The ongoing Katie Hill saga unfolds like a telenovela set in the world of Washington, D.C. Each breaking story involving the former lawmaker, her husband, and their mistress resembles an episode of a lascivious soap opera. But recent developments show the media treating the audience to a reality-TV drama with a faint whiff of progressive hypocrisy.
Katie Hill’s Downfall
Katie Hill
Before we get to a juicy new installment, let’s do a short recap. Rep. Katie Hill (D-CA) became something of a left-wing superstar when she won an election in a traditionally Republican district and qualified to be a protégé of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). But the young lawmaker fell from grace when her romantic affairs with members of her staff came to light.
Earlier in October, conservative news site RedState published a story in which Kenneth Heslep, Hill’s estranged husband, claimed that she was having an affair with Graham Kelly, her congressional legislative director. She denied the allegation, but the scandal was not yet over. RedState published another story a week later, alleging that the former lawmaker and her husband were engaged in a three-way relationship with a female campaign staffer. And this time there were pictures!
Cue the dramatic music.
There were no denials of the new allegations, and Hill was in deep trouble. By now, you might be thinking: Why would she be in trouble for that when other members of Congress have engaged in behavior that would make the Marquis de Sade blush? Well, it appears that Hill chose the wrong time to misbehave.
In 2018, the House adopted new rules prohibiting its members from having sexual relationships with their staff. It also forbade inappropriate advances on campaign staff, pointing out that “service as an elected official involves power imbalances that Members must be careful not to exploit.”
Naturally, Hill responded like many on the far left: by playing the victim. “I am saddened that the deeply personal matter of my divorce has been brought into public view and the vindictive claims of my ex have now involved the lives and reputations of unrelated parties,” she wrote in a statement, which also accused Republican operatives of publicizing the photographs “without my consent.”
Unfortunately for Hill, her protestations did not elicit much sympathy. Shortly after, she announced her resignation. In her announcement, she again accused her husband of being abusive and lashed out at “political operatives” who provided him with a platform to use against her.
Husband’s Side of the Story
Katie Hill and Kenneth Heslep
As if these details weren’t cringeworthy enough, CNBC obtained a copy of Heslep’s legal complaint against Hill. His filing made some interesting claims about the former congresswoman. He stated that, before they were married, Hill “told me that she wanted me to stay at home and care for our household,” because she “did not like to do household chores and duties and wanted me to stay at home and do those things while she worked.”
But it appears that Heslep grew weary of the home-husband life and alleged that Hill helped him obtain multiple jobs at the non-profit organization where she held positions as his superior. His tenure in one of the roles lasted only a few months because of concerns over the appearance of nepotism. After leaving his third position at the organization, Heslep stated that Hill “and I agreed that I should quit this job and return to staying home and caring for domestic duties.”
Shortly after, Heslep claims, Hill said that she was leaving him. Then, the complaint alleges that she took their “only operable vehicle and left me stranded at our residence.”
Hill then opened her own bank account and stopped depositing funds into the one they held jointly. “I have had no funds from [Hill] to pay for my living expenses for a period of approximately four weeks after she left me, until July 3, 2019,” he stated. Heslep requested that the court order Hill to pay him spousal support and attorney fees.
A Scent of Leftist Hypocrisy?
Don Lemon
Imagine for a second what would happen if a Republican congressman was found to have had an illicit affair with one of his staffers? Let’s say he later left his wife high and dry with no money or transportation.
Is it difficult to imagine CNN’s Don Lemon breathlessly narrating the torrid tale of the nefarious conservative lawmaker who abandoned his wife? Can you visualize the widespread pearl-clutching splashed on the airwaves of MSNBC? And the interviews! Oh, the teary-eyed interviews! Think of the dramatic displays of the wronged spouse recounting every detail of her mistreatment at the hands of the vile legislator.
It would be a spectacle fit for a major-network primetime drama series. And yet, when it happens to be a female Democratic lawmaker? Crickets.
Of course, none of us are surprised at the double standard here. But it only highlights the fact that the government cannot curtail this type of behavior if the rules are selectively enforced by society. Yes, Hill did resign because she would have lost her job, as would a Republican lawmaker guilty of the same indiscretions. But the outrage mobs on both sides are ensuring that behavior like this will continue to be tolerated in the culture. Unfortunately, the legacy media are not concerned with such things; they have an agenda to promote, after all.
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