JFC
unconscionable
and yet, here they are
I’m so angry. What Aaron von Ehlinger’s supporters did to this young person is beyond repulsive. Idaho state government and the state police needs to get their shit together, and start living in the 21st-century. 
Problem is, the people in the majority in those organizations (and their allies) were allowed to get away with this behavior all through the 20th century. They do this because it usually works well for them. There are never any bounds placed on how they choose to push back against whatever doesn’t conform to what they believe. Limitations and consequences always apply to everyone else. If anyone attacks their position of power or sense of privilege (directly or through someone they’ve placed on a pedestal), there is no depth to which they won’t sink. Their goal is not only to crush those who dare defy them, but also to send a message to others who might challenge them.
I keep thinking about how folks who behave like this have been harassing, assaulting, and killing people in the name of being “pro-life*.” If they’d faced any repercussions then, maybe things would be better now. We’ve got posts upthread about cases where members of public and law enforcement enabled or committed attacks against rape victims who accused popular high school and college athletes of the crime. Their reactions are often illegal, and always cruel. Until they face serious consequences for their actions, the behavior is not going to change.
Situations like this make it clearer to me why some political groups are described as cults. Too many members no longer care about right or wrong, they’re all about loyalty to the leaders. Anyone considered to be against the leaders is pilloried and cast out by the rest of the group. When lawmakers are caught engaging in this, we can’t rely on them to enforce the law or enact better ones so this isn’t repeated in the future. Let’s hope “consequence culture” will keep the names of the state officials involved in this case high on the list for removal or being voted out of office.
*As a minor example of the many changes in civil rights and social progress that they oppose in a similarly violent manner.
Rep. Priscilla Giddings, a Republican from White Bird, shared the link with Doe’s name and photo in a newsletter to constituents and said the allegations were nothing more than a “liberal smear job.” She also shared the blog post with thousands of followers on social media, making the intern’s identity widely known. Giddings has not responded to repeated requests for comment from the AP.
Rep. Heather Scott, a Republican from Blanchard, filed a public record request with the city of Boise seeking a copy of the young woman’s police report. Scott approached Rep. Melissa Wintrow, a Democrat from Boise, to ask about how a person who files a false police report alleging sexual assault could be charged. Wintrow is a board member for the Idaho Coalition Against Sexual & Domestic Violence, which is representing Jane Doe.
I know it should not be a surprise that these women have no empathy for the victim in this case, but it still stinks to high heaven. How can they live with themselves?
I asked the same thing when reading about NXIVM or Ghislaine Maxwell. Too many women support abusive men, and help them abuse other women. That came up in the Harvey Weinstein case and stories about Roger Ailes. It’s another problem when people like this are allowed to create toxic environments full of former victims, potential victims, enablers, and those who ignore it.
Yeah, it stinks beyond all reason.
Something clanged in my mind too, upon reading: why such bizarre and outsized actions from these Republican reps? I refuse to believe it’s just “Idaho being Idaho” any more than I agree with “Texas being Texas” etc. (I live here, the factchecking on characterizations is a little easier).
When I dug into the reporting on this, I wondered what were the drivers behind Giddings’ and Scott’s actions. Were these women “strongly encouraged” by their male [Republican] colleagues, who perhaps provided the overall plan to attack and smear the victim? Were they paid off, or some other quid pro quo? Are they just utterly brainwashed, similar to Q-people? Is there a much bigger story here, buried, that has caused Idaho state house Republicans to go to Def Con 2? If yes, what the heck could that be? That the alleged rapist possibly has a long and carefully cloaked history of similar offenses? What would they be protecting, and why the outsized reaction?
Any speculating is just bandwidth-burning brainhurt by amateurs, until a real reporter takes this and runs it to ground. I’m hoping it’s someone at Mother Jones or similar.
Pretty ugly and sad… Giddings’ wikipedia entry (about a year old) has been edited even today so my guess is that her office knows her actions are going to bring additional scrutiny. The woman is USAF. Regulatory capture, of a sort?
Scott’s wiki stats show her page (~ 3 years old) was also last edited today for I am going to guess same reasons. Nevertheless, from her wiki entry, she sure sounds like a piece of work:
In 2015 Scott is reported to have cut wires which were part of the fire-suppression system in her office. Scott believed at the time that the wires were in fact listening devices planted to spy on her. The wire-cutting incident was witnessed by other Idaho House members.[2]
In August 2017, Scott defended white nationalism on her Facebook page. She reportedly said, “The way the media has set this up, the mention of white nationalist, which is no more than a Caucasian who (sic) for the Constitution and making America great again, and confusing it with term, ‘white supremacist’ which is extreme racism. Therefore, if one is ‘guilty’ of being white, one is clearly racist.”[3][4]
At the start of the 2017 legislative session, Scott reportedly made a remark to fellow state representative Judy Boyle, upon learning of her appointment to the state legislature’s agriculture committee. The reported comment was that female lawmakers obtain ranking committee appointments and other leadership positions only if they “spread their legs.” The alleged comment received widespread rebuke from other state lawmakers.[5]
ETA: grammar, clarity
Women who hate women are gross. But in the end they’re just … bad people. Some people are like that. Because they suck. I don’t think it’s deep. Probably the only reason she has any power or status in life at all is because she’s like this.
For those who want to try the nomad lifestyle, this would totally work with a Jeep.
And a hair dryer?
Unless one were Jeeping in an especially arid climate.
FTA:
legislators, including the bill’s supporters, on Wednesday were compelled to approve an amendment to the bill that stated that rapists whose rape resulted in someone getting pregnant did not have the ability under this bill to sue an abortion provider or someone who offered material support to their victim.
Oh, sure - because they’re so good at catching and convicting rapists, that they’ll have no problems identifying cases where this exception should apply. 
Well, that’s easy… did a wrong kind of man jump out of the bushes and rape a good, white Christian woman, doing the Lord’s work? Rapist! Was it a slut out to satisfy her ungodly urges, wearing the wrong clothes on a “date” with someone they actually knew? Not rape… Pregnancy is god’s way of saving ungodly women… /s
Unless that man can swim
