash withdrawals in 2013.The Bureau wanted to know if Hastert was using the cash for criminal purposes or if he was the victim of a criminal extortion.

When questioned by the FBI, Hastert said he was storing cash because he didn’t feel safe with the banking system: “Yeah … I kept the cash. That’s what I’m doing.”

One part of Hastert’s life was not secret: His opposition to homosexual rights.

From 1997 to 2007, Hastert voted for the Marriage Protection Act, which “forbids requiring any state or any other political subdivision of the United States to credit as a marriage a same-sex relationship treated as marriage in another state or equivalent government.”

Hastert also voted in favor of a Constitutional amendment to “establish that marriage shall consist of one man and one woman.”

He also voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which banned companies from discriminating against employees “on the basis of sexual orientation.”

Owing to Hastert’s “deeply conservative” voting record, in 1998, he received perfect scores of 100 from

• The National Rifle Association;
• The Christian Coalition;
• The National Right to Life Committee; and
• The Chamber of Commerce

Hastert makes the third Republican “family values” Speaker of the House to become ensnared in an ethics scandal.

Newt Gingrich was the first Speaker (1985-1999) in the history of the House to be reprimanded and punished for ethics violations. His offense: Claiming tax-exempt status for a college course run for political purposes.

He successor, Bob Livingston, was forced to resign when publisher Larry Flynt revealed his sexual infidelities.

And then Dennis Hastert, whose depraved conduct involved a male high school student.

Of course, Democrats have had their sex scandals as well—as President Bill Clinton can thoroughly attest. But Democrats usually don’t suffer as badly from them.

The reason: Republicans portray themselves not as vote-hustling politicians but as moral examples for the nation. So for them, being caught literally with their pants down proves a double-whammy.

They are condemned, first, for their specific illegal/immoral acts—and then for the sheer hypocrisy of their false claims of sainthood.

Ironically, Right-wingers would fare better when caught in sexual affairs if they simply admitted their sexual tastes and registered as Democrats.

But in heavily Right-wing states like Texas and Oklahoma, they wouldn’t stand a chance of being elected as a Democrat.

And Red-state voters, feeling themselves moral arbiters of the nation, wouldn’t elect anyone they thought was “unnatural.”

So Right-wingers will continue pretending to be moral paragons—and will continue paying the price when they’re exposed as hypocritical mortals.

Meanwhile, their voters never learn—and will continue to vote their hatred to elect “holier-than-thou” pretenders to morality.

Florida Representative Matt Gaetz is only the latest “family values” Republican to be revealed as a Fascistic hypocrite.

On January 29, he released the following statement: “America is unique in the world because we acknowledge that our rights come from God, not government….And I will always stand up for family values, which includes giving a voice to the unborn.” 

Now the Justice Department is investigating Gaetz for an alleged sexual sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl in 2019.

Other “family values” hypocrites have included:

• Josh Duggar. On On May 21, 2015, he resigned as director of the Family Research Council, a Right-wing organization dedicated to fighting sexually-oriented issues such as same-sex marriage, abortion and pornography.

The reason: The oldest son of the “all-American” Duggar family as a 14-15 year-old, had fondled the breasts and vaginas of five underage girls—four of whom were his own sisters. 

Although his parents knew about his perverted activities, Jim Bob Duggar waited more than a year after Josh confessed before contacting the police.

• Dennis Hastert. On May 28, 2015, the former Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives (1999-2007) was indicted for violating federal banking laws and lying to the FBI.

He had tried to conceal $3.5 million in hush-money payments over several years to a man who was blackmailing him.

The source of the blackmail: A homosexual—and possibly coerced–relationship that had occurred before Hastert entered Congress in 1981. Except that it was more than a homosexual relationship.

It was a relationship with an underage student while Hastert was a teacher and wrestling coach at Yorkville High School in Yorkville, Ill.

“I felt a special bond with our wrestlers,” Hastert wrote in his 2004 memoirs, Speaker: Lessons From Forty Years of Coaching and Politics.  “And I think they felt one with me.”

