Another shoe has dropped in the Alex Morse college sex scandal.
Morse is the openly gay, four-term Democratic mayor of Holyoke, Massachusetts who is currently running for Congress. Last week, he was accused of having sex with students at UMass Amherst, where he is a political science lecturer, as well from other schools in the Five College Consortium, while he was on the campaign trail.
Morse put out a statement this week saying he did hook up with students but he never “took advantage” of anyone and apologized if he made anyone feel uncomfortable. He also called the whole story a politically motivated smear campaign rooted in homophobia and said he has no intention of dropping out of the race.
Now, The Intercept claims it has obtained chats circulated among a group of College Democrats, including one who was angling for a job with Morse’s opponent, Rep. Richard Neal, that suggests a year-long plot to bring down the 31-year-old mayor’s congressional campaign.
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Timothy Ennis is the chief strategist for the UMass Amherst College Democrats. In the chats, he and others allegedly discuss plotting an attack on Morse to bolster Ennis’s chances of landing an internship with Neal.
The Intercept reports the students hatched a plot to find Morse’s dating profiles and coax him into saying something incriminating that they could then use to damage his campaign.
Ultimately, the students were unable to dig up any dirt on Morse aside from a random Instagram conversation he had with Andrew Abramson, who now serves as president of the UMass Amherst College Democrats, as well as evidence that Morse once had a Tinder profile.
Still, the group reached out to Politico to try and get the allegations published. After being approached by the reporter, Morse contacted Abramson and apologized if he had made him feel uncomfortable with their chat. Abramson responded by blocking him on the app.
The story has ignited strong opinions from all directions. While many, including the LGBTQ Victory Fund, are siding with Morse, many others are still bothered by the fact that, in a post #MeToo world, he admitted to sleeping with students while he was a lecturer at UMass Amherst, though technically this is not against UMass policy.
The university is currently conducting its own review to see whether there were violations of the federal Title IX sex discrimination law that prohibits harassment behaviors.
Queerty reached out to Morse earlier this week for comment, but we never heard back. We will update this post if we do.
Related: People are deeply divided over whether it was OK for this gay candidate to sleep with students
dhmonarch89
so- this is what kids in college are doing these days- trolling the internet looking for ways to destroy people….jeez- after my class schedule/homework and part time job, I barely had time to sleep. School must be really easy today!
jablester
I agree with you. It is true that our biggest enemies are usually LGBT people of some kind. These particular opportunists have discovered that even in 2020 nothing is more powerful than prejudice against gays. The desire to take advantage is apparently overwhelming. Our worst tormentors have been Joe McCarthy, Roy Cohn, J Edgar Hoover, and I guess the College Democrats of Central Mass, none of which has the character of Alex Morse and none of which would want such an accusation made against themselves, because there is absolutely no way to defend oneself.
ElPillo
Yes, some of our worst enemies are Heather LGBTQ people and groups. And I find Queerty often falls into that category. They have pet people whom they praise for no reason and others they bite relentlessly like rabies dogs again and again and again.
Creamsicle
It’s not that school is necessarily easy for them. This is just an effective networking strategy.
They see that cronyism works really effectively, and it is NOT unique to the Trump administration. They can get ahead by being cutthroat political prostitutes
and weaponizing homophobia against a primary challenger instead of applying for a political internship and getting in on the merits of their own work and grades.
RW88
Three days and three stories on the same topic. I’ll give you credit for adding “technically this is not against UMass policy.” Adding the word “technically” is putting your thumb on the scale, a journalistic no-no. It simply isn’t against policy. Period. I’m not one to say that there aren’t optic issues here, they are apparent. But maybe a better use of your pen would be to point out the absurdity inherent here. While he could potentially surmise from proximity and age that the adults he was hooking up with were students, making it some scandal is a bridge too far. Their professional/academic careers are never alleged to be an integral part of their interactions. So if I unwittingly hook up with my company’s CEO on Grindr am now his victim even though neither of us were aware of the connection? I think not. If we enter a board room meeting and we come face to face and I feel uncomfortable is that suddenly his fault. No.
