Please welcome this week’s guest writer, Pam Spaulding! I was a devoted reader of her blog, Pam’s House Blend, and Pam’s work has long inspired my own writing and activism. I’m thrilled that Pam has come out of retirement to write for us. -MJR
With the recent deaths of a duo of disgrace — former House Speaker Dennis Hastert and televangelist Jim Bakker — we can connect their history of moral degeneracy to current right-wing leaders who shield their acts from accountability…of course, until it all collapses. The political and religious right wing have long sheltered their most debased creatures from consequences, right up until a catastrophic failure forces their depraved secrets into the light.
Unless you hop into the DeLorean, it is easy to forget how these dynamics played out decades ago. Yet everything old is new again, as the GOP Hypocrite machine continues to protect its own while aggressively attacking others, wrapping itself in piety while attempting to mask rampant rot.
“I was only helping him with a groin injury.” - The legacy of Dennis Hastert
Dennis Hastert, from Illinois, served as Speaker from 1999 to 2007, eventually becoming the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history. It’s hard to describe the impact at that time of his epic fall from grace. This man was revealed as a child predator - Hastert got away with sexually abusing young boys in his charge as a wrestling coach for decades.
In May 2015, his professional world collapsed when prosecutors alleged in a federal court indictment that he had hidden a secret for decades. It alleged he had agreed to pay $3.5 million to a former student he had sexually abused.
Hastert was never charged with a sex crime because the statute of limitations had expired but admitted at his April 2016 court sentencing that he “mistreated” and “took advantage” of some of the teenage wrestlers he coached at Yorkville High School, where he worked from 1965 to 1981. Federal prosecutors alleged at the time he had molested at least four boys.
As part of a plea deal, Hastert acknowledged that he had illegally avoided reporting requirements associated with bank withdrawals he made for hush-money payments. Judge Thomas Durkin called Hastert a “serial child molester” at the sentencing.
He served 13 months in prison and later denied assaulting another boy in the 1970s at a wrestling event in a deposition in 2018. Hastert claimed he was only helping him with a groin injury.
RIGHT. That was settled in 2021 out of court before it went to trial.
It is no surprise, as part of the GOP Moral Hypocrite Club, that Hastert “overlooked”/helped to cover up what became a media firestorm - the Mark Foley scandal during his Speakership in 2006. Hastert actually came under fire from the House Ethics Committee:
Republican lawmakers and aides failed for a decade to protect male pages from sexual come-ons by former Rep. Mark Foley — once described as a “ticking time bomb” — but they broke no rules and should not be punished, the House ethics committee concluded Friday.
The committee harshly criticized Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., saying the evidence showed he was told of the problem months before he acknowledged learning of Foley’s questionable e-mails to a former Louisiana page. It rejected Hastert’s contention that he couldn’t recall separate warnings from two House Republican leaders.
Hastert couldn’t recall warnings about Foley. You have to wonder what sympathy Hastert might have had for his predatory colleague, or what he himself was doing as part of the Beltway Class that protects one another.
All while the Republican Party, then as now, claimed piety, and some ruthlessly attacked the rights of vulnerable populations, such as the LGBTQ+ community.
“I Saw Nothing” - the case of Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH4).
Jordan, as an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State University, had a locker next to Dr. Richard Strauss, team physician during the future congressman’s 1986-1994 tenure.
While there’s zero evidence that the shirt-sleeved, loudmouthed, non-attorney Republican who chairs the Judiciary Committee ever engaged in predatory sexual behavior, there’s ample evidence (and testimony) that he knew that Richard Strauss was repeatedly sexually assaulting vulnerable young male student-athletes. These crimes occurred often, during extensive, invasive, and disturbing “genital checks” (no gloves used) when most reported to see Strauss to attend to injuries that had nothing to do with that area of their bodies. A report later issued said Strauss raped or molested at least 177 student athletes from 1979 to 1996.
