Glenn Murphy Jr. was the Clark County Indiana Republican chairman as well as the head of the national Young Republicans. He stepped down, according to him because of a business opportunity, but more likely because he is accused of having molested another man while he slept. I haven’t commented on this story, not because I’m above it somehow — seems like when a guy who advocates family values and hewing to straight and narrow sexual mores as a political stance is (credibly if not conclusively) accused of committing sex acts on sleeping men on two different occasions (pdf – somewhat graphic), it’s news. My lack of commentary has more to do with the fact that other local blogs have it well in hand — most notably Taking Down Words which broke the story. ABC7Chicago.com: Clark County GOP chairman quits amid investigation. Advance Indiana has also been doing a good job on this story.
What prompted me to write anything about it was to grouse about the AP story on the subject that mentions reporting of The Evening News of Jeffersonville and The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Kentucky but, when it’s time to credit Taking Down Words, can only bring itself to mention that the police report related to the investigation was “also posted on a political Internet blog.”
No respect.
Update Murphy plead guilty in June 2008; served time in the DOC and was released in October 2008; and was registered as a sex offender as of March 2010.
Amen.
If only you guys had those layers of editors and legions of fact checkers that REAL media have…
Perhaps they didn’t mention “TDW” because, unlike you, they realized that it’s nothing more than the official “blog” of The Indiana Defeatocrat Party. Because she does little more than re-print Dan Parker’s press releases doesn’t give Wagner credibility.
The gig is up, Doug. Leftists are going to have to find another source they can pretend is legitimate, oh say “The New York Times”?
Way to ignore the entire half of the piece that calls Wagner’s credibility in question and her connection to the Party and the release of the report.
Very good selective editing on your part, trying to tell halkf of the story.
Of course, TDW was the blog that secured and first posted actual copies of the two police reports detailing Young Republican National President Glenn Murphy’s alleged sex crimes. It’s not TDW’s opinion but TDW’s concrete evidence.
Facts have a well-known liberal bias.
By the way, Murphy’s attorney then posted a comment on TDW claiming it was just consensual gay sex by his client!
“Perhaps they didn’t mention “TDW†because, unlike you, they realized that it’s nothing more than the official “blog†of The Indiana Defeatocrat Party. Because she does little more than re-print Dan Parker’s press releases doesn’t give Wagner credibility.”
Uh, just to get facts straight here, TDW existed before Jen took a position with the Democrats, and to be honest, I would assume it will probably exist if she ever moves on to a different position. It’s not like she went out and sought the information, as it sounds like someone just sent it along to her. Even Frugal Hoosiers said they would have probably done the same thing in a similar situation.
Complaints, complaints. Bleh, just more of the same. My question is what all these folks are going to do if TDW ever ceases to exist?
They’ll have a lot more unstructured free time on their hands, Thomas.
For the record, yes, I plan to take the blog with me wherever I go next.
It’s not like I make a big secret out of what I do for a living. The only reason I figure a few folks are making a big deal out of it is that it drives up the numbers on their sites to go after me.
Whatever floats your boat, I guess.
Nope, just pointing out the obvious hypocrisy of trying to state that TDW has no connection to the Indiana Defeatocrat Party when it is your job to be Dan Parker’s mouthpiece.
Do you not receive compensation for the parts of the day you spend blogging? Are we really to believe that no one at the party has anything to do with what is posted there?
I could care less if you blog or not, I don’t read your trash anyway. Just be honest enough to admit that your blog is an official party publication.
Just doing it to drive traffic? You’d like to believe that you are that important, but if that’s what I was after I’d pick a blog that people actually care about, not one that simply exists to post Dan Parker’s press releases.
I hadn’t heard about this Murphy character, I try to always read the Courier-Journal, I must have missed it. Regardless of the genesis of this story, it does seem that it bears starking similarities to the Mark Foley and Ted Haggard debacles. I think most folks try to want to make our country better, not tear it apart, and it seems like one of the big problems isn’t what people do in their private lives, but the hypocracy. I really don’t think any of us are dumb enough to fall for the old adage “Don’t do as I do, but do as I say.” That may work for youngsters, but not for adults. That kind of bullshit just makes us all cynical about public servants, regardless of political affiliation.
TDW’s reporting really bothered me. Sure, it’s her job to jump on a partisan opponent when he’s down. He may even deserve that. However, TDW’s reporting really seemed to be a shady other side of the coin as regards the very open attack on the LGBT community issued in many Republican quarters. Mainly, she seemed to delight in pointing out, “GAY!”
Pointing out hypocrisy is very useful. If I were gay, however, I would be at least a little suspect of the Communications Director for the Indiana Democrats. The reporting hardly spelled any support for a community that is supposed to be a key constituent bloc for her party.
As an openly gay man, I am certainly delighted to see anti-gay hypocrites like Mike Murphy exposed and hoisted on his own petard. This closet case tried to whip up anti-gay sentiment to win votes for his GOP candidates. Pitiful!
