December 3, 2007

"I just had never been treated like that by a man before."

Says David Phillips, describing what he says was a sexual encounter with Larry Craig in one of a series of audio clips presented by The Idaho Statesman in an article titled "More gay men describe sexual encounters with U.S. Sen. Craig." In the third audio clip, Phillips has Craig giving him a $20 bill and telling him to keep quiet because he can "buy and sell your ass a thousand times over" — which is odd, since $20 is not a display of wealth and is an insulting amount of money if it's supposed to be paying for sex. Phillips sounds sympathetic and sincere as he talks about feeling humiliated 20 years ago.

If Phillips is telling the truth, then, on top of it all, Craig was an inconsiderate sexual partner. Not that that is a reason one ought to have to resign from the Senate. Imagine the chaos that would ensue if it was.

24 comments:

Bilby said...

In the third audio clip, Phillips has Craig giving him a $20 bill and telling him to keep quiet because he can "buy and sell your ass a thousand times over"

That's just nasty. Between this and his "Do you know who I am?" stunt with the officer at the airport, the impression I get of Craig is that he's a grade A jerk on top of everything else.

KCFleming said...

"You know when somebody is raising an eyebrow at you because it's their gesture when they say 'hello' or when they are subtly trying to send you a message that they recognize you as being a gay person."

Maybe these things wouldn't be so messy if people began to use semaphore instead. No more mistaken meanings.

Meade said...

Seems to me that paying, any amount, for sex would hardly make one a "partner."

Client. Customer. Pathetic dependent user.

Ann Althouse said...

Meade, Phillips was not describing himself as a prostitute. In the story told, Craig forced a $20 bill on him as he was throwing him out of the house after what seemed to be a consensual encounter. The second man in the article was describing himself as a prostitute, and he comes across as a much less vulnerable person. Phillips was denied access to a bathroom afterwards and had to drive home for an hour and a half. Imagine a man doing that to a woman — having her over for what seemed to be consensual sex, then preventing her from using the bathroom and rushing her out while giving her a 20.

SGT Ted said...

Hey, it's just about sex.

"You better put some ice on that."

Anonymous said...

Folks,

I hate to break it to you, but Larry Craig is a Republican United States Senator.

As such, he can pay for hookers (male or female) all he wants ... and you can't do anything about it. So eat it. Swallow hard and accept the fact that if you are a United States Senator, the law wasn't written to prevent you from doing what you want.

The laws are written to separate you from your liberty ... not the Senate, or its members.

Larry Craig isn't going anywhere. Neither is Ted Stevens, or Dianne Feinstein, or any of the other crooks there who have been directing your tax dollars to their friends and family - stealing directly from the Treasury with impunity for 20+ years.

William Jefferson got caught red-handed with $90,000 in bribe money in his freezer for crissakes. Guess what. He's still a Congressman.

Are you people paying attention?

Where do you get off thinking you can GET these people? The Idaho Statesman ... getting Larry Craig? Bah ... Larry Craig is laughing at you. You are mere fleas on his backside.

How much evidence do you need before you realize that being in the US Congress is a license to lie, steal, cheat and kill.

The people of Idaho need to get back in their potato fields and get back to work and leave the Larry Craigs of the world to do their business in Washington.

MadisonMan said...

Somehow, This seems appropriate.

Roger J. said...

Somehow I think the voters of Idaho will not be returning Craig to the Senate should he decide to run again.

KCFleming said...

"If Phillips is telling the truth"

"Four gay men, willing to put their names in print and whose allegations can't be disproved"
No need for concern that Phillips is or is not tellig the truth. Craig must disprove them, otherwise they're true. At least according to the new definiton of truth.

Randy said...

Oh, Who cares. I mean really. The jerk will slither away when his term ends. Crap like this is of no redeeming value, socially or politically.

Swifty Quick said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Trooper York said...

Debbie: I gotta go, Sadie might have the chicken pox.
Jason: I had the chicken pox THREE times. I have no immunity to it.
Ben Stone: We don't have the heart to tell him it's herpes.
Jason: It's not herpes if it's everywhere.
(Knocked Up, 2007)

Beth said...

William Jefferson got caught red-handed with $90,000 in bribe money in his freezer for crissakes. Guess what. He's still a Congressman.

Last week his change of venue was denied, so his trial should begin shortly after the new year arrives. High entertainment awaits!

Beth said...

One more Jefferson note: his machine-backed candidates for the most part lost by wide, wide margins two weeks ago in the run-offs. The most satisfying was his daughter's being trounced for state Senate, getting less than 30 percent of the vote.

