Mom's for Liberty
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That’s certainly an unexpected turn
So the husband in this story the other co founder for moms for Liberty is the chairman if the Florida GOP and he and his wife had been in a relationship with another woman and he is now being accused of raping her
Florida GOP Chair Has No Plans to Quit After DeSantis Calls for His resignation
Christian Ziegler, the Florida GOP chair and husband to one of the founders of right-wing group Moms for Liberty, indicated this weekend he has no plans to resign despite pressure from party leadership amid a criminal sexual battery investigation.
“We have a country to save and I am not going to let false allegations of a crime put that mission on the bench as I wait for this process to wrap up,” Ziegler said in a Saturday email to party members, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
Noting he was “a bit limited” in regards to what information he could share, Ziegler said he believed his role in the investigation was complete, “and I now wait for law enforcement to finish the police report.”
No charges have been filed against Ziegler, but the police investigation remained open as of Sunday night.
My family is rock solid. My wife is behind me 150% and we have methods in place to protect our (three) children, just as we have with all previous attacks that we have faced,” Ziegler added, according to the Associated Press.
He also included in the body of the email an earlier statement by his lawyer, Derek Byrd, acknowledging the existence of a Sarasota Police Department affidavit that revealed details about the alleged assault on Oct. 2.
The affidavit identified Ziegler’s accuser as a woman with whom he and his wife had previously had a number of joint sexual encounters. The woman told Sarasota investigators that they’d arranged to have another three-way on Oct. 2, only for her to back out when she learned Bridget Ziegler couldn’t make the rendezvous. “Sorry I was mostly in for her,” the woman wrote in a message to Ziegler, according to ABC Action News, which obtained the redacted report.
Ziegler then showed up to the woman’s apartment uninvited and raped her, she told police.
Florida GOP Chair Has No Plans to Quit After DeSantis Calls for His resignation
Christian Ziegler, the Florida GOP chair and husband to one of the founders of right-wing group Moms for Liberty, indicated this weekend he has no plans to resign despite pressure from party leadership amid a criminal sexual battery investigation.
“We have a country to save and I am not going to let false allegations of a crime put that mission on the bench as I wait for this process to wrap up,” Ziegler said in a Saturday email to party members, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
Noting he was “a bit limited” in regards to what information he could share, Ziegler said he believed his role in the investigation was complete, “and I now wait for law enforcement to finish the police report.”
No charges have been filed against Ziegler, but the police investigation remained open as of Sunday night.
My family is rock solid. My wife is behind me 150% and we have methods in place to protect our (three) children, just as we have with all previous attacks that we have faced,” Ziegler added, according to the Associated Press.
He also included in the body of the email an earlier statement by his lawyer, Derek Byrd, acknowledging the existence of a Sarasota Police Department affidavit that revealed details about the alleged assault on Oct. 2.
The affidavit identified Ziegler’s accuser as a woman with whom he and his wife had previously had a number of joint sexual encounters. The woman told Sarasota investigators that they’d arranged to have another three-way on Oct. 2, only for her to back out when she learned Bridget Ziegler couldn’t make the rendezvous. “Sorry I was mostly in for her,” the woman wrote in a message to Ziegler, according to ABC Action News, which obtained the redacted report.
Ziegler then showed up to the woman’s apartment uninvited and raped her, she told police.
Florida GOP Chair Has No Plans to Quit After DeSantis Calls for His Head
Christian Ziegler said he wouldn’t let “false allegations of a crime” keep him from his work. “We have a country to save,” he said.
www.thedailybeast.com
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Operation White Christmas'? Moms For Liberty comes under fire for sharing problematic flyer
Moms For Liberty is at the center of a whirlwind of controversy as an online flyer for 'Operation White Christmas,' reportedly shared on the group's telegram channel, recently went viral online. For the uninitiated, 'Operation White Christmas,' organized by the National Justice Party (NJP) is an annual "online toy drive for White families in need".The flyer shared by Moms For Liberty went viral, triggering a barrage of backlash as people condemned the group's association with NJP, an organization reportedly known for propagating white supremacy and neo-nazism. In light of the connection, netizens rallied against Moms For Liberty for being nothing short of a "hate group."
