Mike Rogers, the blogger behind BlogActive, claimed yesterday on Sirius Satellite Radio's Ed Schultz Show that Idaho Senator Larry Craig has had homosexual encounters and accused the Senator of “gross hypocrisy” for his anti-gay voting record and relationships with anti-gay Christian groups.
Exposing hypocritical Republicans is nothing new to Rogers. In March 2005, GQ ran a story detailing the public figures whose sexuality has been thrown into question by the activist blogger. Those figures include Republican congressman Ed Schrock, former-RNC field director Dan Gurley, Representative David Dreier and Ken Mehlman, chair of the RNC.
“It's about someone who's been aggressive against the gay community,” said Rogers of Craig.
Rogers stood firmly behind his statements and said he was prepared for legal recourse from the Senator's office. “Without a doubt in my mind, I am absolutely solid about the sources…The greatest defense against libel and slander is the truth.”
Said Rogers on his blog: “I have done extensive research into this case, including trips to the Pacific Northwest to meet with men who have say they have physical relations with the Senator. I have also met with a man here in Washington, D.C., who says the same — and that these incidents occurred in the bathrooms of Union Station. None of these men know each other, or knew that I was talking to others. They all reported similar personal characteristics about the Senator, which lead me to believe, beyond any doubt, that their stories are valid.”
According to the Spokesman-Review, “Craig, who is married, denied the allegations through his staff, saying they ‘have no basis in fact.' Sid Smith, spokesman for the Idaho Republican, said it would be hard to independently check Rogers' sources, adding, ‘saying you have anonymous sources doesn't seem very convincing to me.'”
Smith said that a lawsuit would be giving the issue “more attention than it deserves” and said that Craig categorically denies Rogers' charges: “The senator says the story is completely ridiculous. Mr. Rogers has no facts to back up his story. [The events] absolutely did not (occur); there is no basis in fact.”
Rogers defended his story: “I have never been wrong, and in this, you can't be 99 percent right. It's 100 percent or nothing…You can be gay and against same-sex marriage, but you should be honest and open. Why should the gay community protect an enemy of the community?
Listen to the audio from the Ed Schultz show here.
