Pro life GOP Rep, an MD, Pressured Mistress to have abortion

gimmesometruth27gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 23,303
edited October 2012 in A Moving Train
i am kinda shocked about this. then again i am not since it is people with this kind of character and very shakey morals that more and more often are getting elected......but i am wondering, is this kind of thing fair game in an election? i am torn because it shows this man's true character. thoughts?


Scott DesJarlais, Pro-Life Republican Congressman And Doctor, Pressured Mistress Patient To Get Abortion

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/1 ... 53136.html

WASHINGTON -- A pro-life, family-values congressman who worked as a doctor before winning election as a Tea Party-backed Republican had an affair with a patient and later pressured her to get an abortion, according to a phone call transcript obtained by The Huffington Post.

The congressman, Rep. Scott DesJarlais of Tennessee, was trying to save his marriage at the time, according to his remarks on the call, made in September of 2000. And, according to three independent sources familiar with the call and the recording, he made the tape himself.

DesJarlais, who was provided a copy of the transcript by HuffPost, did not deny its contents, but in a statement released through his campaign characterized it as just another sordid detail dredged up by the opposition. "Desperate personal attacks do not solve our nation's problems, yet it appears my opponents are choosing to once again engage in the same gutter politics that CBS news called the dirtiest in the nation just 2 years ago."

That race featured charges culled from DesJarlais' divorce from Susan DesJarlais, which was finalized in 2001. The filing included allegations that he held a gun in his own mouth for hours in one instance and that he "dry fired" a gun outside his wife's bedroom in another.

DesJarlais' campaign vigorously denied those charges in his 2010 race against Democratic Rep. Lincoln Davis, saying they were hauled out of history for political purposes and had not been deemed credible at the time.

But the new transcript and other revelations from court documents paint a more damning picture of a man who was a serial philanderer willing to push one of his lovers -- whom he met as a patient with a foot problem -- to terminate a pregnancy, even when he suspected he was the father.

"You told me you'd have an abortion, and now we're getting too far along without one," DesJarlais tells the woman at one point in the call while negotiating with her over whether he'll reveal her identity to his wife. They then discuss whether he will accompany her to a procedure to end the sort of life the congressman now describes as "sacred."

"You told me you would have time to go with me and everything," the woman complains.

"I said, if I could, I would, didn't I? And I will try," DesJarlais says. "If I can [find] time, you're saying you still will?"

"Yeah," the woman answers.

The two bicker over when they can meet to hash out a solution, and they make clear the nature of their relationship when DesJarlais says delaying a resolution isn't fair to his wife.

"This is not fair to me. I don't want you in my life," the woman says.

"Well, I didn't want to be in your life either, but you lied to me about something that caused us to be in this situation, and that's not my fault, that's yours," the doctor responds.

"Well, it's [your] fault for sleeping with your patient," the woman fires back.

After arguing for a bit about who came on to whom -- with the woman seeming incredulous at DesJarlais' interpretation that she made the first move -- he gets back to the abortion.

"If we need to go to Atlanta, or whatever, to get this solved and get it over with so we can get on with our lives, then let's do it," DesJarlais says.

“Well, we’ve got to do something soon. And you’ve even got to admit that because the clock is ticking right?” he says at another point.

He talks repeatedly of getting the problem "solved" or "fixed" and eventually explains he's desperate to patch things up with his wife, who had filed for divorce two years before, in late 1998, alleging improper marital conduct. She had relented, however, and according to court documents, they were trying to reconcile.

The marriage appeared to fall apart for good at about the time DesJarlais made his recorded phone call, and he eventually admitted in court papers to at least four affairs. Court records indicate that at one point in the marriage, they had a "written agreement to date other people."

When DesJarlais was recording the call, though, he appeared to be trying for a last-ditch reprieve.

"Well, I've been going crazy. I mean, if Susan could talk to you, she'd tell you that I've been psychotic for months over this," DesJarlais says. "I don't sleep at night. I mean, it's like I'm trying to build my family back together just waiting for it to fall apart, and it's been eating me apart."

The family did fall apart. The recording appears to have been made in mid-September of 2000, shortly before the birthday of a friend whom DesJarlais mentioned in the call.

Less than a month later, Susan DesJarlais renewed the divorce proceedings, sparking a protracted, bitter battle that lasted another nine months.