"In the interest of racial justice and pro-White advocacy, we want to ensure that White families in need are not turned away, as they frequently are by other charitable efforts."
The flyer asked people to reach out to the party in case they were a white family in need or they knew a white family in need. It also stated that the organizers would be using "anonymous methods" to deliver toys, clothes, and other items to those white people in need of them. The link provided in the flyer was blurred out.
The ‘faith-based’ leader for Philly’s Moms for Liberty chapter is a registered sex offender
PHILADELPHIA — Phillip Fisher Jr. is a pastor and former Republican ward leader who coordinates faith-based outreach for Philadelphia’s Moms for Liberty chapter.
He’s also a registered sex offender, due to a 2012 felony conviction for aggravated sexual abuse of a 14-year-old boy when Fisher was 25.
Fisher insists that he did nothing wrong, despite pleading guilty to one of 12 counts filed against him after an investigation by the Chicago Police Department, according to court records obtained by The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Fisher was living in Chicago at the time. But he’s from Philadelphia and has since returned and become active in local politics.
He is the pastor at the Center of Universal Divinity in Olney and works with Moms for Liberty, a national conservative organization that bills itself as a defender of parental rights, by connecting the Philadelphia chapter with other local faith leaders in an effort to grow the group.
He said his conviction is the result of a “railroad job” concocted by the political action committee for Lyndon LaRouche, a fringe conspiracy theorist who ran repeatedly for president.
Fisher, who worked for LaRouche’s organization, called it “a cult” and said he was set up while trying to break free.
His criminal history came as a shock to Vince Fenerty, chair of Philadelphia’s Republican City Committee.
Fenerty said he was unaware of Fisher’s conviction until asked about it by The Inquirer last week. On Friday, he demanded and received Fisher’s resignation as leader of the 42nd Ward, which includes the neighborhoods of Olney, Feltonville and Juniata Park.
A national spokesperson for Moms for Liberty did not respond to a request for comment about Fisher’s criminal history.
Sheila Armstrong, another Republican ward leader who chairs the local Moms for Liberty chapter, said she was also surprised. She said Fisher has been active in community outreach events with local and federal law enforcement, and she expressed concern that children were sometimes part of that.
Armstrong was astounded to hear about Fisher’s criminal past because she had just received from the state Department of Human Services on Thursday a “child abuse history certification” in Fisher’s name so that he could volunteer for an upcoming Christmas Party for an autism nonprofit that she operates.
Trump's sex scandals are being invoked as a defense by embattled Republican Party of Florida Chair Christian Ziegler
Florida GOP Chair Facing Rape Investigation Plays Trump Card Amid Former President’s Silence
Nearly every top elected Florida Republican has called on their state party chair, Christian Ziegler, to step down as police investigate whether he raped a woman who was once involved in a threesome with his wife.
But Ziegler won’t quit. He’s protesting his innocence, predicting he won't be criminally charged and daring the Florida GOP’s executive board to try to oust him at an emergency Dec. 17 meeting.
The inspiration for Ziegler’s defiance: former President Donald Trump, the presidential primary’s frontrunner and the only top Republican leader in Florida who has not weighed in on Ziegler’s scandal.
In private conversations, Ziegler has pointed to Trump’s silence as an indicator of tacit support, those who have spoken to him tell The Messenger. They say he accused Republicans who want to boot him from office of hypocrisy because they’re not denouncing Trump -- even though he was recently held liable for sexually abusing a woman in 1996. Trump was also criminally charged recently in a case involving hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels, whom he had sex with while his wife was pregnant.
Ziegler’s denials, counter-accusations and intransigence also reflect the Trump’s admit-no-wrong and fight-all-comers style of politics. It’s a Trump legacy that gives a measure of discomfort to some Republicans, including those who support Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the presidential primary and fear that Trump’s baggage makes him a weak general election candidate.
In Southwest Florida, Lee County GOP Chair Michael Thompson told The Messenger he had a heated conversation with Ziegler when he told him to step aside last week. Thompson said he was irritated when Ziegler referenced Trump's sex assault case, which bothers Trump's team as well.
“Oh, you’re a big Trump guy. But it’s ok for Trump? You don’t call on him to resign but you want me to step down?” Ziegler said, according to Thompson, a member of the state executive committee.