You basically arrived on day three to announce a coordinated attack on the guy for behavior that isn’t a crime in any way shape or form, which you acknowledge “technically.” Seriously dude, just say you where wrong and move on, or stop “reporting” on it. At this point you look foolish. We get it, you think he’s done something wrong and may even have those that agree with you. Good for you bud.
But as your own corroborating evidence shows, he was targeted by an opponents camp because of his sexuality. Why on Earth are you choosing to align yourself with this? At this point you sound like one of those people that will repeat a story thinking you didn’t understand them the first time. Bro, we heard you. You’re wrong.
I look forward to your hard hitting update tomorrow where you inform us that he once kicked his dog.
Onecaddy13
@RW88, BRAVO!!!!
arie570
I agree!
A.S.Merrimac
Said it better than I ever could! Thanks!
marksy
Standing Ovation! Well said, thank you!
HDTex
Gwaham’s widdle fee-fees got hwut by my comment and he blocked it, apparently.
Waiting for him to wail and bwock yours while he cries. Yours is worse.
azmadik
Word.
wikidBSTN
Well, if Rep Neal has any regard for ethics (and class) he won’t be extending an internship to Timothy Ennis. Let’s watch and see if this kind of scumbag-ery gets rewarded by Rep Neal.
vancouverdoug
How about publishing a full apology to Alex for all these hit pieces. I expect this homophobic crap from Fox News but not a website that is “technically” about a fun, entertaining, and enjoyable space that celebrates LGBTQ people and culture.
Creamsicle
Yup. Queerty played right into the hands of the establishment homophobes who would rather keep double standards for gay men alive than risk an embarassing primary challenge.
Well, the joke’s on establishment Democrats. You simply brought this man’s name to national awareness and provided an opportunity to really talk about the poor treatment of adjunct professors, the gig-economy workers of academia.
How much influence did Morse actually have on campus? How much stability did he even have? Adjuncts get paid peanuts to teach at universities with skyrocketing tuition while the professors that originally attracted students research. I don’t even take issue with tenured professors so much as the fact that university administrators who never interact with students are often paid orders of magnitude more than the people who are actually teaching students or doing original research.
Jared MacBride
Did he hook up with students at a school where he was teaching or not?
RFD
He was not teaching. These were not his students. And now it seems that this was part of a plot. The people he slept with did so willingly. I agree he did not use good judgement. But it is wrong to act like those younger guys were victims. They were not.
Kangol2
@RFD, he was teaching at UMass, but these apparently were not his students. Lecturer = contract teacher/grad student teacher, etc. He thankfully was not sleeping with the students in his classes. So, no university or ethical violations.
Kangol2
Tl;dr: He didn’t sleep with any students he was teaching or supervising, so no story, but ambitious, ruthless college kids still tried to smear him so that one could get a gig with a longtime hack and Trump-bootlicking Democrat who should have resigned years ago. Got it. Enough, Queerty.
Bob Amsel
I don’t see what the fuss is about. When I was an undergrad at Syracuse U. many decades ago, we didn’t have an internet then, but I still managed to have sex with quite a few teachers. However, the important point is that none of the teachers taught me. As for today’s internet, men who chat with other men at gay sites and in gay chat rooms must expect to get “chatted up” so to speak.
apl1974
The real “scandal” here is to see an LGBTQ site like Queerty calling this hatchet job a “sex scandal” when 1) there was never any on-the-record evidence to prove that it was and 2) evidence corroborating that this was, in fact, a political hit has come to light. Queerty, you’ve put forth some pretty awful clickbait headlines in your day but continuing to further this homophobic smear is beyond awful. Shame on you.
No wonder Morse hasn’t returned your calls.
tjack47
Fluff, not fluffer.
Cam
So a political opponent tried to organize a phony scandal against him, and a complicit media outlet went along.
Looks like some lawsuits are about to happen.
DarkZephyr
What this article doesn’t seem to mention is that the guy who blocked him when he apologized to him if he made him feel uncomfortable, Andrew Abramson, was part of the plot to take him down and *admittedly* in those revealed plotting chats purposely lead him on for WEEKS for that very purpose. So the guy who plotted his downfall had the nerve to block HIM after he offered an apology which I don’t think was deserved. There are other articles that dig much deeper and with screen shots, but if I put a link in this reply, it gets stuck in “awaiting moderation” limbo, unfortunately.
barryaksarben
if they were dems why did the one want a job with NEal. These students should be expelled asap. Trying to frame a prof is horrid
Kangol2
Neal is a Democratic hack. He’s been in office for decades. He could have subpoenaed Don the Con’s taxes but instead slowballed things so that Don the Con’s administration allegedly could help out a backer of Neal’s. Talk about corrupt. Morse would be a qualitative improvement many times over.