The judge on the case ultimately found fault on both sides, declaring that neither was living up to the model they'd like to set for their toddler-aged child. But he also stipulated about Scott DesJarlais: "I have to look back at the fact that relative fault -- that actually this divorce began, was filed based upon his first indiscretions.”

DesJarlais wound up beating incumbent Davis in the Tea Party wave.

Davis confirmed to The Huffington Post that his campaign was anonymously sent a transcript of the call in the waning days of the contest, but with just a few days left, did not use it, lacking the time to verify it. Davis said that he never actually saw the document until long after the contest was over.

Two other sources with independent knowledge of the transcript confirmed its contents, but requested anonymity due to their close relationship with the people involved.

HuffPost obtained the transcript and court documents through still other sources, and has identified the woman in the conversation.

Davis said he ultimately confirmed the authenticity of the transcript himself last spring, almost by accident, when he met with Susan DesJarlais.

Davis had been purged from his local voter rolls in a crackdown on voter fraud by the local GOP. He said that DesJarlais had heard about the purge, and wanted to talk to Davis, suspecting her ex-husband was behind it.

"He had nothing to do with that -- it was just some local pols," Davis told The Huffington Post. But when he met with Susan, it gave him the opportunity to discuss the transcript and the phone call, which the doctor apparently thought would help repair the marriage.

"She said he did it himself. She said the doctor did. She said, 'He recorded it and let me listen to it,'" Davis said. "She confirmed to me that Scott DesJarlais is the one who actually did the recording, and let her listen to it."

DesJarlais is currently leading Democratic state Sen. Eric Stewart in the polls.
"You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
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Comments

  • comebackgirlcomebackgirl Posts: 9,885
    He just opposes other people getting them, silly :roll:
    tumblr_mg4nc33pIX1s1mie8o1_400.gif

    "I need your strength for me to be strong...I need your love to feel loved"
  • peacefrompaulpeacefrompaul Posts: 25,293
    The hypocrisy of some people :fp:
  • gimmesometruth27gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 23,303
    i get what you all are saying and i agree.

    but do you think this is something that should be used against him in a campaign? especially since it happened so long ago?

    part of me says yeah hammer the guy with it, and the other part tells me to try to run a clean campaign and beat him without having to drag him through the mud.
    "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

    "Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
  • peacefrompaulpeacefrompaul Posts: 25,293
    i get what you all are saying and i agree.

    but do you think this is something that should be used against him in a campaign? especially since it happened so long ago?

    part of me says yeah hammer the guy with it, and the other part tells me to try to run a clean campaign and beat him without having to drag him through the mud.

    That would be the nice thing to do, but, this is politics...
  • gimmesometruth27gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 23,303
    i guess you need to point out inconsistencies in someone'e beliefs and their platform and their personal conduct.
    "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

    "Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
  • peacefrompaulpeacefrompaul Posts: 25,293
    i guess you need to point out inconsistencies in someone'e beliefs and their platform and their personal conduct.

    If that's the platform the opposition wishes to take. There isn't a correct answer in my opinion... That's the game. If he is smart he will come out and say that what he did was wrong, made a bad choice, blah blah blah. His initial response was not a good one, also, in my opinion.

    Is it fair game? This kind of thing has been fair game for a while.
  • Someone who would pressure a woman to get an abortion... that's not just some drunken night of debauchery or bad decision made in one's youth.

    That kinda speaks to the kind of person you're voting for.
  • comebackgirlcomebackgirl Posts: 9,885
    i get what you all are saying and i agree.

    but do you think this is something that should be used against him in a campaign? especially since it happened so long ago?

    part of me says yeah hammer the guy with it, and the other part tells me to try to run a clean campaign and beat him without having to drag him through the mud.
    I personally think a good portion of what is used in campaigns in bullshit. Most of the time I am left waiting to hear what a particular candidate's accomplishments, skills and goals (with a specific plan!) are, but instead I usually hear how horrible the other candidate is. As I've said before, I'm pretty sure if I tried that approach in a job interview, I would be left without a job, but as peacefrompaul said, this is politics.
    tumblr_mg4nc33pIX1s1mie8o1_400.gif

    "I need your strength for me to be strong...I need your love to feel loved"
  • pandorapandora Posts: 21,855
    hmmm...
    12 years ago...
    wonder if he would do things differently now?

    you guys :lol:
  • mikepegg44mikepegg44 Posts: 3,353
    pandora wrote:
    hmmm...
    12 years ago...
    wonder if he would do things differently now?

    you guys :lol:


    Maybe because of the feelings he experienced he would do it differently, but my guess is he just isn't a highly moral person. Should fit in nicely in politics.

    some mistakes you make will always be with you. The voters can decide his future, and they should have all the facts available. His lying about the situation is just as damning in my mind. had the chance to come clean and explain it but denied denied denied....
    that’s right! Can’t we all just get together and focus on our real enemies: monogamous gays and stem cells… - Ned Flanders
    It is terrifying when you are too stupid to know who is dumb
    - Joe Rogan
  • To be fair... I did a lot of things years ago that I'm not too proud of now.

