Radar Online
Tennessee's Republican Lt. Gov. Randy McNally raised eyebrows by leaving admiring comments on an openly gay man's Instagram photos, RadarOnline.com has learned, and his office said there will be plenty more where that came from.
McNally's verified IG account with a blue check mark can be seen leaving a handful of comments on the page of 20-year-old Franklyn McClur, who goes by “Finn,” some of which included fire and heart emoji as well as supportive affirmations.
Finn, who goes by Franklyn Superstar on the social media platform, was cheered on by McNally. In response to one photo, he wrote, “I hope you are doing well. You seem super happy. You are like sunshine.”
Another showed Finn dancing around in his underwear, to which McNally replied, “Franklyn, you can turn a rainy day into rainbows and sunshine.”
It came as a surprise to many considering the state's Republican majority is pushing through a string of legislation that will impact the LGBTQ+ community.
McClur told The Tennessee Holler that he and McNally first connected on Facebook through mutual friends but have never met face-to-face. Finn said that McNally has been nothing but kind and uplifting, adding when asked, “It's wrong to ban drag, wrong to ban anything that isn't hurting anyone. I don't support hate of any kind.”
RadarOnline.com should note that McNally has been less publicly supportive of the anti-LGBTQ+ measures than other Republican colleagues, including Governor Bill Lee.
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“I try to encourage people on my posts. I try to support people,” McNally said. “I have friends that are gay, I have friends with relatives who are gay. I don't feel any animosity towards gay people. I think that's fairly clear.”
McNally's spokesperson has since issued a statement about the IG comments, explaining that he “enjoys interacting with constituents and Tennesseans of all religions, backgrounds and orientations on social media. He has no intention of stopping.”
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“Trying to imply something sinister or inappropriate about a great-grandfather's use of social media says more about the mind of the left-wing operative making the implication than it does about Randy McNally,” added Adam Kleinheider, per The Tennessean.
Kleinheider noted that McNally “takes great pains to view every post he can and frequently posts encouraging things to many of his followers. Does he always use the proper emoji at the proper time? Maybe not.”