Thompson said he told Ziegler that his case and Trump’s are “completely different.”
“Trump wasn’t the president of the United States and accused of rape at the same time,” Thompson said he told Ziegler. “He wasn’t even in office, you were. And President Trump wasn’t doing threesomes, either.”
Christian Michael Ziegler Christian Ziegler, Republican State Committeeman© Provided by The Messenger
Echoing other Republicans, Thompson said he believes Ziegler is innocent of rape, but Ziegler wasn’t forthcoming about the ménage à trois relationship the alleged victim previously had with Ziegler and his wife, Sarasota County School Board Member Bridget Ziegler. She's a co-founder of the national conservative group Moms for Liberty that has targeted LGBT-related issues in education. The scandal is a distraction for a party that wants to ensure a GOP victory next November, Thompson said, adding that Ziegler has threatened him and others who want him to step aside.
Thompson said Republicans believe the rape case against Trump is “a political hit job” because Trump was tried in civil court in liberal New York City decades after the alleged conduct; there was no clear evidence; and the lawsuit only happened because the Democratic governor and state assembly changed the statute of limitations under a law that Trump accuser E Jean Carroll, a liberal columnist, lobbied for. She won a $5 million judgment in May after a jury determined Trump probably sexually assaulted her and then defamed her when she accused him of the crime in 2019.
In Ziegler’s case, the accuser is not involved in politics and has known him for about two decades, according to a Sarasota Police Department search warrant affidavit seeking data from Ziegler’s smartphone and Google accounts.
Both Zieglers were supposed to meet up with the woman Oct. 2 for a threesome, but Mrs. Ziegler couldn't make it, the affidavit said. It said that the alleged victim indicated she did not want to have sex alone with Mr. Ziegler and preferred sexual relations with Mrs. Ziegler.
"Sorry I was mostly in for her," the woman, according to the affidavit, said in a digital message to Mr. Ziegler at 2:24 p.m.
About five minutes later, Mr. Ziegler showed up at the woman’s apartment and, though the alleged victim told police she “had been drinking tequila all day," he had sex with her against her will on a stool in her apartment. He left within 38 minutes of arriving, the affidavit says.
Ziegler, sources tell The Messenger, told others he shot video of the encounter and that he asked police to obtain the original video from his Google account because it will help cast doubt on her account concerning their sexual encounter. The Florida Center for Government Accountability, which broke the story last week of the allegations, reported Thursday that sources said the video is brief, potentially exculpatory and shows the alleged victim telling "Ziegler to climax in her mouth rather than on her new shirt."
Citing the video and other facts of the case, Ziegler told others, quitting his party post would look like an admission of wrongdoing, even though he's innocent.
The alleged victim's identity is not public; she cannot be reached.
Republican Party of Florida sources say Trump advisers have communicated to members of the party's executive board that Trump is not supporting Ziegler and he does not want his name invoked in the scandal. Ziegler, a political consultant and former Sarasota County commissioner, has close ties to Trump’s 2016 campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski.
When Ziegler secured his state party chairmanship in February, Trump claimed a measure of credit for the victory by highlighting a Politico article that called it a “win” for the former president. Ziegler defeated party member Evan Power, whose wife worked for DeSantis’s political operation at the time. DeSantis ostensibly stayed neutral in the race, as did Trump until Ziegler won.
“We won a big Chairmanship in Florida over the DeSantis Reps, but actually, it’s a win for ALL. That’s the way we want it. Christian will be a great Chairman!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social media platform.
Power, who would not comment for this article, is vice chair of the Florida GOP and called for the Dec. 17 meeting to oust Ziegler.
State Rep. Michelle Salzman said Ziegler doesn't seem to understand that, even if he's exonerated of the rape accusation, party members want him to step aside because he campaigned, consulted and governed as a "family values conservative."
"He put himself on this pedestal as a stanch conservative Christian and he won his race as chair based on that platform, but it's not equivalent to his actions," she said.
CONTD
Contd from Above
The day after the news of the alleged rape and threesome broke, DeSantis became the first statewide elected official to call on Ziegler to step aside on Nov. 30, followed by Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott on Tuesday and then state Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis and state Attorney General Ashley Moody.
