Op Ed: Conservative Leaders Spend Xmas in Jail

"Crapo has a perfect track record of voting against LGBT rights..."
Michael Hamar
Michael Hamar
December 24, 2012

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Anti-Gay Mormon Senator Mike Crapo Arrested For DUI

There’s more news in the hypocrisy department: Idaho Senator Mike Crapo – a Mormon known for his anti-gay positions – was arrested for DUI early yesterday morning in Alexandria, Virginia.   As Joe My God notes, Crapo has a perfect track record of voting against LGBT rights: He twice voted for a federal constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, voted against both the Hate Crimes Act and the repeal of DADT, and has a 100% rating from the Christian Coalition and a 0% rating from the Human Rights Campaign.  CNN has more on Crapo’s arrest.  Here are highlights:

U.S. Sen. Michael Crapo, R-Idaho, was arrested early Sunday morning in Alexandria, Virginia, and charged with driving under the influence, according to the town’s police department.

Jody Donaldson, an Alexandria police spokesman, said Crapo was arrested by an officer at 12:45 a.m. ET after the officer noticed Crapo’s vehicle running a red light.
“Sen. Crapo was identified as the driver and arrested after failing several field sobriety tests,” Donaldson said in a statement. “He was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Alexandria Adult Detention Center where he was released on a $1,000 unsecured bond.”
Crapo released a statement through his office Sunday, saying: “I am deeply sorry for the actions that resulted in this circumstance. I made a mistake for which I apologize to my family, my Idaho constituents and any others who have put their trust in me.
A court date was set for January 4, according to Donaldson, who added thatCrapo’s blood alcohol level was .110 at the time of his arrest. The legal blood alcohol level for drivers in Virginia is .08. Donaldson also said Crapo was alone in the car at the time.
Crapo has represented Idaho in the Senate since 1999. Before that he served in the U.S. House of Representatives for six years. He was re-elected in 2010 with 71% of the vote. He’s a member of the Senate’s “Gang of 8.”
According to his official biography on congress.gov, Crapo is also a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which prohibits the use of alcohol among its members.
While the morally bankrupt Pope Benedict XVI continues to rail against gay rights, the filth within the ranks of the Catholic Church clergy continues unabated.  In Montreal, a Catholic deacon who is the former communications director for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops in Ottawa, has been arrested on child pornography charges.  The deacon,  William Kokesch (pictured at left),was also entrusted by the conference to coordinate the Canadian delegation to World Youth Day Catholic celebrations in Cologne, Germany.   The Montreal Gazette has details.  These are highlights:

MONTREAL — A prominent West Island deacon — who used to comment on church sexual abuse scandals — is expected to appear in court on Monday after being charged on the weekend with the production and distribution of child pornography.

William Kokesch, a 65-year-old deacon of St. Edmund of Canterbury Parish in Beaconsfield, was arrested Friday after police carried out two search warrants — one at his home in Pointe Claire and the other at the church.

Police seized more than 2,000 computer files as well as messages left on chat-room sites on the Internet.  “Police conducted the searches after receiving a complaint from a citizen,” said Constable Danny Richer.

Kokesch, a Vancouver native who is married and the father of five adult children, was formally charged via a video conference on Saturday. He did not enter a plea at his arraignment, and he is to appear in court again on Monday morning.

Kokesch, who was ordained as a “permanent deacon” in the diocese of Montreal in 1981, then served as the communications director for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops in Ottawa. In 2005, he was entrusted by the conference to coordinate the Canadian delegation to World Youth Day Catholic celebrations in Cologne, Germany.

 I continue to believe that much of the sex abuse problems within the ranks of the Catholic Clergy derives directly from the Church’s bizarre fixation on all things sexual and the maladjusted psycho sexual development that stems from such an unnatural depiction of normal sexuality as something dirty.

    Michael Hamar is an out gay attorney in a committed relationship; formerly married and father of three wonderful children; sometime activist and political/news junkie; survived coming out in mid-life and hope to share my experiences and reflections with others. Follow him at Michael In Norfolk.

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