Unknown said...

Speaking of sexually inconsiderate politicians, this parody is quite funny.

http://hotair.com/archives/2007/12/03/comedy-gold-the-rudy-expense-scandal-goes-viral/

MadisonMan said...

PatCA: Thanks for the chuckle. And thanks to Beth for the update on Congressman Jefferson.

zeb, I keep bringing this up because Craig is a hypocrite. I find comeuppance brought to hypocrites vastly amusing.

Meade said...

"Phillips was not describing himself as a prostitute."

Agreed. His description of himself is more that of a "pickup." It's your description of Craig as a sexual "partner" that I disagree with. I realize you're being ironic imagining the chaos of resignations from the Senate for inconsiderate sexual behavior.

But seriously, I can imagine you'd agree that voters (as well as potential sex partners) have some responsibility for not allowing themselves be led by - male or female - lying hypocritical manipulative pricks.

Beth said...

Pat, I don't normally click over to Malkin's site, but credit is due when it's deserved: that was damned funny!

jeff said...

"No need for concern that Phillips is or is not tellig the truth. Craig must disprove them, otherwise they're true. At least according to the new definiton of truth."

Yeah, I read that last night. Interesting interpretation for a news outlet. I also noticed a couple of accusations came from what the accuser perceived what Craig was thinking. It would have been a stronger piece if it had gone with the stronger accusations, but none of them are more than he said/he said. Now before I get jumped, I think its very unlikely that Minneapolis was the only time he has done anything like that.

Swifty Quick said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Der Hahn said...

Phillips sounds sympathetic and sincere as he talks about feeling humiliated 20 years ago.

If Phillips is telling the truth, then, on top of it all, Craig was an inconsiderate sexual partner.

Mary Jo Kopechne was unavailable for comment, though it's rumored that Teddy at least offered to drive her home.

spudchuker said...

Sen Craig is my senator; there have been rumors about his sexual proclivities for years, but we have operated in a "don't ask -don,t tell" atmosphere. He appears to rival President Clinton in the brazenness of his extramarital risk taking. The Idaho Statesman has a liberal editor who has gone after Craig with vengeance. This whole episode is deeply embarrassing to most Idahoans who would prefer to talk about Boise State football. Oh well, back to the potato field.

sonicfrog said...

"If Phillips is telling the truth, then, on top of it all,..."

Double entendre intended?

As a former In-The-Closet gay man, I would love to give Craig some sympathy or benefit of doubt - but I just can't. Here's why.

I remember what it's like being "In The Closet" and understand the situation that perpetuates it. I remember very very well the feeling that my world would come crashing down if anyone found out that I was gay. That fear causes you be off centered, and you take risks that you know would be even more damaging if exposed than if you just told the truth. I hated the things I felt, and yet I could not live in total isolation. I had to have some sort of outlet - if only every once in a while. For a time the cheap thrills were enough. Though I wasn't much of a risk taker - to scared of getting caught, I still did some dumb things. The problem for me was, as long as I was leading this double life, I would never be able to have a real loving relationship because I kept any feelings of love strangled within that same closet in order to maintain the status quo. Being in love with another guy would risk exposure. So I killed those emotions as best I could. The nail in the coffin.... or the pry-bar of the closet, was pain. The fact that I was conscious of this emotional trade-off made my coming out inevitable. The emotional torture of always being alone became more painful than the prospect of being found out. Also, a dear friend who was casually "Out" (I'm gay, big deal) and who I was in love with (from afar, in keeping with the rules of the closet) was bashed to death. Not only had I lost a wonderful friend and mentor, not only did I never get to tell him how I really felt, but his parents didn't find out he was gay until the funeral. It was a severe shock to them. I was determined that would not happen if something were to happen to me. It still took a few months to tell my parents, and things were a bit strange for a while. But all ended up fine.

I'm projecting my experience onto Graig, and maybe that's wrong. But it seems he never moved beyond that point where he could feel comfortable and accepting of his desires. Craig found he could get release and still live life in the political fast lane. But the many many years of maintaining this balancing act has probably come at a great price. His want to maintain power, which was only possible in his mind if he stayed in the good graces of the moralist wing of the republican party, came at the cost of his emotional core. The self hatred for being gay and his unwillingness to be honest with himself has caused his soul to rot. At least Jim McGreevey knew when the jig was up, and though it was painful, he, and his family, are better off living with the truth and moving on. Sometimes, the truth does set you free.

sonicfrog said...

PS. Hope Boise, Fresno, and Hawaii all win their respective bowl games.