Gay lawmaker threatens to expose cheating colleagues

[Bethella]

A gay lawmaker, Patricia Todd, from Alabama is threatening to expose her cheating colleagues if they continue to use family values rhetoric to oppose marriage equality. :clap: :clap: :clap: Finally someone is calling them on their hypocrisy. I can't wait to see if this works (although a small part of me would love to see the implosions if she does expose them)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/2 ... lp00000592

Alabama's only openly gay legislator is putting her anti-gay colleagues on notice: If they keep espousing family values rhetoric as a reason to oppose marriage equality, she'll start making their marital infidelities public.

"I will not stand by and allow legislators to talk about 'family values' when they have affairs, and I know of many who are and have," wrote state Rep. Patricia Todd (D) on Facebook over the weekend, as reported by the TimesDaily in Alabama. "I will call our elected officials who want to hide in the closet out."

Todd's post came after a federal judge ruled Friday that Alabama's ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. She told The Huffington Post that she decided to issue her threat after reading some of the anti-gay rhetoric coming from certain elected officials in the state.

"If certain people come out and start espousing this rhetoric about family values, then I will say, 'Let's talk about family values, because here's what I heard.' I don't have direct knowledge, because obviously I'm not the other person involved in the affair. But one thing you would never hear about me is that I ever cheated on a partner or had an affair," said Todd.

"One thing I'm pretty consistent on is I do not like hypocrites," she added. "If you can explain your position and you hold yourself to the same standard you want to hold me to, then fine. But you cannot go out there and smear my community by condemning us and somehow making us feel less than, and expect me to be quiet."

On Sunday night, U.S. District Court Judge Callie Granade issued a two-week stay on her ruling, meaning that same-sex couples will have to wait a bit longer to wed. Her order gives the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals until Feb. 9 to decide whether to continue the delay. Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange ® said he would have preferred a stay until the spring or summer, when the Supreme Court is set to rule on the constitutionality of marriage equality nationwide.

If Granade's ruling is upheld, Alabama will be the 37th state to legalize marriage equality.

[whoviana]

Let's see how "sacred" are those sacred marriages...

[RosyDaisy]

She will do it. The good 'ol boys in Montgomery should be very afraid. I have friends from her district in Birmingham. She was a key player in getting Carly's Bill passed (allows specific medicinal marijuana for kids with rare seizure disorders).

[Delilah]

I think Ms. Todd's threat is probably making some people sweat right now. It really is hypocritical to speak about family values and then cheat on your own spouse. I wonder however how she could carry out her threat without getting sued for slander. Don't you have to have some sort of proof? Maybe just the threat is enough.

[salex]

I think Ms. Todd's threat is probably making some people sweat right now. It really is hypocritical to speak about family values and then cheat on your own spouse. I wonder however how she could carry out her threat without getting sued for slander. Don't you have to have some sort of proof? Maybe just the threat is enough.

I'm ready to donate to a fund for the private investigator.... ; 0

[BrownieMomma]

If she only going to go on what she's heard... then she could accuse anybody with no proof whatsoever.

[RosyDaisy]

I can't confirm this, but after chatting with some friends today, it seems she has credible information. I don't think the services of a PI is needed. Just to be clear...I am not from her district, and only repeating what friends have told me.

[VodouDoll]

It's only slander if it isn't true.

[RosyDaisy]

This is Alabama politics. Politicians love to sling mud. Funny thing is most of that mud has a lot of truth to it, and it tends to stick.

[Howl]

Well, who can fathom (as if there were actually depths to plumb) the minds of Southern voters who re-elected David Vitter (Louisiana), who initially inherited his seat from Bob Livingston, who resigned because of a sex scandal:

In 2007, Vitter — a leading advocate of banning same-sex marriage and opening public meetings with prayers — admitted that he was a [frequent] client of D.C. Madam Deborah Jeane Palfre. But he denied — nay, rebutted! — allegations that he’d also visited prostitutes in New Orleans. Then he said he was going to continue doing his important work in the Senate, despite the fact that much of America now knew that this law-breaking, cheating husband probably had a diaper fetish.

Vitter was easily re-elected in 2010 after running a campaign typified by what may be the most blatantly racist ad ever run by a member of the U.S. Congress..

and Mark Sanford, who went missing from public office to visit his mistress in South America and proceeded to humiliate his wife in an incredibly public and degrading way AND who was returned to office by the people of South Carolina.