Apparently that “special bond” extended to activities outside the ring.

Hastert wasn’t indicted for having had a sexual relationship with an underage student. The statute of limitations had long ago run out on that offense.

He was indicted for trying to evade federal banking laws and lying to the FBI.

Dennis Hastert

The indictment did not provide specifics about Hastert’s relationship with the former student. But it clearly indicated that Hastert’s early career at Yorkville High School was material to the charges.

Jeffrey Cramer, a former federal prosecutor now head of the Chicago division of the private security company, Kroll, told the Chicago Tribune: “The feds don’t put superfluous facts in an indictment. If it’s in there, it’s relevant.”

Cramer added that the sheer size of the payoffs pointed to a secret that was clearly devastating: “$3.5 million is a lot of money to keep a secret hidden.”

According to the indictment, the FBI began investigating the cash withdrawals in 2013.The Bureau wanted to know if Hastert was using the cash for criminal purposes or if he was the victim of a criminal extortion.

When questioned by the FBI, Hastert said he was storing cash because he didn’t feel safe with the banking system: “Yeah … I kept the cash. That’s what I’m doing.”

One part of Hastert’s life was not secret: His opposition to homosexual rights.

From 1997 to 2007, Hastert voted for the Marriage Protection Act, which “forbids requiring any state or any other political subdivision of the United States to credit as a marriage a same-sex relationship treated as marriage in another state or equivalent government.”

Hastert also voted in favor of a Constitutional amendment to “establish that marriage shall consist of one man and one woman.”

He also voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which banned companies from discriminating against employees “on the basis of sexual orientation.”

Owing to Hastert’s “deeply conservative” voting record, in 1998, he received perfect scores of 100 from

• The National Rifle Association;
• The Christian Coalition;
• The National Right to Life Committee; and
• The Chamber of Commerce

Hastert makes the third Republican “family values” Speaker of the House to become ensnared in an ethics scandal.

Newt Gingrich was the first Speaker (1985-1999) in the history of the House to be reprimanded and punished for ethics violations. His offense: Claiming tax-exempt status for a college course run for political purposes.

He successor, Bob Livingston, was forced to resign when publisher Larry Flynt revealed his sexual infidelities.

And now there’s Dennis Hastert, whose conduct involved neither money nor women—just a male high school student.

Of course, Democrats have had their sex scandals as well—as President Bill Clinton can thoroughly attest.  But Democrats usually don’t suffer as badly from them.

The reason: Republicans portray themselves as moral examples for the nation. So for them, being caught literally with their pants down proves a double-whammy.

They are condemned for their specific illegal/immoral acts—and for the sheer hypocrisy of their false claims of sainthood.

Ironically, Right-wingers would fare better when caught in sexual affairs if they simply admitted their sexual tastes and registered as Democrats.

But in heavily Right-wing states like Texas and Oklahoma, they wouldn’t stand a chance of being elected as a Democrat.

And Red-state voters, feeling themselves moral arbiters of the nation, wouldn’t elect anyone they thought was “unnatural.”

So Right-wingers will continue pretending to be moral paragons—and will continue paying the price when they’re exposed as fallible humans.

Millions of “family values” Republican voters routinely vote for Right-wing political candidates who self-righteously boast of their moral purity. 

Matt Gatez has served Florida’s First Congressional district as a Republican member of the House of Representatives since 2017.

A fervent supporter of President Donald Trump, he falsely claimed that Trump had won the 2020 Presidential election—despite overwhelming evidence that Joe Biden had emerged the victor.

Matt Gaetz

Even after thousands of Stormtrumpers attacked the Capitol Building on January 6, Gaetz  joined 141 House Republicans who voted to decertify the Electoral College votes in Arizona, where Biden beat Trump by about 10,500 votes. 

On March 30, 2021, The New York Times reported that the Justice Department was investigating Gaetz for an alleged sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl in 2019.