    Although I'm not sure any of them rise to the level of pressuring a mistress to get an abortion to hide our affair.
  • KatKat Posts: 4,893
    Even leaving politics out of it, he may lose his medical license.

    "According to the guidelines of the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners, the state would consider any violation of the American Medical Association's ethics rules to be also a violation of state ethics rules."

    The AMA and state of TN don't look kindly on doctors having sex with patients. It's an ethics violation.
    Falling down,...not staying down
  • pandorapandora Posts: 21,855
    I often wonder if many Republicans are not against abortion but they
    consider themselves Republicans on government issues not social.
    But in running for office must take the package so to speak
    because of who they represent.

    A few months ago people were so worried Romney would overturn abortion laws.
    Of course that is ridiculous that will never happen.
    If that was a real threat many who vote Republican for the sole sake
    of the role of government would not be able to do so.
  • gimmesometruth27gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 23,303
    pandora wrote:
    I often wonder if many Republicans are not against abortion but they
    consider themselves Republicans on government issues not social.
    But in running for office must take the package so to speak
    because of who they represent.

    A few months ago people were so worried Romney would overturn abortion laws.
    Of course that is ridiculous that will never happen.
    If that was a real threat many who vote Republican for the sole sake
    of the role of government would not be able to do so.
    you can not be a republican and not be in lock step with their social positions. a pro-choice republican would never be elected. a republican who favors gay marriage would most likely not be elected because he would not be aided by the national party. you have to be in lockstep if you want to win.
    "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

    "Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
  • gimmesometruth27gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 23,303
    Kat wrote:
    Even leaving politics out of it, he may lose his medical license.

    "According to the guidelines of the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners, the state would consider any violation of the American Medical Association's ethics rules to be also a violation of state ethics rules."

    The AMA and state of TN don't look kindly on doctors having sex with patients. It's an ethics violation.
    people have lost their medical license for much less. having been in the medical field since 1995, i can say that they beat you over the head in school to not get involved with your patients. and in most offices it is clearly stated in some sort of code of conduct that that is a huge no-no. i have been asked on dates by a few women patients and i had to respectfully decline. and me declining totally complicated the provider/patient relationship. there was underlying weirdness on my part, and on theirs i am assuming as well.
    "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

    "Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
  • pandorapandora Posts: 21,855
    pandora wrote:
    I often wonder if many Republicans are not against abortion but they
    consider themselves Republicans on government issues not social.
    But in running for office must take the package so to speak
    because of who they represent.

    A few months ago people were so worried Romney would overturn abortion laws.
    Of course that is ridiculous that will never happen.
    If that was a real threat many who vote Republican for the sole sake
    of the role of government would not be able to do so.
    you can not be a republican and not be in lock step with their social positions. a pro-choice republican would never be elected. a republican who favors gay marriage would most likely not be elected because he would not be aided by the national party. you have to be in lockstep if you want to win.
    My point exactly,
    it doesn't mean they are, in their hearts, pro abortion and anti gay marriage,
    they are Republican based solely on party theory and the role the government should take
    in our country. Long before the social issues, long before gays and abortion were
    even mentioned in the political arena. There are many Republicans who are not
    against abortion or gay marriage and this should be recognized.
  • This has nothing to do with being "pro-life" or "pro-choice."

    This has to do with trying to hide an affair by pressuring the woman with whom you're HAVING said affair to get an abortion so there is no baby to prove you were shagging someone other than your wife.

    honestly... can we at least focus on what the issue is and not try to derail every thread with "please be kind to the poor misunderstood Republicans who might not want to make laws to rule your vagina and marriage?"
  • Godfather.Godfather. Posts: 12,504
    why is that news ?...it's nobody elses business is it ?

    Godfather.
  • ComeToTXComeToTX Austin Posts: 7,864
    Godfather. wrote:
    why is that news ?...it's nobody elses business is it ?