A.S.Merrimac
Really bad job Queerty maybe stick with beefcake photos if you can’t handle real news responsibly. These stories can & often do a lasting affect of people’s lives. It looks like you owe Mr. Morse a (very) public apology.
“We aim to provide a fun, entertaining, and enjoyable space that celebrates LGBTQ people and culture. We encourage people to comment on articles and engage in conversations, and we strongly discourage (and will not allow) being mean-spirited.”
Looks like you violated your own rule!
Dymension
So glad I agree with everyone who has commented!
johnnymcmxxx
He met his tricks on Grindr. Morse did not set out to seduce students. He chose to hook up with random younger guys on Grindr. Those younger guys agreed to hook up with Morse. If the students, who are of legal age, did not walk away when they met Morse, then I see no problem. It’s sex between Gay men who meet on Grindr. It happens every day. It may be unsavory but it’s not illegal & it should not ruin a man’s career.
keith meinhold
It seems to me the crime here is the plot to publicize false allegations. This is a great example of why I refuse to join either party.
Cam
Actually that is irrelevant.
edwardnvirginia
…. no ‘crimes’ here – i.e. no entries in the local or state criminal code book were violated BUT was good judgement violated? IN FACT IT WAS and Morse has publicly admitted that he used ‘poor judgement!’ So the point would be: Would you vote for someone with such poor judgement? which, again, he admitted that he had. And how did Morse admit his poor judgement? He admitted it by saying he was ‘young’ at the time. With this statement Morse stepped into his own bowel movement!: he is claiming that at his age, then, he had POOR JUDGEMENT about sexual relationships with students WHO WERE EVEN YOUNGER, and therefore with ALL THE MORE LIKELY POOR-ER JUDGEMENT! Taking advantage of people with poor judgement is not a ‘crime’ but it is NASTY … as hasty as Trump grabbing kitty kat fur down there! So if you said Trump should be disqualified then you must say that Morse should be disqualified – for such poor judgment – and bad behavior.
ShowMeGuy
I saw the original Queerty report and those of you claiming Queerty did a hatchet job on Morse must have read a completely different report than the one I read. It was very clear from the start that Morse was getting railroaded and Queerty was gayly-forward with that information.
jami_h30
LOL – you’re right, I must have read a completely different report then.
RoughRugger
So Queerty, is this your idea of a retraction/apology for muckraking? Or can we expect to see that in the near future?
Dr Bob
There is no scandal here Queerty. The dude hooked up with other consenting adults that he was not connected to in any meaningful way. He may as well have hooked up with the janitor.
The real scandal here is his opponents and this media site teaming up for a hit job. Shame on you!
edwardnvirginia
… with the ‘janitor’! … WOW that is a bigoted slam against working class people!
edwardnvirginia
People with ADVANTAGES – e.g. official teaching status, power over student assessments, grade, reputation, etc – who abuse those advantages – are NECESSARILY TAKING ADVANTAGE or the lesser/dis-advantaged (e.g. a student, inferior role to official teaching role, less experienced with managing good judgement, etc). IF this were a story about a WHITE gay guy taking advantage of a younger, lesser advantaged BLACK gay guy … well, you should get my point.
Cam
Except that isn’t what happened.
Alton
Excuse me…he was a “lecturer”? Not a teacher? In other words, he had no position of power over a single student at the school?
This is the most unmitigated horseshit I have ever seen. Screw anyone who tries to attack Morse over this trumped-up chicanery in any way.
mrzodiac2003
I think Queerty is trying to make a scandle out of nothing!
pavel20
i knew it. i knew it. i knew it. it was clear that this was some type of political smear campaign against this man to discredit him, and i’m glad that concrete evidence is emerging to expose these actions. i hope the people who have been part of this plot are sanctioned accordingly.
nm4047
just sounds like the plot to a multitude of movies. Girl and guy hook up and later she or he face each other in a job interview. Who the F*@k cares.