Investigators were examining whether he had violated federal sex trafficking laws by paying her to travel with him across state lines.

Gaetz claimed to be innocent, and the victim of an organized criminal extortion involving a former Justice Department official seeking $25 million. 

But according to CNN, Gaetz allegedly used his cell phone to show other lawmakers photos and videos of nude women he said he had slept with.

On April 2, Luke Ball, who had been Gaetz’ communications director since he joined the U.S. House in 2017, resigned

Gaetz is not the first—nor only—Right-wing champion of “family values” to betray the trust of those who supported him.

On May 21, 2015, Josh Duggar resigned as director of the Family Research Council, a Right-wing organization dedicated to fighting sexually-oriented issues such as same-sex marriage, abortion and pornography.

Duggar, 27, had owed his position to his status as the oldest son of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, of Tonitown, Arkansas.

Until his resignation, the Duggars were famous for popping out babies (19 at last count) and championing Right-wing “family values” causes.

Josh Duggar, the “all-American” child molester

Then came the bombshell: On May 21, Josh Duggar issued a statement to People magazine explaining why he had resigned from the Family Research Council:

“Twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends. I confessed this to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation.

“We spoke with the authorities where I confessed my wrongdoing, and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life.”

What his statement didn’t say was this: In 2002-3, as a 14-15 year-old, Josh Duggar had fondled the breasts and vaginas of five underage girls—four of whom were his own sisters.   

• Although his parents knew about his perverted activities, Jim Bob Duggar waited more than a year after Josh confessed before contacting the police.
• Police began investigating the abuse in 2006 when tipped by a family friend but concluded the statute of limitations had lifted.
• His father later took him to talk with a close family friend, an Arkansas state trooper. The trooper gave him a “stern talk,” but did not open a case.  Nor was Duggar referred for criminal charges.
• His resignation wasn’t prompted by a guilty conscience but by two days of media reports on this story.

As a result of these revelations, on May 22, The Learning Channel (TLC) canceled its high-rated “reality” series, 19 Kids and Counting, which had showcased the Duggar family since 2008.

The scandalous revelations turned the reactionary, anti-abortion, anti-gay Duggars into comedic fodder for standup comedians, cartoonists and visitors to Twitter and Facebook.

One cartoon showed Josh Duggar saying, “I got a word named after me,” and holding a sign defining that word: “Duggar: To sexually abuse innocent victims while trumpeting your own moral superiority.  Example: Hold my Bible while I duggar you.”

And on Twitter, the criticism continued:

• “Josh Duggar says no child should feel the pain of being aborted. I say no child should feel the pain of being molested.”
• “So daddy Duggar is ok with his son molesting his daughters, but not ok with his daughters leaving for college. Misogyny at its greatest.”
• “In the Duggar family, you’re reprimanded for kissing before marriage but not for assaulting your siblings.”

The family had been a magnet for Right-wingers owing to its staunchly anti-abortion and anti-gay stance.  Add to this the Duggars’ claims to religious devotion and their clear disregard for birth control—and their being stars in “reality TV.”

And Josh Duggar showed his gratitude for the fawning attention lavished upon him by those Right-wingers.

Among those Tweets:

• March 15, 2015: “Great to be with @RickSantorum & @BenSeewald in #Houston today—standing for #ReligiousFReedom! @FRCAction#TX.
• May 6, 2015: “Great meeting today w @SenTedCruz. He always conveys passion for America & the importance of faith, family and freedom!”  

• • May 16, 2015: “Great to visit w/ my friend @GovMikeHuckabee this morning in DC. Thankful to have his voice on the #2016 stage!”  
  • Thanks for saying hello in Iowa, always great to see you @GovernorPerry! #FLS2014@FRCAction@theFAMiLYLEADER
  • May 19, 2015: “Great meeting today w/ @ScottWalker! He has a very passionate vision for America. #OurAmericanRevival #2016″ 
  • Jan. 21, 2015: “Good to catch up with @govjebbush this morning in DC.”