10/30/2006
RNC and Chair Ken Mehlman Accepted Contributions from Distributor of Gay Porn Flick Featuring 82nd Airborne Soldiers
RNC Chair Ken Mehlman was confronted at a fundraiser last week at a residence on Capitol Hill about the various answers he has given to media inquiries about his sexuality. Said Mehlman to blogger Mike Rogers before turning away: "I don't think I've given different answers."
Yet the RNC's confusion about gays extends further than questions about what goes on in Ken Mehlman's bedroom.
Via AmericaBlog comes this bit:
The RNC has been running an attack ad in Tennessee against Rep. Harold Ford (D) which slams Ford for taking money from porn movie producers. Unfortunately for Mehlman, notes Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo, the RNC "is a regular recipient of political contributions from Nicholas T. Boyias, the owner and CEO of Marina Pacific Distributors, one of the largest producers and distributors of gay porn in the United States."
As TPM notes, recent releases have included Fire in the Hole, Flesh and Boners, and a Velvet Mafia series (links NSFW).
Interesting. However, I'm not sure that anyone has made this connection yet:
Of interest to some might be the fact that Active Duty (link NSFW) is one of the production companies distributed by Marina Pacific. In January, seven soldiers from the 82nd Airborne were revealed to have been involved in porn movies produced by Active Duty. Four of the soldiers involved received non-judicial punishments while three others were court martialed, served prison time for their misconduct, and were discharged from the military.
So, the U.S. military discharged soldiers for participating in a gay porn flick while at the same time the RNC took political contributions from the film's distributor!
I'm sure the discharged paratroopers would be interested to know that portions of the profits from their films were headed to the coffers of the Republican Party.
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Posted 9:15 AM EST by Andy Towle in Ken Mehlman, Military, News, Porn, Republican Party | Permalink
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A big question: How does anyone KNOW that Mr. Boyias is gay? It may just be possible that he is nothing more than a man who knows what sells. If, in fact, he is gay, I'm not so sure that I share the indignation that others feel about a gay man giving money to the RNC. Although I, like many others, am personally confused how any gay person could be a Republican (or Catholic, or Mormon, etc), I firmly believe that it is the inherent right of anyone to belong to any political party. If Mr. Boyias is gay, it’s his right to contribute to any political party. US campaign finance laws also give anyone the right to know to which party he contributes. Hence, the listing of amounts, dates, and “employer.”
I strongly doubt that the RNC gives a rat’s ripe rump about who NT Boyias is or how he earns his money. His paltry contributions aren’t worth looking at. The total of his contribution is barely the postage for sending out those cool photos of GWB and Laura to the mailing list in Sacramento.
Posted by: JT | Oct 30, 2006 1:02:30 PM
Gotta love an RNC campaign ad that features a "nyah nyah nya-nyah nyah"-style Ring Around the Rosies riff. They hired actors to spread rumors... this is the most honest ad they've put out yet!
Posted by: micnyc | Oct 30, 2006 1:04:09 PM
Zeke: Ah! not "gay porn producer" but "gay porn producer." My mistake. Inflection is so hard to hear when reading. I hope you don't think that, by excluding it from the list of rights, I meant to imply that you or anyone else on this thread is not entitled to feeling indignation about Mr. Boyias' contributions. You certainly do have that right and that is why I am thankful that campaign finance laws require a good faith effort to identify the name and the employer. I don’t happen to agree with those of you who feel angry because of this. By golly, though, you have every right to that anger.
The goofy “Ford takes money from pornographer” ads in Tennessee are idiotic and racist. Representative Ford, however, strikes me as being just as bigoted and homophoic as the Republicans. He is pandering to the Christian conservatives by touting his opposition to gay marriage and his close personal connection to Jesus. Hmm, didn’t President Bush allude to that once?
Also, my friend, I didn't list a "string" of rights. I've told you a thousand times not to exaggerate.
My own particular revulsion with Mr. Boyias has nothing to do with his contribution to the RNC...it's more the lack of protection he accorded his models.
Posted by: JT | Oct 30, 2006 1:12:02 PM
Is anyone else having major problems posting today? I can't get comments to post.
I have no idea how my response to JT ended up getting posted above the comment that I was responding to.
