Well, well, well. Another “family values” politician has been caught (allegedly) behaving very, very badly.
This time it’s Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, who was just arrested and indicted amid allegations of sexual misconduct and blackmail.
43-year-old Greitens, who believes “people of faith are under attack in America” and doesn’t believe trans people should be allowed bathroom access, was charged yesterday with a first-degree felony invasion of privacy after a woman claiming to be his former mistress accused him of trying to blackmail her to keep quiet about their affair.
Related: Tape reveals ‘family values’ Republican Joe Barton discussing “heavily sexual” affair after pic leak
To make a long story short: Last month, Greitens admitted to cheating on his wife after a local news station aired a segment on the affair, including audio of the mistress confessing to her then-husband about her relationship with Greitens.
In the recording, the woman claims Greitens took a video of her after tied to a piece of exercise equipment. He blindfolded her and undressed her before threatening, “You’re never going to mention my name, otherwise this picture will be everywhere.”
After the shocking news broke, Greitens and his wife, Sheena, released a joint statement that said:
A few years ago, before Eric was elected governor, there was a time when he was unfaithful in our marriage. This was a deeply personal mistake. Eric took responsibility, and we dealt with this together, honestly and privately. While we never would have wished for this pain in our marriage or the pain that this has caused others, with God’s mercy, Sheena has forgiven and we have emerged stronger. We understand that there will be some people who cannot forgive but for those who can find it in your heart, Eric asks for your forgiveness and we are grateful for your love, your compassion, and your prayers.
Sheena Greitens released an additional statement on her own, claiming she and her husband have “a loving marriage and an awesome family,” and saying that “anything beyond that is between us and God.”
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Lawyers have allegedly turned over hours of compromising audio on Greitens to authorities, prompting the FBI to open an inquiry into the Missouri governor.
Greitens was taken into custody yesterday afternoon. He was released on bond shortly thereafter and will appear in St. Louis City Circuit Court on March 16.
Related: Texts reveal antigay ‘family values’ politician Tim Murphy urged mistress to abort lovechild
JaredMacBride
Jesus – the last refuge of scoundrels.
Kangol
Well, it turns out Eric Greitens is Jewish. He married his wife in a Protestant ceremony, but he was raised and let it be known during the election that he considers himself Jewish, so no Jesus in this mix.
Bob LaBlah
@Kangol………..Kangol, things are done differently here in the midwest than in NYC. Those who own all of NYC aren’t exactly welcome down here and those of them that are selected to do things are expected to do as told by their lords and masters just as the owners of Wall Street treat those who aren’t exactly their kind. Here “they” too are expected to fall in line and understand who it is that runs the midwest and south and Greitens failed to understand that. Now, if you have time to do a bit more research the true colors of Missouri’s GOP came shining thru three years ago when a Hebrew looking politician committed suicide after it became obvious the GOP head honcho over there in Missouri told him how it was going to go and he decided he wasn’t going to follow orders. He wasn’t Jewish (but he sure as hell did look and act like he was) but the rumors that he was is what did him in and the rumors were started by his own party head honcho. Its clear if they will do that to each other then imagine what they will do to people who aren’t part of their klan.
Kangol
@Bob, man, come on. “Hebrew looking?” That sounds anti-Semitic. I remember reading about Tom Schweich, the Episcopalian state auditor there, who committed suicide after the whispering campaign about his Jewish ancestry against him. What I most remember is how former GOP Senator Rev. John Danforth denounced Republicans for their behavior. Didn’t a Republican in Schweich’s office also later committed suicide? What the hell is going on there? I’ll say it again, but Greitens should have just paid the woman off. IOKIYAR, except threatening blindfolded, bound women that you’re going to destroy them, and having them later confess what you did on tape. Family values Republicans!
evanII
I don’t know what uber-rural part of the Midwest Bob LaBlah is from, but thankfully Midwesterners are NOT all alike. Certainly not all are off-the-grid misplaced hillbillies spewing coded anti-semitic garbage.
Bob LaBlah
From the article: “doesn’t believe trans people should be allowed bathroom access”.
That not exactly. Greitens said the same thing that I believe: you use the bathroom of the sex you were born with as long as you have something dangling down there. Its just that simple. No, I do not wish to enter a bathroom stall were a FTM was using it and see where “it” still has “its” time of the month moments, shall we say? This “gaining acceptance” business needs some brakes and fast.