“Pointing out hypocrisy is very useful. If I were gay, however, I would be at least a little suspect of the Communications Director for the Indiana Democrats. The reporting hardly spelled any support for a community that is supposed to be a key constituent bloc for her party.”
Mike, below is every post TDW has made on the subject, blockquotes aside.
I was curious which one of the below statements you were referring to, because for the life of me, I don’t read any anti-gay sentiment in a one of ’em.
Aug 7 –
“Here’s a question for the masses: Newly elected Young Republican National Federation President Glenn Murphy is suddenly no longer listed as that group’s leader on its website. Why?”
Aug 7 –
“UPDATE: Murphy may not face charges for 30 to 40 days.
Clark County GOP Chair and newly elected Young Republican National Federation Chair Glenn Murphy is under investigation for criminal deviate conduct, a Class B felony, for allegedly engaging in oral sex with a sleeping victim. This is not his first run-in with the law for this kind of offense.
Read the investigative report and a prior arrest for sexual battery in 1998 here: glennmurphy.pdf
WARNING: This is some pretty graphic stuff. Don’t let the kiddies read it.
UPDATE: Murphy recently sent an e-mail telling friends in Florida about his decision to resign from the YRNF position for business reasons. Read his letter after the jump.”
Aug 8 –
“In response to allegations that his client, Glenn Murphy, attempted to orally stimulate a sleeping victim after a recent party, Clark County attorney Larry Wilder posted this defense in the comments section of the original thread containing the police report. (Which is, for the record, a public document.)
In the interest of fairness, here is Wilder’s response is in post form. TDW has redacted the victim’s last name.”
Aug 8 –
“The Jeffersonville Evening News becomes the first mainstream media outlet to pick up the Glenn Murphy resignation and criminal investigation:”
Aug 9 –
“The Glenn Murphy criminal investigation has made its way from the Internets to the mainstream press. A few stories from both realms:”
Aug 9 –
“Clark County defense attorney Larry Wilder is telling the media that it may be 30 to 40 days before the local prosecutor files any charges against Glenn Murphy, the former Clark County and National Young Republican Federation chair who is under criminal investigation for allegedly performing oral sex on a sleeping victim.
The Jeffersonville News reports:”
Wilson, you are a sleazebag for knowingly and intentionally confusing Glenn Murphy’s name with Mike Murphy’s. For the life of me, I can’t understand why you don’t realize that you are the laughingstock of the Indiana Blogosphere.
Now, go send a whiny email to Ruth Holladay.
My fault, Scribe (you’re definitely not a sweetheart tonight. Bile and gall so unbecomes you!). Glenn, not Mike Murphy.
Good point Mike, It seems like Republicans, who favor less government and Democrats who favor more government, are going to have to sit down at some point and agree on what unites us, rather than what divides us in order to get anywhere. I don’t know what the answer is, but from what I have heard so far from the polls it is going to be Guiliani vs. Clinton next year for the presidency, I personally don’t like Guiliani or Clinton. Hopefully we can find an alternative who both respects our American ways for both autonomy and respect for all peoples. I voted for George W. the last two times and wish I hadn’t (not that it would have made a difference since Ky. only gets 8 electoral votes, but then again, as the 2000 election proved, every vote counts).
I just had to jump in and post one comment on this, not that it has any direct bearing on next year’s presidential election but was more personal. The girl I have been dating had several of her relatives exterminated during WW II. She is Jewish, and although her immediate relatives all survived she had several distant relatives who didn’t survive Auschwitz, Treblinka, and Bergen-Belsen, she defititely has a personal appreciation of the value of life, and has a personal sensitivity for respecting people. (We are going to Amerstdam next month, Denise wants me to see
The Anne Frank House, where the Frank family hid for 25 months, she has been there once and wants me to see it.)
I went and looked back to see what rankled me. It was the links and the headlines on a post that compiled a string of them.
I made a bad assumption there. I assumed that these were headlines of Jen’s creation. They appear not to be. Wonkette used the ‘word’ “perv” in her headline. The Courier-Journal used the word “deviate”. This is what I was reacting to.
My lukewarm apologies to Jen Wagner.
I guess I would have cleaned it up a bit if linking on my own blog. I would have used phrases like “link to Wonkette item”, or “link to Courier-Journal article”, as I do when linking on my own blog. Not a push for political correctness, mind you. It’s just that if the Dems value a constituency, they should act like it all the time. These things occur to me as losing sight of respect.
My two cents: someone who sexually molests another person *is* a perv and a deviate… the sexual orientation of either party isn’t a factor.
As a gay man, I am sickened not only by Murphy’s actions (as they are actionable and criminal) but also by the attempt to explain things away as “consensual”. Nothing consensual about touching a stranger when he is asleep.
Yeah, I’d classify that ACTION as deviate.
Jen did NOT call all gays deviates. In fact, I doubt the “gay community” would accept such hypocrites as Murphy among their number, when he finally finishes his inevitable “treatment process.”
Don’t bash gays and their families to get your people elected and then expect them to come to your aid when you get caught doing illegal same-sex activities.