Platinumboy
Apparently, Mr. Morse has admitted that these sexual allegations are true. f the LGBTQI community is to be taken seriously, the community must accept the consequences of the mistakes its members make. The reason sexual relations between teachers and students is illegal is the presumed and true power teachers have over students. In the case of Mr. Morse, he can potentially decide a student’s grade in a class that makes the difference between graduating and waiting another year. This can have a severe effect on getting a job. If Morse is allowed to gain political power, he can use the same power to do good and bad. A pertinent, if extreme example is Mike Madigan, the Illinois Speaker of the House. He has been in power through intimidation, including proven sexual intimidation for 50 years. Illinois is known internally as “Madiganistan” because no one is allowed to do anything politically without Madigan’s explicit permission. Governors and legislators can not operate without giving Madigan whatever he wants. I have a friend who used to work for my County government. We needed, and still need, an underpass with the Canadian National repaired and modernized. Not even Dick Durbin, our senior senator who has been in Washington for longer than Madigan has been Speaker, has any power over Madigan. Obama was installed by Madigan. Obama as President had no power over Madigan. In the last election 2 years ago, Madigan’s constituents described how armed bullies would come to their door and threaten them with bodily harm if they voted for Madigan’s then twentysomething college student opponent. Police, according to the Chicago Tribune, would not help these voters in any way (Chicago Tribune). Madigan has been at the center of seemingly hundreds of corruption investigations, but no prosecutor, State or Federal, dare charge him. Commonwealth Edison, a large Illinois utity, paid a $200 million fine in a bribery scandal involving Madigan. Ifthe participants talk about Madigan, they might not go to jail. In 50 years, nobody has fingered Madigan and plenty have preferred to go to prison rather than talk. That is an extreme example of what can happen when a person who uses sexual and financial power achieves political office. It’s worth considering.
DarkZephyr
You didn’t really pay attention to ALL of the details of the article or the situation, did you?
None of the students he had consensual sex with were HIS students. He had no power over them. Dating students who aren’t your own students is not against that school’s policy, either.
Derek Northcutt
Such a dumb issue: we form our relationship s and attachments with the people who are around us, and who is around you at college but students and teachers. When I taught at a university I had relationship s with student but the thing is it were theywho seemed to wish to exploit me.
bftlguy
Well isn’t Mr. Timothy Ennis special? As the Chief Strategist for the UMass Amherst College Democrats Timmy must be a real BMOC at the Zoo. Then there’s Mr. Andrew Abrahamson now the President! Such a fearless man to try to lure a gay man into saying something lurid for the sole purpose of ratting him out. Indeed we have 2 strategists here needing jobs when the graduate from what most of Massholes refer to as our backup plan. Forget Richard Neal, fellas, fag baiting just might get you your own show on Fox. Leave the Democratic Party because you are NOT DEMOCRATS. YOU ARE SCUMBAGS WHO BELONG WITH THE OTHER DEPLORABLES OF TRUMP NATION. Or better yet, move to India and help Trump dig up dirt on Kamala!
masterwill7
Yaaaasssssss, let’s attack one of our own AGAIN!!!!! Exactly what I want to read!!! (Sarcasm off)
CarterATL
So… was Queerty in on it, too? Can we get clarification that Queerty wasn’t conspiring with the co-conspirators? Because Queerty has been promoting this story with a noticeable slant against Morse. It looks a bit suspect, doesn’t it?
jami_h30
Lol – still “awaiting moderation” If you are going to censore it just be honest about it
BoylesqueBubble
It’s all from Graham Gremore. When Graham isn’t drooling over bisexual or straight men with the rabidness of a sex offender, he’s moralizing other gay men. Be careful about calling out Queerty though, for a page with mostly useless stories they sure seem to believe they’re the moral majority.
Heywood Jablowme
Looks like Alex Morse was a student “adviser.”
He advised students to “Go deeper. Yeah like that. Deeper! YEAH.”
Brewster69
You keep reporting that this guy is having sex with students giving the impression that they are underage and somehow naive and easily manipulated. These people are university students, all over the age of consent and all using an app to look for sexual partners.