Posted by: Zeke | Oct 30, 2006 1:22:32 PM
I'm going to repost my previous comment since it doesn't make any sense being placed before the comment by JT tha I was responding to:
JT, who claimed that the Boyias is gay? Don't confuse GAY PORN producer with a GAY porn producer.
The man has every right to give his money to whom ever he chooses BUT I have every right to take offense and refuse to give my money to him and inform other people that give money to him about what he does with that money so that they can make up their own minds as to whether they want to support his company or not.
You list off a string of rights that Boyias (Is this name for real? How do you pronounce it: Boy Ass?) is entitled to but fail to mention that we have rights to our opinions, the right to inform others of this situation and the right to withhold our support from him and his company.
Jimmyboyo, you are a bulldog my friend. I'm just glad that you're on OUR side!
Posted by: Zeke | Oct 30, 2006 1:25:56 PM
Boyias is not, in fact, gay. He identifies himself as a pro-family values, church-going, NRA-supporting married father of four. He also was the producer of the gay-interest indie (non-porn) flick Quinceanera, which was directed by Wash Westmoreland (Wash West of gay porn fame). I think Boyias's hypocrisy is a bit nuts...you can NOT promote "family values" in the Republican sense and support let alone make cash from pornography. It's like...it's okay to make money from other people having sex on camera, but as long as my family doesn't our hands are clean. That's just ridiculous. But the real issue is that the Republicans say they're anti-porn and anti-gay and even run ads chastising Ford re taking porn-producers' money—the real issue is the right wing's screw-reality hypocrisy.
Posted by: Matthew Rettenmund | Oct 30, 2006 1:33:24 PM
Thanks zeke
I to am having troubles posting. One of my responses to Andrew popped up above Andrew's comment, and 2 times this message never went through. I am hoping it is hundreds if not thousands of dem workers at the DNC, Ford Campaign, etc....flooding in to see this thread.
Crossing my fingers.
Any of you guys up in NY, please head over to the John Stewart Daily Show offices and tell them about this. I can not find any contact info for them. The main stream media is too fox lite to probably cover this info first so we have to hit all our friends in the alternative sphere.
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Oct 30, 2006 1:33:36 PM
The posting problems just continue. I posted a response to Zeke after Jimmyboyo and Matthe Rettenmund but it shows up before Zeke's question about problems posting!!!
Posted by: JT | Oct 30, 2006 1:38:21 PM
I love how snippy Kenny gets when questioned. He goes from 0 to Bitch in 3 seconds flat.
you go gurl!!!
Posted by: Marco | Oct 30, 2006 1:42:19 PM
"Also, my friend, I didn't list a "string" of rights. I've told you a thousand times not to exaggerate."
And I've told you a MILLION times that I NEVER exaggerate! ;)
Posted by: Zeke | Oct 30, 2006 1:55:48 PM
Hey Zeke, I don't think the hypocrites should be shielded but using their sexuality against them is wrong no matter what side of the argument you are on. So should not all hypocrites be exposed. Rallying for Mrs. Clinton or Harold Ford as champions of gay rights is hypocrisy for both are against gay marriage.
Bill Clinton had sex with an intern and lied under oath, not the same as not publickly announcing your sexuality.
Posted by: hephastion | Oct 30, 2006 2:51:19 PM
Hephastion: This is a quite different situation that Senator Clinton's or Rep. Ford's postions on gay marriage...something a bit more limited than gay rights, as a concept. Both support unions of some sort for us and are opposed to legislation limiting other civil rights. Neither has ever said "Gays are the reason that marriage is collapsing and we have to stop them from trying to get legal recognition because that'll make me divorce my wife." The Republican party line, however, has more faith in the power of homosexuals to force heterosexual couples to break their vows, run off to whore houses and sell the children to Arabs.
If one of our own betrays us, we must out that one as the Judas he or she is. You're right about President Clinton's situation being different from a gay homophobe's. The later is doing harm to others.
Posted by: JT | Oct 30, 2006 2:59:00 PM
Don't get me wrong
I am disgusted with Ford's anti NJ gay marriage comment. Right now I am willing to dialogue with a yellow dog dem in our BIG tent and have our debates on the congressional floor within the party......while helping Ford to trounce corker.
What is offensive is the neo-con faction of the republican party (not counting the few decent republicans, Hi RB) campaigning on a holier than thou anti-gay platform. Many of them are also anti porn.