Apparently, Sanford will be hiking the Appalachian trail alone; in September he broke up with his paramour/fiancée on his official facebook page, rather than telling her in person, presumably because easier and less emotionally messy + saves the voters on kleenex!

yeah, it is the redemption narrative, of course. The devil made me do it + redemption because jesus + guys just can't help themselves.

Yes, VoodouDoll, this is a great point:

It's only slander if it isn't true.

She knows this puts them in a rather delicious bind; how can they refute something or sue if that exposes them to the truth? Some of these guys are gonna be sweatin' like hogs in a sauna. Bet they have damage control consultants on speed dial!

[RosyDaisy]

If Rep. Todd exposes what she knows, those damage control consultants won't be of much help. Also, she represents one of the poorest districts in Birmingham, and Jefferson County voted Democrat in the 2012 Presidential election.

[Vex]

Ugh, I don't like this. I'm really not sure that this will do anything but make gay people look like petty, vindictive, nasty people who will play dirty to get what they want because that's the only way they can convince 'decent' people to come around. I think that a lot of people already see gay people as being slimy and underhanded and this will just give those people ammunition.

I'm gay, but I don't condone Rep. Todd's actions, even if these people are nasty hypocrites.

[DGayle]

If she only going to go on what she's heard... then she could accuse anybody with no proof whatsoever.

A) She's says she doesn't have the direct inside scoop because she isn't the other person in the affairs, which is correct.

B) I'm pretty sure she knows what libel is, and wouldn't risk committing it. So she'll probably have good evidence.

[RosyDaisy]

So exposing hypocrisy is all of a sudden a bad thing? I found the whole idea of fighting against gay marriage/rights while engaging in sexual immorality themselves and using taxpayer dollars to fight it out in court disgusting. These hypocritical homophobic assholes need to be exposed for what they are.

[BrownieMomma]

She backed off:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/201 ... -backs-of/

My comment: She doesn't have to be involved in the affair to have proof that an affair is occurring/has occurred. No need to keep saying "I'm not in an affair."

She shouldn't need an attorney to tell her to not repeat gossip, what's common knowledge in Montgomery might or might not be true, she should be adult enough to know better.

If she has proof and can expose someone, by all means do it.

Death threats is probably just more of her spouting her mouth off again. Lots of people have alarm systems, and its not particularly difficult to get extra patrols. I have requested these myself a few times over the years for different reasons, its not that big a deal actually. But she can play victim to try garner some sympathy because...

...No Democrats or civil rights leaders came to her aid? That's pretty telling right there.

Predicting a short career.

Alabama’s first openly gay legislator has backed off threats to expose the extramarital affairs of some of her Republican colleagues because she fears being sued for defamation.

State Rep. Patricia Todd, a Democrat, admitted Wednesday morning that she could have handled things differently after she posted a message on Facebook over the weekend threatening to expose the supposed scandalous lives of her fellow legislators due to their opposition to same-sex marriage.

Her goal, she said at the time, was to expose hypocritical conservatives who believe gay marriage is bad for families. She’s now backing down from her threats at her attorney’s request.

SEE ALSO: Patricia Todd, gay Alabama lawmaker, threatens to expose adulterous colleagues

“I don’t have proof,†she said Wednesday on the WAPI radio station in her district of Birmingham. “I’m not involved in the affair.

“Some of it’s pretty common knowledge in Montgomery,†she said. “I was advised by my attorney not to say things I don’t have proof that it’s true, because then I could be sued for slander.â€

Ms. Todd said she has received death threats since her Facebook post went viral this week. She lamented that she hadn’t heard “a peep†from fellow Democrats or civil rights leaders to support her in light of those threats.

“My life’s been threatened in the past couple of days,†she told The Huffington Post. “A lot of my friends are worried about my safety. The police are patrolling by my house more often. I’ve got an alarm system. I am being careful. But they’re not going to scare me back into my house. I’m not going to let them do that.â€

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/201 ... z3QJmrkXSG

Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

[NachosFlandersStyle]

I think she could have made her point and come off a lot better if she had just said "It's common knowledge around here that all these politicos are screwing around, and if you don't believe me I challenge you to come down to the bars by the capitol and see for yourself." I wonder if she ever actually intended to name names or if she just thought that giving an ultimatum would get the papers interested in her cause.

That being said, I have no doubt that she has gotten death threats. There are a whole lot of wackos out there who spend their free time venting their wackiness towards their elected representatives. I've been the intern that had to answer those phone calls and it is truly something else.

[salex]

I have no doubt she gets death threats. My inlaw who is in a state legislature gets them, my sister and my dad, who were both on local school boards got them--heck, my sister got one when she was president of her sorority from the mother of a girl they had kicked out for multiple rules violations. People are nuts!