    Godfather.

    Because he is an unethical piece of human shit that makes laws that the rest of us are forced to follow.
    This show, another show, a show here and a show there.
  • Godfather. wrote:
    why is that news ?...it's nobody elses business is it ?

    Godfather.

    Uh huh.

    And we've never used rather shocking stories about people's personal lives 15 years ago as weapons against them in political campaigns before.

    Like that thread yesterday about a ring that the president may or may not have been wearing in the 20th century that might have said that he's a secret Muslim.
  • Godfather.Godfather. Posts: 12,504
    :think: I see your point's Tex and POD,as I read the story the guy seemsed like a sneaky piece of shit, he will get what he has coming someday.

    Godfather.
  • cincybearcatcincybearcat Posts: 16,492
    To be fair... I did a lot of things years ago that I'm not too proud of now.

    Although I'm not sure any of them rise to the level of pressuring a mistress to get an abortion to hide our affair.

    Yeah, pretty sure you have nothing to worry about with your mistresses.
    hippiemom = goodness
  • Yeah, pretty sure you have nothing to worry about with your mistresses.

    Be that as it may.
  • ZosoZoso Posts: 6,425
    this is just an example of the hypocritical GOP..
    I'm just flying around the other side of the world to say I love you

    Sha la la la i'm in love with a jersey girl

    I love you forever and forever :)

    Adel 03 Melb 1 03 LA 2 06 Santa Barbara 06 Gorge 1 06 Gorge 2 06 Adel 1 06 Adel 2 06 Camden 1 08 Camden 2 08 Washington DC 08 Hartford 08
  • pandorapandora Posts: 21,855
    This has nothing to do with being "pro-life" or "pro-choice."

    This has to do with trying to hide an affair by pressuring the woman with whom you're HAVING said affair to get an abortion so there is no baby to prove you were shagging someone other than your wife.

    honestly... can we at least focus on what the issue is and not try to derail every thread with "please be kind to the poor misunderstood Republicans who might not want to make laws to rule your vagina and marriage?"
    Its stupid to bring up stuff somebody did over a decade ago, personal stuff too,
    and even more stupid to think he is 100% anti abortion.

    There is a lot more to being a Republican than the issue of abortion or
    what you face in your life ...gay rights.

    That is how my point is about this issue, perhaps the concept is over your head...
    maybe think outside the box, not everything or everyone is so color coordinated
    (red and blue) on all the issues.
    As much as you would like to put everyone in their own little box
    maybe to make that much easier for you to hate and generalize
    without ever giving the opposite side the benefit of the doubt.

    Not all Republicans are anti abortion or against gay marriage....
    shocker huh?

    And I guess we don't have to worry after all, if Romney gets in, he wasn't going to overturn
    Roe vs Wade :fp: just spreading the fear like a good blue?
    There was a lot of fear mongering going on it wasn't only you.
  • Um... Pandora... you do realize that I was talking about YOU when I said "can we please focus on this issue and not derail it with off-topic blithering about party alignment and unrelated things like "Not all Republicans are members of the KKK...."

    You know that right?

    Shall I draw you a pie chart?

    I realize that you're probably just doing what you always do... intentionally trying to derail threads so you can complain that it got derailed. But can't you find a better hobby? Take up macrame or something?
  • gimmesometruth27gimmesometruth27 St. Fuckin Louis Posts: 23,303
    pandora wrote:
    Not all Republicans are anti abortion or against gay marriage....
    shocker huh?
    wrong.

    let's consult the official gop platform.

    http://www.gop.com/2012-republican-plat ... ing/#Item3

    Preserving and Protecting Traditional Marriage (Top)

    The institution of marriage is the foundation of civil society. Its success as an institution will determine our success as a nation. It has been proven by both experience and endless social science studies that traditional marriage is best for children. Children raised in intact married families are more likely to attend college, are physically and emotionally healthier, are less likely to use drugs or alcohol, engage in crime, or get pregnant outside of marriage. The success of marriage directly impacts the economic well-being of individuals. Furthermore, the future of marriage affects freedom. The lack of family formation not only leads to more government costs, but also to more government control over the lives of its citizens in all aspects. We recognize and honor the courageous efforts of those who bear the many burdens of parenting alone, even as we believe that marriage, the union of one man and one woman must be upheld as the national standard, a goal to stand for, encourage, and promote through laws governing marriage. We embrace the principle that all Americans should be treated with respect and dignity.