Let us never!!!! forget the investigations....expensive ones at that the republican congress help over someone getting a picture taken standing beside Bill Clinton. What is good for the goose is good for the gander. Time for Ken Mehlman to pay the piper for all the hypocricy and gay baiting.
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Oct 30, 2006 3:13:40 PM
held not help
You all know the drill
Sorry for my typos
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Oct 30, 2006 3:15:12 PM
News report
Daily Kos (who I forgot to mention i sent a link abo)ut this to
Daily Kos the most visited blog on the net has this in its front page diary round up thread
hot damn!!!! Daily Kos is the!!! most visible and visited political and news blog on the net!!!! Bill maher interviewed Kos a few weeks ago.
^5
It is getting out there!!!!!!
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Oct 30, 2006 4:08:58 PM
Hot damn again
Arianna Huffington is now reporting on it
Huffingtonpost.com
we have like 7.5 days to milk this for political impact......
It should be good enough to shave at least 1-3% points off Repub get out the vote efforts amongst the base
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Oct 30, 2006 4:20:36 PM
PS
They are using the original source TALKING POINTS
Sorry Andy, it doesn't appear that there will be any free advertising for Towelroad. Oh well, at least Towelroad was instrumental in getting them to the info. Maybe if Keith olbermann talks about it he will show a little love towards Towelroad. My link was to Towelroad, who would have figured they would use the links at Towelroad on the story and not show Andy any love.
Posted by: jimmyboyo | Oct 30, 2006 4:34:04 PM
Let's set the record gay. Hillary voted consistently against the US Constitutional ban on gay marriage, while pretty Harold Ford [who was born to be fucked regularly—gorgeous, 36, and single: puhleeze!], after initially opposing the ban, consistently voted for it. He even bashed gay marriage to win the Dem nomination. He also loudly supports the amendment to his state's constitution on the current ballot and opposed the New Jersey decision which makes him against equal rights for gay couples whatever their relationships are called, and "loves" regular verbal gay basher Don Imus. In addition, his younger brother is running a wild card campaign as an Independent for Congress, has also exploited his district's homophobia, and suggested in a debate that his Democratic opponent might be gay himself. With guys like the Fords who needs Repugs? Hillary has a ways to go, but she has never used antigay bigotry as these guys are. Thank Judy I don't have to vote in Tennessee.
www.ontheissues.org is an excellent resource for finding out how members of Congress voted on all kinds of legislation, not just that directly related to the LGBT community.
Posted by: Leland | Oct 30, 2006 8:39:56 PM
Hellooo! Ford is running in Tennessee. He can't exactly shout from the rooftops "I'm not against gay marriage." Somehow, I don't think the already skeptical of Democrats Tennesseans would go for that...at all. Perhaps he is a classic bait-switcher.
Posted by: Je | Oct 30, 2006 10:47:53 PM
Leland: Thank you for clarifying Representative Ford's positions. I will confess that I was anti-Harold for quite a while, except in the delectable context you presented. Then I started reading spin saying that he was anti-gay marriage but supported unions. Now, I know he's slime. I instinctively dislike and distrust any politician who so clearly panders to the Christian fringe. So, I would volunteer to be the one to fuck him regularly. It would be a sacrifice on my part, but I would do it for the family.
Posted by: JT | Oct 31, 2006 9:06:06 AM
JT, your willingness to sacrifice touches me deeply. Not as deeply as you would, hopefully, touch Mr. Ford. I ask only one further sacrifice. Can I watch, while holding Little Harold & the Twins? You're swell!
Posted by: Leland | Oct 31, 2006 11:00:16 AM
Well, Leland, since you asked, I suppose it would be OK. Actually, I was reading the Newsweek with Rep. Ford on the cover and, looking at one of the photos in the article, I was really shocked at how adorable Rep. Ford is. He really knows how to use his sexual charisma. I don't trust his heterosexuality, though. I just get this feeling that he's played for both teams. I need to go on record, that I'M NOT SAYING HE'S GAY OR HAS HAD SEX WITH MEN (that's just to keep the rumor-mongers from linking to Towleroad). It's just a feeling.
Oh, and Leland? I'd touch him really deeply!
Posted by: JT | Oct 31, 2006 11:16:11 AM