[formergothardite]

I don't know why BrownieMomma thinks that she is making up the death threats. I have no doubt that she got them. There are crazy people who really, really, really hate anyone they view as threatening to conservative Christian straight people.

She did have a good point though. These people spout off traditional family values as a way to get votes while living lives that are the complete opposite of what the people who vote for them would consider family values and then claim that gay couples are destroying American society.

[RosyDaisy]

She did indeed get death threats. I wrote her a letter of support even though I'm not from her district. I was kind of hoping she wouldn't back down.

[Sundaymorning]

I don't know why BrownieMomma thinks that she is making up the death threats. I have no doubt that she got them. There are crazy people who really, really, really hate anyone they view as threatening to conservative Christian straight people.

She did have a good point though. These people spout off traditional family values as a way to get votes while living lives that are the complete opposite of what the people who vote for them would consider family values and then claim that gay couples are destroying American society.

I completely agree. I really could care less what politicians do in their free time, but I expect them to stand up for the things they advertise about themselves.

If a guy runs ads about how he is such a family values man and that people should vote for him because of it, when in reality he is cheating on his wife and could care less about his "family values", he is deliberately deceiving the voters.

Imagine if a politician would make a huge stand against tax fraud, and if it came out that in fact she or he fiddled with her/his own taxes for years and evaded paying big amounts of taxes, the voters would have a right to know about that.

[Bethella]

I'm really disappointed she backed down. I get why she felt it was necessary but I wish someone with some public visibility would stand up to them and show their constituents just how hypocritical they are. We can talk about their hypocrisy here on FJ until we're blue in the face, but unless its a sensational story about the Duggars that's picked up by a tabloid no one else will ever hear about it.

[PracticeMakesProgress]

Ugh, I don't like this. I'm really not sure that this will do anything but make gay people look like petty, vindictive, nasty people who will play dirty to get what they want because that's the only way they can convince 'decent' people to come around. I think that a lot of people already see gay people as being slimy and underhanded and this will just give those people ammunition.

I'm gay, but I don't condone Rep. Todd's actions, even if these people are nasty hypocrites.

I have to say I agree. She makes an EXTREMELY valid point, but don't get down to their level. You (and the community you represent) are better than that.

Also, I hate to say it, but the people that really matter in all of this are the innocent children/family members who are in the dark. What a horrible way to find out something like that. On the other side of that coin? It's politics. I would not be surprised if some of the spouses knew full well what was going on, and just agreed to stay married to save face. Hillary Clinton would be a high profile example of such.

[Sundaymorning]

I have to say I agree. She makes an EXTREMELY valid point, but don't get down to their level. You (and the community you represent) are better than that.

Also, I hate to say it, but the people that really matter in all of this are the innocent children/family members who are in the dark. What a horrible way to find out something like that. On the other side of that coin? It's politics. I would not be surprised if some of the spouses knew full well what was going on, and just agreed to stay married to save face. Hillary Clinton would be a high profile example of such.

You know, as a lesbian myself, I've thought a lot about this matter of publicly outing someone against their will or dragging someones private secrets into the limelight.

And under normal circumstances, I'm absolutely against doing such things.

But this is not the usual political mudfight for power and public offices.

The behaviour of these homophobic idiots is one of the reasons so many people still suffer heavily because of their sexual orientation, so many people get bullied and beaten-up, people get depressions and some even kill themselves. LGBTQ youth is twice as likely to make a suicide attempt than heterosexual young people (cdc.gov/lgbthealth/youth.htm)

So I think taking controversial measures to stop these idiots is justifiable. Of course, first, they should be approached privately about their behaviour. But if they still continue to spew hate in public, I think we should be able to defend ourselves and out such assholes as the hypocrites they are.

[BrownieMomma]

I don't know why BrownieMomma thinks that she is making up the death threats. I have no doubt that she got them. There are crazy people who really, really, really hate anyone they view as threatening to conservative Christian straight people.

She did have a good point though. These people spout off traditional family values as a way to get votes while living lives that are the complete opposite of what the people who vote for them would consider family values and then claim that gay couples are destroying American society.

She's neither credible nor believable. I do believe she would say that in order to garner sympathy or guilt all the people she thought would stand up for her that didn't do diddly squat.

edited for grammar

[formergothardite]

She's neither credible nor believable. I do believe she would say that in order to garner sympathy or guilt all the people she thought would stand up for her that didn't do diddly squat.

edited for grammar

Why exactly is she not credible or believable? What makes you think no one would send death threats?