Republican
Congressman Aaron Schock is rather well-known throughout the internet
and media for two things: The shirtless photos of himself he posts
online, and the persistent rumors that he is gay.
Having voted against the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” as well
as against numerous pieces of hate crime legislation, it could be easy
to assume he is just a boiler plate, anti-gay conservative. However
amid an explosive allegation by a CBS reporter, many are beginning to
wonder if perhaps the Congressman doth protest too much.
Itay Hod, a well-respected staff reporter for CBS news, announced
today that according to trusted sources, Schock has not only been
sighted showering with his male roommate, but has also been observed
making the rounds at area gay bars. According to Hod, who is a gay man
himself, Schock presently enjoys a rating of 0% from the Human Rights
Campaign for his – now clearly hypocritical – positions on gay marriage
and hate crimes.
In a Facebook post outing Schock,
Hod expresses both frustration at the Republican’s hypocrisy, as well
as the generally tetchy issue that outing such a hypocrite can be,
writing:
“We’ve been so effective at convincing everyone that outing people is a
crime against humanity, that we’ve made it impossible for any network or
news organization to talk about this “hypothetical” gay republican
congressman and his hypocritical vote against gay rights. they won’t
touch it for fear of retribution from GLAAD or HRC. (in fact when my
friend’s network interviewed said hypothetical republican, he talked
about wanting to find a nice woman to marry… and the network aired it…
knowing it was a lie.
The Illinois congressman has skirted claims that he was gay for many
years. With an entire blog page dedicated to the “7 Gayest Aaron Schock
Instagram Posts,” and substantial and sustained scrutiny placed on his
human rights and gay rights voting record, it would seem questions – or
rather, safe assumptions – about Schock’s hypocrisy and sexuality have
become a mainstay of his political career. In 2011 Wonkette ran this piece, stating unequivocally that “Everyone Knows” Aaron Schock Is “Def. Gay”
In 2010, following a photo
posted online featuring Schock in a simply fabulous teal belt – which
naturally resulted in further speculation he was gay – Schock shot back
over twitter, claiming to have burned the belt after having “learned his
lesson.”
Though damnable for his hypocrisy, that being a stalwart anti-LGBTQ
representative while himself secretly being a gay man, Schock’s position
as a gay conservative cannot be an easy one. As the GOP fights with its
own factions or control of the party, many elements within it are
moving further to the right, leading one Democratic lawmaker to declare
that “intolerance is in the Republican Party’s DNA.”
Schock may likely respond to these newest allegations of his
homosexuality with another round of denials and homophobic comments, but
some news analysts and critics remain hopeful that once he realizes
that the world is okay with him being gay, it’ll be time for him to
accept and appreciate it on his own. Because who knows? Maybe it’ll be
liberating for him.
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