As for ol’ Eric himself he got just what he asked for. He has NO political experience and with a GOP controlled state house he kept on and on waving his middle finger at the very people who were in power and could have made this whole mess go away. He, just like Trump, found out the hard way just what politics is about and how rough it really is when its your own party that is in control and tell YOU, the head man, what to and not to do. He came into office with political ads firing off machine guns, explosions, buns, abs and biceps of steel but ended up having his own ass blown out of office. There is more to this guy regarding missing money that I will let ol’ MHoffman explain where the hell it went but rest assured this guy is toast and expected to resign by tonight.
Bob LaBlah
Queerty, your word recognition program needs adjustment. Its leaving off words that I KNOW I put in my comment. I said “Thats not exactly what he said” but some how only half the sentence was printed once I hit post comment. This is not the first time and I don’t think I’m the only one its happening to.
Kangol
Greitens is an opportunist, like the current pResident, Don the Con Man, except that Greitens is much smarter and braver. He did serve in the military quite honorably. But he was a moderate Democrat who saw an opening and turned himself into a right-wing Republican, angered people in both parties, and now has almost allies in politics left. If he’d paid the mistress hush money he probably could have gotten away with this mess (cf. Trump), but threatening her to the extent that she told her then-husband, who got the confession on tape, is dooming his future dreams of becoming US President. Oh well.
Kangol
Almost NO allies left in politics.
He BGB
Actually it’s not just between”us and God” when there are other people involved, Miss Thang. And I’d say there are definitely other people involved other than you and God. Ruined families. You may be in denial, your husband is twisting your arm or you’re just too greedy, proud and ambitious to care. Cut the crap and stop pretending to be religious goody two shoes.
Walker
Is there no moderation here? A person calls transpeople “it” on an LGBTQ website and there’s not way to flag it?
miserylovedme24
Whatever happened to freedom of speech? Censorship is not the way to go, even if someone is a bigot.
ShowMeGuy
….but he looked really sexy shooting that big machine gun in his campaign commercials.
mmHHHmmmmmmm
Bob LaBlah
“mmHHHmmmmmmm”
I caught it. The only thing missing were the nbrs at the end. And yes, he looked interesting but there was just that little “something” about him that YOU know ol’ Bob LaBlah saw IMMEDIATELY. lol
Dwight
“anything beyond that is between us and God.” and the person he tied up and blackmailed.
ivanw222
And the husband of the woman he tied up and threatened, and the police, and the courts, and his lawyers, and his wife’s divorce lawyers, and do they have kids? And the prison guards and staff…am I forgetting anyone?
Stilinski26
Wasn’t he a regiestered Democrat until 2015? shame hes hot but he got arrested even though there were no evidence of his abusive behaviour hmmm
Kangol
He wasn’t arrested for abuse, but because he allegedly threatened his mistress with blackmail, which is a serious crime (especially if you’re the governor of a state), and her ex-husband recorded her confessing Greitens’ threat against her.
Bob LaBlah
Kangol, those charges would have NEVER seen the light of day had be not started telling fellow GOP members where to go and what to kiss THE MINUTE HE WALKED THRU THE DOOR. Greitens NEVER released his tax returns and for a governor he had to practically be dragged kicking and screaming to the podium for a news conference. This guy was a disaster waiting to happen that only a blind man couldn’t see. It got so pathetic there was a woman in the race for the GOP nomination who HAD no other choice but to release a sad, pathetic ad showing her shooting a shotgun that looked bigger than she is. She had to show she too was a gun owner and wasn’t out to trample on gun owners rights and I appreciated that. And she was white.
Greitens looked more like an Israeli storm trooper that the ignorant of Missouri (who make up the majority in just about every county over there) sat back and cheered on. At the debates he was cheered on despite him looking more like a transplanted resident of the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn minus his hat and curls than one of them in the audience. He won’t go to jail and were he smart he would grow back his curls and break out the black hat and penguin suit (black pants and white shirt no matter WHAT time of year it is) and go on back home to NYC. Good riddance.
wwerts1
I think all the mistress want is money and publicity I do believe Eric is a fine looking man who don’t deserve any of this trash.
Ronbo
Greitens is also under investigation for using software that violates the state’s “sunshine” laws. He has a history.
Greitens is the same kind of self-serving political grifter as Hillary and tRump. He also had a scam organization, the Mission Continues. Greitens, small potatoes grifter, is a symptom of a broken political system.
Clinton triggered the biggest collective gag in history (Hillary being forced down our throats giving us tRump). Will the DNC/RNC even allow and fund New Deal politicians?
HMFan
“Eric asks for your forgiveness…” He can ask all he wants; that doesn’t mean he’ll get it. And apparently for Sheena, being married to someone in politics is more important than her own self-respect. Nice couple. This is the standard for our leaders nowadays? A philanderer and a doormat with breasts? God help our country…