(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . MAGA candidate promoted prostitution, fake followers & a Speedo-wearing pride parade husband [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-09-30 All of us have a history. A candidate for mayor in Tennessee is no exception. Meet the candidate Gabrielle Hanson, an Alderwoman-at-large in Franklin, TN, is campaigning for the city’s mayoralty. She is a typical MAGA Republican whose political philosophy is well-illustrated by her opposition to anti-COVID measures, her support of “traditional values,” her serial homophobia, and her failed campaign to stop a Pride event in Franklin. A fight she claimed she waged to “protect innocent children.” Speedos and a cross However, her embrace of MAGA's cynical crusade to defend America’s young has not been lifelong. In 2008, her husband Tom — then a Republican US House candidate in Illinois — took part in Chicago’s Pride Day festivities, wearing nothing but American-flag Speedos, sandals, sunglasses, and a demure little golden cross. Tom says that not only did he have Gabrielle’s permission for his almost nude cavorting, he also had her enthusiastic support. According to Nashville’s Channel 5 News, “Tom Hanson later told a newspaper that his wife had egged him on after he first came up with the idea of participating in the parade and convinced sponsors to include him. "I thought how was I going to make an impact in the parade? I'm a Republican, nobody's going to want to listen to me," he told the Windy City Times. "So it just came to me. I said maybe I'll wear an American-flag Speedo and my wife said, 'If you do that, I'll hold you to it.'" When the TV station asked Tom how his turn as a stripped-to-his-skivvies, pride participant gibed with his wife’s anti-pride campaign, Tom dismissed the question. "We're talking about Franklin, we're not talking about Chicago right now." When then asked, "Do Chicago children not deserve to be protected in your mind? What's the difference?" Tom ran away. Promoting prostitution If that were the only skeleton in her closet, Hanson could dismiss it as the long-ago support of an event on which she has changed her mind. But there is more. Gabrielle says she is a champion of traditional values. Yet it turns out that she has an arrest record and a conviction for promoting commercial sex. As the news of her lawbreaking broke, Hanson tried to dismiss and minimize the event in an Instagram post. In a video, she admitted being arrested on a charge of promoting prostitution in Dallas in the mid-1990s. Hanson said the arrest stemmed from a job she had answering phones for a "modeling and entertainment casting company" while attending Southern Methodist University. She explained, "I answered the phone and took a name and took a number and a date, and at the end of my work session I would call the owners and give them that information." She said she did not know the company was running an escort service until the police knocked on her door a little over a year after she started the job. This fatuous claim means she is either a moron or a liar — neither is a good look. She added, "I was shocked. I was devastated. Everything I'd worked for for 13 years was about to come true. It should have been the happiest, most exciting time of my life, and it ended up being the absolute lowest. That was definitely not who I was, but I was definitely in the middle of all of it." Her "do what I say, not what I do" attitude is consistent with the MAGA’s perverse philosophy that their actions do not reflect who they are. Hanson added she did not have money for an attorney and chose to plead no contest to one count of promotion of prostitution because others told her it would be the "easiest thing to do.” ​Imaginary friends and fake supporters We can discard any thought that the Speedo and pandering are not part of who Hanson is today. Far from modeling rectitude, this dismal bigot claims complete strangers are her friends and supporters. Hanson expects the electorate to believe that, despite her hard-right embrace of anti-minority interests, she has attracted diverse supporters. In a post over a picture of professional women meeting in a restaurant, Hanson says “Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to the executive women's club for the invaluable support and encouragement #WomenEmpowerment #FranklinTN #VoteHansen She adds, (Since the left seems so excited about saying that these people are not supporters locally, here are the facts. These are all friends that have relocated to Nashville, Brentwood, and Franklin they all support me. Only one of them is left in Chicago.) Unsurprisingly, these are not the facts. Channel 5 tracked down the women in the picture. One of them, April (she’s front left), identified the photo as one taken seven years ago in Chicago. She denies any friendship with Hansen. When asked, "So what do you make of this?" April replied, "I honestly don't know. I'm wondering how this person doesn't have other photos of other friends or actual supporters. It's a really far stretch to dig up a photo from social media from seven years ago of just what was a really delightful brunch of a group of women who just had met." When asked, "So as far as you know you have never even met Gabrielle Hanson?" Alice answered, "I actually do not know who that is. And I have a pretty good memory. I keep a tight circle of friends and colleagues, and I think I would have remembered someone like that. I know some of those women are not located in the places that she named. Some of those women are still in Chicago and other parts of the country, but not Tennessee.” The TV station called Hanson for her side of the lie. She initially refused to answer any questions about the post. In a non-responsive response, she huffed that a federal court had upheld the rights of candidates to post whatever they want. Later, Hanson doubled down on her lie, telling the Nashville News, "They live all over the country, and we get together very regularly." A Holy Spirit thing Hanson, who reports show is completely nuts , also claimed she warned the police of upcoming gun violence just days before Nashville's Covenant School shooting in March. In an interview with the podcast The Mill Creek View, she said, “The Wednesday before that shooting was when the police came to my house to register the report for the phone calls and the death threats.” [Threats she claimed to have received in response to her opposition to Franklin's Pride Festival.] "I looked at that officer and I said, 'I'm telling you right now I have zero, zero basis for what I am about to tell you, other than my gut. Nobody has tipped me off, nobody has said anything. But my gut is telling me there is going to be an active shooter.' I felt it, I just felt it. Don't ask me how. It could be a Holy Spirit thing, but I felt an active shooter coming." A review of the police body-cam footage revealed that Hanson said nothing of the kind. Conclusion [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/9/30/2196567/-MAGA-candidate-promoted-prostitution-fake-followers-a-Speedo-wearing-pride-parade-husband Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/