When brave former wrestlers came forward years later to ask for Jordan’s support in exposing the depraved behavior of Strauss, Jordan literally called, crying, begging them not to go public lest it harm his rising political career.
“Jim Jordan called me crying, crying, groveling, on the Fourth of July, begging me to go against my brother, begging me, crying for half an hour,” Adam DiSabato said, according to video of his testimony. “That’s the kind of coverups going on here.”
He has consistently denied knowing anything about the Strauss abuse of the very wrestlers he coached. Jordan, a founder of the right-wing populist House Freedom Caucus, operates in a 2026 political environment that is perhaps even more hypocritical than in Hastert’s day. But the crimes of Richard Strauss were so egregious—so many knew the crimes he committed and covered them up for decades, even with student reports in files. Strauss rose in the ranks as students suffered in silence. The entire sordid mess was chronicled in an excellent George Clooney-produced documentary, “Surviving Ohio State.” TRAILER:
Jim Jordan’s cowardice and commitment to protecting a predator were exposed, yet the congressman seems to have been strangely politically unaffected by the facts laid out in the case, even when Jordan had to sit for a deposition. The coverage was brutal:
5 former wrestlers say Jordan knew of Ohio State abuse (Fox News)
In new documentary, former Ohio State wrestlers say U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan knew about Strauss abuse (Ohio State Journal)
Republican Jim Jordan deposed in federal suit tied to sex abuse by late Ohio State team doctor (AP)
Needless to say, adjudicated sexual assaulter President Donald Trump gave Jordan his full-throated support (Politico):
“I don’t believe them at all. I believe him. Jim Jordan is one of the most outstanding people I’ve met since I’ve been in Washington. I believe him 100 percent. No question in my mind. I believe Jim Jordan 100 percent. He’s an outstanding man.”
The Pious Perverted Prosperity Gospel Pastor - Jim Bakker
By the time Jim Bakker died, his meteoric rise and sensational collapse seemed like ancient history from a pre-internet epoch. During his heyday, Bakker commanded the Praise the Lord (PTL) empire, broadcasting his brand of religious hustle to over 13 million viewers. Beside his makeup-heavy spouse Tammy Faye, he presided over Heritage USA — a sprawling South Carolina Christian amusement park financed by peddling $1,000-a-pop “lifetime partnerships.” Unsurprisingly, the donations from his flock funded an eye-popping lifestyle, proving Bakker to be an unabashed prosperity gospel grifter.
“God wants his people to go first class...We preach abundant life. Christ wished above all things that we prosper.”
Behind all the televangelist flash, Bakker’s empire concealed vile secrets. Church secretary, 21-year-old Jessica Hahn, accused Bakker and fellow minister John Wesley Fletcher of drugging and sexually assaulting her in 1980 before quietly settling the matter. Plus, several male staff members testified under oath regarding sexual encounters with the preacher. There’s that old closet door swinging open again…
Yet financial grift ultimately sank the guy: a 1988 conviction on two dozen counts of mail and wire fraud, alongside conspiracy to defraud his own followers. He ultimately served five years of a 45-year prison bid, represented on appeal by none other than “Epstein-adjacent” legal maven Alan Dershowitz.
The entire sordid saga, including his fierce feuds with rival hucksters Jimmy Swaggart and Jerry Falwell, is chronicled in a documentary, The Eyes Of Tammy Faye (2000).
Fast Forward to Today
There are plenty of contemporary right-wing pastors that qualify to sit on the modern-day Jim Bakker throne, such as:
Kenneth Copeland — standard bearer for blatant pulpit-driven partisan activism. Fully embedded in right-wing MAGA politics, this notorious prosperity-faith huckster preaches that “God has chosen Christians to have authority over seven spheres of public life: government, media, arts, business, education, religion and family.” Copeland and spouse Gloria even landed spots on Trump’s advisory board during the 2016 campaign cycle.
