Sex

The Best Sex-Scandal Haikus

Zachary Roth | November 27, 2009, 12:52PM

The entries in our sex-scandal haiku contest are pouring in. Here are a few of our favorites:

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Mark Sanford

TPM Reader Challenge: The Sex-Scandal Haiku!

Zachary Roth | November 27, 2009, 11:46AM

The Los Angeles Times notes that a text sent by Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) to his girlfriend is just one syllable away from being a haiku -- the Japanese poetic form that consists of five syllables in the first and third lines, and seven in the second.

Wrote Ensign to his beloved:

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Heidi DeJong Barsuglia

"Hot Mike" Duvall Won't Face Charges In Sex Boasting Flap

Zachary Roth | November 2, 2009, 6:36PM

Fmr. State Rep. Michael Duvall (R-CA)

Hot Mike Duvall -- who stepped down as a state lawmaker after his raucous sexual braggadocio was picked up by a live microphone -- is getting off.

The California Republican won't face federal charges in connection to the incident, the local U.S. attorney's office announced today.

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Michael Duvall

California AG Won't Probe Duvall's Sex Bragging

Zachary Roth | October 6, 2009, 9:51AM

Fmr. State Rep. Michael Duvall (R-CA)

Finally, some good news for California sex braggart "Hot Mike" Duvall...

Attorney General Jerry Brown says he won't investigate Duvall's claim, captured on a hot mike, to be having an affair with a woman identified as a lobbyist for an energy company. Until he resigned in the wake of the scandal, Duvall, a Republican, had been vice chair of the state legislative committee that oversees energy issues.

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Michael Duvall

FBI Probing "Hot Mike" Duvall's Sex Boasting

Zachary Roth | October 5, 2009, 9:59AM

Fmr. State Rep. Michael Duvall (R-CA)

"Hot Mike" Duvall's lascivious braggadocio wasn't just of interest to millions of blog readers. It also attracted the attention of the Feds.

The FBI is investigating the former California state lawmaker's now-legendary claim that he was having an affair with a woman later identified as a lobbyist for an energy company. "We did make contact with the two aides," a bureau spokesman confirmed to the Los Angeles Times.

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Michael Duvall

Duvall's Listener Removed From Ethics Committee As Rumors Spread On Who Tipped Media To Comments

Zachary Roth | September 11, 2009, 12:50PM

It turns out that "Hot Mike" Duvall wasn't the only lawmaker to take a political hit from the exposure of his lewd sexual braggadocio.

Yesterday, the colleague who sat next to him and heard his raunchy tales, fellow Republican Jeff Miller, was removed from the Ethics committee which is probing the scandal. But could Miller, whose Orange County district is close to Duvall's, have been more than just a passive listener in this scandal?

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Lobbyists

Duvall Probe Could Look At Other Lawmaker-Lobbyist Affairs

Zachary Roth | September 10, 2009, 10:39AM

Here are the additional major developments in the "Hot Mike" Duvall story, in which the married California GOP lawmaker and family values crusader resigned yesterday after a hot mic picked up his bragging to a colleague about his sexual encounters with two women -- one of whom is reportedly a lobbyist for an energy company before the committee of which he is vice chair:

• Duvall's resignation will not stop lawmakers from investigating the matter, including whether Duvall traded votes or other influence on utilities issues for sex, according to Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, a Democrat. Indeed, one member of the ethics panel that will oversee the investigation told the Los Angeles Times that it could expand to look at other lawmakers' affairs with lobbyists.

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Michael Duvall

Duvall Denies "Reports That He Had An Affair"

Zachary Roth | September 10, 2009, 10:10AM

Mike Duvall now seems to be denying having affairs with the two women he was caught bragging about sleeping with.

In a new statement on his campaign website, Duvall writes:

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Lobbyists

Duvall Lobbyist Denying "Speculative Media Reports"

Zachary Roth | September 9, 2009, 5:41PM

Heidi DeJong Barsuglia

Is Heidi DeJong Barsuglia, the energy lobbyist named in press reports as being the subject of Mike Duvall's filthy sexual boasting, denying that she was involved with the married Republican lawmaker, who resigned this afternoon? [SEE LATE UPDATE BELOW]

Sempra Energy, where Barsuglia works, just released the following statement:

Sempra Energy takes very seriously any reports involving the conduct of our employees. We are investigating this matter and the recent media reports that named one of our employees. The employee has denied the speculative media reports. Our investigation will be conducted to ensure not only that our policies on employee conduct are strictly adhered to, but also that our employee is treated fairly.

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Lobbyists

Progressive Group Wants Duvall "Sex-For-Votes" Probe

Zachary Roth | September 9, 2009, 5:22PM

A progressive California group is calling for an investigation into whether "Hot Mike" Duvall
sold his votes for sex.

"A vice-chairman of the Committee on Utilities and Commerce was literally in bed with Sempra Energy's lobbyist," said Rick Jacobs of the Courage Campaign in a statement. "Assemblyman Duvall's 'sex for votes' affairs have cheated Californians out of honest government. We call on the attorney general to investigate Mr. Duvall to see if he can be prosecuted for selling his votes."

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Michael Duvall

Duvall Won "Ethics In America" Award

Zachary Roth | September 9, 2009, 4:44PM

Mike Duvall, the California GOP lawmaker and married family values champion who just resigned after a hot mic picked up his graphic bragging to a colleague about two affairs, was in 2000 awarded the "Ethics in America" award by a local university, for his "demonstration of the highest standards of ethical integrity" as a community leader with the Yorba Linda Chamber of Commerce, according to a 2008 press release on Duvall's state government website (the site has now been dismantled.)

We'll let you make your own joke.

Lobbyists

Duvall Resigns After Sex Bragging

Zachary Roth | September 9, 2009, 4:05PM

That was quick. Mike Duvall has resigned from public office.

In a statement on his campaign website, he wrote:

I am deeply saddened that my inappropriate comments have become a major distraction for my colleagues in the Assembly, who are working hard on the very serious problems facing our state. I have come to the conclusion that it would not be fair to my family, my constituents or to my friends on both sides of the aisle to remain in office. Therefore, I have decided to resign my office, effective immediately, so that the Assembly can get back to work.

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Lobbyists

Duvall: I Thought It Was A Private Conversation

Zachary Roth | September 9, 2009, 3:26PM

Mike Duvall, the married California GOP lawmaker and family values champion, has apologized for telling a colleague, in a conversation picked up on a hot mic, about his affairs with two women.

He posted the following statement on his campaign website:

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Sex

GOP Lawmaker's Graphic Sex-Bragging Caught On Tape

Zachary Roth | September 9, 2009, 11:45AM

We've all seen those stories where a careless politician gets a little too candid when speaking into a hot mic. But this one's really in a whole different league.

[RELATED SLIDESHOW: TPM'S HISTORY OF THE SEX-SCANDALOUS FALL OF THE MODERN CONSERVATIVE MOVEMENT]

Michael Duvall is a conservative Republican state representative from Orange County, California. While waiting for the start of a legislative hearing in July, the 54-year-old married father of two and family values champion began describing, for the benefit of a colleague seated next to him, his ongoing affairs with two different women. In very graphic detail.

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