At a GOP picnic in Goffstown, this past Saturday, NH State Rep. John Hickel showed his suave side, when he repeatedly called former state GOP vice-chair Pamela Manney a "pole dancer," and a "stripper." From the Union Leader:
Manney, also of Goffstown, said a visibly irate Hikel approached her and loudly and repeatedly called her a former “pole dancer” and “stripper” in front of a group of Republicans at a Saturday picnic hosted by Hikel's GOP primary foe, state Rep. Phil Greazzo, R-Manchester. The picnic followed a meeting of the Goffstown-Weare Republican Committee at the Goffstown Parks and Recreation Department building.
Ms. Manney thinks that Hickel is miffed that she's supporting another candidate in the upcoming election.
“I'm just totally mortified,” Manney said. “I was never a pole dancer or a stripper. And he said it two more times and the more he said it, he advanced toward me.” She said he made the comment five times in all.
Hikel, in an interview, refused to specifically acknowledge he called Manney a former “pole dancer” and "stripper” when asked to verify his alleged remarks.
He left a fauxpology on her answering machine. She's refusing to accept.
“I don't accept it because he simply never said he was wrong,” said Manney.
Now this is where it gets weird and especially ugly:
Then, she said, “out of the clear blue, John Hikel turns around and looks at me and in the loudest voice possible, said, 'Representative Quandt said you were a pole dancer. Is that true?'
“I said, 'What did you say,' and he said, 'Matt Quandt said you were a pole dancer.' Is that true?'”
Quandt, a state representative from Exeter, was not at the picnic and said he never told Hikel anything about Manney.
and
“His voice had such sexual undertones,” said Manney. “It was grossly, grossly unprofessional. I said to everyone, 'Everybody knows me. I was never a pole dancer or a stripper and I said, 'I know Matt Quandt. I served with Matt Quandt and I find this hard to believe.'
A certain faction of the NH GOP (the far right freebaglican types) have had it in for both Matt Quandt and his father, Lee, since the beginning of the 2011-12 term. The Quandts aren't ideological nutcases, like so many of the freshmen legislators elected in 2010.
Manney's description of his voice is really icky. Imagine how REALLY badly he must have behaved for her to even come forward with such a story about a fellow Republican.
This is certainly an interesting re-election strategy for Rep. Hickel. If Pamela Manney had any doubts about a war on women, she may be feeling a little bit more open minded now.