Lincoln Project co-founder John Weaver stepped down from the anti-Trump Republican political action committee on Friday after admitting he sent “inappropriate” sexually-charged messages to multiple men and issuing an apology for his behavior, according to a report from Axios.
“To the men I made uncomfortable through my messages that I viewed as consensual mutual conversations at the time: I am truly sorry,” Weaver said in a statement. “They were inappropriate and it was because of my failings that this discomfort was brought on you.”
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Axios reported last week that multiple men have alleged on social media that Weaver sent them unsolicited and sexually suggestive messages, on occasions attempting to entice them with offers of employment or political advancement.
“For far too long I’ve tried to live a life that wasn’t completely true,” he wrote in the statement. “I was lying to myself, to my family who gave me nothing but unconditional love, and to others, causing a great deal of pain to all. The truth is that I am gay. And I have a wife and two kids whom I love. My inability to reconcile those two truths has led to this agonizing place,” he wrote.
“While I am taking full responsibility for the inappropriate messages and conversations,” Weaver continued, “I want to state clearly that the other smears being leveled at me … are categorically false and outrageous.”
Weaver took a medical leave of absence from the Lincoln Project over the summer, and he said in his statement he would not be returning to the group.
“The project’s defense of the Republic and fight for democracy is vital,” he said.
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Prior to working with the Lincoln Project, the veteran Republican operative had been a top advisor to the late President George H.W. Bush and the late Sen. John McCain.
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