Robert Morris (Gateway Church) — a total predator disguised as a spiritual shepherd. Trump selected Morris for his evangelical advisory squad in 2016, and four years later he hosted a massive political rally for him near Dallas. But his pious facade shattered when a courageous survivor exposed how he repeatedly abused her over four years, starting when she was a mere 12-year-old child. Morris surrendered his pulpit in 2024 before pleading guilty the following year.
Naturally, as the sickening news erupted, Trump operative and current administration mouthpiece (and human thumb) Steven Cheung scrambled to distance his boss, claiming Morris had no official campaign post.Joel Osteen (Lakewood Church) — the ultra-wealthy megachurch leader and Trump confidant drawn into major scandal when he initially refused to unlock his 16,800-seat arena to house desperate victims of Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Though he avoids direct pulpit endorsements, Osteen featured Trump as his premier guest to kick off his SiriusXM channel, praising the politician as an exceptional communicator and loyal ally to his organization.
Doug Wilson (Christ Church) — a leading Christian Nationalist minister operating out of Moscow, Idaho, who serves as Pete Hegseth’s personal spiritual advisor and helped establish the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC).
It’s clear Wilson champions a brand of bigotry far more extreme than Bakker’s era (remember, even Tammy Faye showed empathy toward LGBTQ people). Wilson openly advocates stripping away the 19th Amendment.
In his opinion, granting women the right to vote stemmed from Americans embracing “the lie of individualism” that hurts the institution of families. He argues forcefully that when women were granted the right to vote, the nation took away the franchise from families.
Hegseth—a self-described “reformed” party boy and former Fox “News” TV personality (who relies on his spouse’s presence at the Pentagon to stay sober) —is second to none among public officials seeking to force his religious agenda onto OUR armed forces. All while obsessing over boosting testosterone levels among military personnel.
You have to watch CNN’s wild interview with Doug Wilson on Instagram. The segment sparked such massive backlash that Hegseth was forced to publicly address Pamela Brown’s reporting:
A week after our report on Christian Nationalism dropped, the Pentagon is now clarifying that “of course” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth supports women’s right to vote, after Hegseth reposted our story with the caption “All of Christ for All of Life.” In our piece, pastors from the church network Hegseth belongs to said they’d support repealing the 19th amendment in favor of voting as “households”, which they say would typically mean the husband casts the vote as the head of the household.
Saving the best/worst for last: Hegseth’s preferred spiritual guide harbors a deep disdain for Pride symbols while claiming absolute dominion over women’s bodies. It turns out only a select few women would even qualify to vote in his ideal society. Journalist Steve Inskeep breaks down the disturbing reality:
[Wilson] would require all officeholders to swear to uphold a Christian Constitution, meaning in effect that they would only be Christian. He would prevent non-Christians from voting unless an individual state favored it. He would outlaw abortion, eliminate same-sex marriage and end protections for LGBTQ people. He would bar many, or even most, women from voting—preferring one vote for each household, typically the husband. He says his church is run this way. A few women vote if they are the head of the household.
For those with a strong stomach, watch the full report on Wilson’s growing reach via NPR’s YouTube coverage:
It’s truly alarming to consider what happens if this unqualified, reckless defense chief ever seeks higher office, forcing the public to endure this unhinged rhetoric. Here’s hoping accountability catches up with him first. I eagerly await a full public moral collapse. That and prison.
Pam Spaulding was the editor and publisher of the award-winning OG-era blog Pam’s House Blend (2004-2013). You can catch her on Bluesky.
Health Update from Melissa
Melissa here, and I got some good news this week. The cancer hadn’t spread beyond the tumors they removed at surgery. From here on out, my treatment centers on lowering my risk of recurrence. We still don’t know exactly what that looks like, but it’s a big relief to have that part of my journey behind me.
Next week, I plan to resume writing. Both because I’m ready and because I want to. But it’s also been a lot of fun having these guest pieces, so when my treatment resumes, I’m excited to bring you more content from fantastic writers like Pam, Greg, and Jason. Talk to you next Sunday!
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