On this date in 2014, 2015, as well as 2016, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” published profiles of the U.S. House Representative from Tennessee’s 4th Congressional District, Scott Desjarlais, an Episcopalian physician from Tennessee whose religious background would have made him the perfect Republican to push their social agenda against abortion, contraceptives, and gay rights, while also giving them a guy with the credibility to argue against the Affordable Care Act. The problem with that, though, is Desjarlais has proven to be an embarrassing hypocrite, because while he portrays himself a champion of the pro-life movement, his divorce records were unsealed, and the media discovered he protected the sanctity of marriage by cheating on his wife with four women, and pressured not only his wife (on tape, no less) into getting an abortion, but one of his mistresses. And that mistress was also apparently one of his patients (and she wasn’t the only patient he slept with)… so there went the credibility of the “doctor against the ACA” angle. Desjarlais is also a big hard-liner on immigration, what with the time he told an 11 year old girl that he was going to deport her dad, and all.
Desjarlais again survived a primary threat in 2016, winning with only 52% of the vote
before going on into the general election and cruising to a victory over Democrat Steven Reynolds with 65% of the vote there. He has returned to Washington, and is believed to have joined the House Freedom Caucus. His voting record sure would make it seem like that’s the case, and he’s joined the ranks of the hard right extremists:
- February 16th, 2017: Desjarlais votes for HJR 69, to make it legal for hunters on wildlife reserves to kill several species of hibernating bears or wolves while they’re sleeping. Because… well, the logic really isn’t there as to why, it’s just awful.
- March 16th, 2017: Scott Desjarlais votes for HR 1181, which would allow veterans deemed mentally incompetent to continue to own firearms, and not have them taken away without a judge’s written order. We feel safer already.
- March 28th, 2017: Rep. Desjarlais votes for SJ Res 34, which allowed internet providers to sell the data information of their customers’ internet usage to businesses.
Well, so much for privacy.
- May 4th, 2017: Desjarlais votes for the House GOP’s healthcare plan, that would kick roughly 24 million people off their health insurance plans, allow up to 28,000 more people to die a year, give $50,000 in tax breaks to millionaires, and would eliminate coverage for pre-existing conditions which would include such medical conditions as pregnancy (current or past), post-partum depression, or prior sexual assault.
Oh, and a provision in the bill would make sure that Desjarlais would be allowed to keep his healthcare plan as it exists under the ACA, which would be repealed for the rest of the country. He and his Republican compatriots threw themselves a beer bash to celebrate taking away healthcare from millions and then gloated about it with Donald Trump at a White House press conference, as well.
- June 8th, 2017: Scott Desjarlais votes for HR 10, the GOP’s attempt to repeal Dodd-Frank financial reform, because what the country really needs is to allow the big banks to make the same mistakes that imploded the economy only a decade earlier.
- September 8th, 2017: Rep. Desjarlais chooses to be one of 90 Republicans in Congress who votes against disaster relief for Hurricane Harvey.
During the GOP-controlled House’s obsessive attempts to pass Trumpcare this past spring, one of its biggest defenders was Scott Desjarlais, who actually had the temerity to try and claim, against all analysis from medical organizations and the Congressional Budget office… that the American Healthcare Act would actually lower insurance premiums and “make health insurance” more affordable… than the program literally named the Affordable Care Act, that he wanted to repeal and kick 24 million people off their insurance. And that’s probably the reason why he’s been dodging facing his constituents like a coward these past few months. Or maybe it’s because Congressman Tim Murphy just resigned after getting caught trying to pressure HIS mistress into having an abortion, something Rep. Desjarlais did with at least two women in his life.
It will be interesting to see if another person running on either side of the ticket will make 2018 the year to send Desjarlais packing or not.