    THE SANCTITY AND DIGNITY OF HUMAN LIFE

    Faithful to the "self-evident" truths enshrined in the Declaration of Independence, we assert the sanctity of human life and affirm that the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed. We support a human life amendment to the Constitution and endorse legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendment's protections apply to unborn children. We oppose using public revenues to promote or perform abortion or fund organizations which perform or advocate it and will not fund or subsidize health care which includes abortion coverage. We support the appointment of judges who respect traditional family values and the sanctity of innocent human life. We oppose the non-consensual withholding or withdrawal of care or treatment, including food and water, from people with disabilities, including newborns, as well as the elderly and infirm, just as we oppose active and passive euthanasia and assisted suicide.

    Republican leadership has led the effort to prohibit the barbaric practice of partial birth abortion, permitted States to extend health care coverage to children before birth. We urge Congress to strengthen the Born Alive Infant Protection Act by exacting appropriate civil and criminal penalties to health care providers who fail to provide treatment and care to an infant who survives and abortion, including early induction delivery where the death of the infant is intended. We call for legislation to ban sex-selective abortions - gender discrimination in its most lethal form - and to protect from abortion unborn children who are capable of feeling pain; and we applaud U.S. House Republicans for leading the effort to protect the lives of pain-capable unborn children in the District of Columbia. We call for a revision of federal law 42 U.S.C. 289.92 to bar the use of body parts from aborted fetuses for research. We support and applaud adult stem cell research to develop lifesaving therapies, and we oppose the killing of embryos for their stem cells. We oppose federal funding of embryonic stem cell research.

    We also salute the many states that have passed laws for informed consent, mandatory waiting periods prior to an abortion, and health protective clinic regulation. We seek to protect young girls from exploitation through a parental consent requirement; and we affirm our moral obligation to assist, rather than penalize, women challenged by an unplanned pregnancy. We salute those who provide them with counseling and adoption alternatives and empower them to choose live, and we take comfort in the tremendous increase in adoptions that has followed Republican legislative initiatives.
    "You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry."  - Lincoln

    "Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
  • MotoDCMotoDC Posts: 947
    Fuck is macrame? (embarrassed to say I actually do know how to pronounce it: mack-ruh-may. :lol: )

    Anyhow, this guy is a hypocrite and a cheating asshat who deserves to lose his license, no doubt. But it hardly seems like he was "pressuring her" in the provided article. Seems like she had agreed to do it previously and still wanted to, but was at most vacillating, more likely stalling. Hard to tell why from the article, other than it seemed like she wanted him to go with her to the clinic (in ATL apparently). Further, he kinda implied that she lied about being on birth control (or perhaps just about getting the abortion, it's not clear):
    "Well, I didn't want to be in your life either, but you lied to me about something that caused us to be in this situation, and that's not my fault, that's yours," the doctor responds.
    "Well, it's [your] fault for sleeping with your patient," the woman fires back.

    Anyhow, girl is certainly entitled to change her mind, but given that, this seems a far cry from a dude pressuring a girl to do something she doesn't want to do. Nowhere in the article does she say or even imply that she doesn't want to.

    To the OP's point...sure it's admissible. That said, I don't know that it would do the opposing candidate any good to harp on it. Just makes them look dirty too, imo. The media will do enough with it; if I were the other candidate, I'd just let them take care of it for me.
  • pandorapandora Posts: 21,855
    Um... Pandora... you do realize that I was talking about YOU when I said "can we please focus on this issue and not derail it with off-topic blithering about party alignment and unrelated things like "Not all Republicans are members of the KKK...."

    You know that right?

    Shall I draw you a pie chart?

    I realize that you're probably just doing what you always do... intentionally trying to derail threads so you can complain that it got derailed. But can't you find a better hobby? Take up macrame or something?
    I guess you don't get its on topic... it's those damn blue glasses again ;)
    thats ok ... :lol: it's expected of you by now.
    It's obvious this man is not against abortion so why badger him as though he is?
  • MotoDCMotoDC Posts: 947
    pandora wrote:
    Not all Republicans are anti abortion or against gay marriage....
    shocker huh?
    wrong.

    let's consult the official gop platform.

    [and etc]
    Yeah it would probably be more accurate to say "not all conservatives are anti-abortion or against gay marriage".
This discussion has been closed.