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio is the only statewide elected official to not call on Ziegler to step down and instead told The Messenger Wednesday that the decision was up to him and the state GOP’s executive board. None of the Republican congressional delegation members, some of whom Ziegler has consulted for, are publicly standing by him. His local GOP in Sarasota County formally called on him to quit as has the state party’s Faith and Mobilization Committee.
Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said the GOP's chaos and Ziegler's attitude are the product of the Trump GOP.
“Trump raped a woman. He’s not going to denounce another rapist in his party,” said Fried, who called Republicans hypocrites for failing to live up to their “family values” rhetoric. “This is Trump’s Republican Party.”
Trump advisers who spoke on condition of anonymity say he doesn’t like denouncing fellow Republicans based solely on accusations, and he doesn’t want to weigh in here because he doesn’t have any appointees on the state party board, unlike all the other statewide elected officials. In addition to running for president, Trump is facing four separate and unrelated criminal cases along with the Carroll defamation suit and another civil suit to wipe out his Trump Organization family business in New York.
“Trump’s a little busy,” deadpanned one Trump confidant. “And he doesn’t like to join the mob with stuff like this, and frankly he values people who stand their ground like Ziegler is.”
One Florida executive committee member who spoke to Ziegler and is organizing opposition to him did not want to go on record with The Messenger because, he said, Ziegler has become threatening and "delusional."
The official said party officials overwhelming believe Ziegler needs to step down because he’s a distraction. Some want him to take a leave of absence, but he has so far refused.
Party rules don’t spell out procedures for removing a chair, so members have been told by legal counsel that they’ll have to follow Roberts Rules of Order, which could require them to form an investigative committee, perform an investigation and then hold a trial before voting to remove him. Executive board members plan to strip him of his salary and authority so that he’s a chair in name only until they remove him.
“Trump’s not coming to save Christian. So Christian can fight and lose,” the official said. “He can say he’s playing the Trump card, but the Trump card works for Trump. There’s no Ziegler card.”
Joe Budd, another Republican Party of Florida executive committee member, said he wants Ziegler to step down and believes Trump should call on him to do so.
“But you have a weakened [former] president with issues in his own past,” said Budd, who is supporting DeSantis in the primary. “So how could he stand there and call for Christian’s resignation? It’s just Trump out there reminding people who he is.”
Florida GOP executive committee member John Vacchiano said the overwhelming number of party members he has spoken to want Ziegler to quit and are ready to vote him out. Vacchiano heads the party’s faith committee that called for him to step down. Like Budd and Thompson, Vacchiano said he believes Ziegler’s denial about committing rape, but his admitted conduct -- threesomes with his wife – are not in keeping with the "family values" image the party wants to project.
Asked about the scandals involving Trump that Ziegler has privately raised, Vacchiano said “everything with Trump was a prior-presidency issue” that voters weighed. In contrast, he said, Ziegler’s scandal occurred while he was in his party office.
“This isn't about Trump. This about Christian,” said Republican Party of Florida Executive Committee Member Shawn Foster. "He needs to step aside. He doesn't have to step down. But we need to move forward and focus on the future."
The day after the news of the alleged rape and threesome broke, DeSantis became the first statewide elected official to call on Ziegler to step aside on Nov. 30, followed by Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott on Tuesday and then state Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis and state Attorney General Ashley Moody.
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio is the only statewide elected official to not call on Ziegler to step down and instead told The Messenger Wednesday that the decision was up to him and the state GOP’s executive board. None of the Republican congressional delegation members, some of whom Ziegler has consulted for, are publicly standing by him. His local GOP in Sarasota County formally called on him to quit as has the state party’s Faith and Mobilization Committee.
Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said the GOP's chaos and Ziegler's attitude are the product of the Trump GOP.
“Trump raped a woman. He’s not going to denounce another rapist in his party,” said Fried, who called Republicans hypocrites for failing to live up to their “family values” rhetoric. “This is Trump’s Republican Party.”
Trump advisers who spoke on condition of anonymity say he doesn’t like denouncing fellow Republicans based solely on accusations, and he doesn’t want to weigh in here because he doesn’t have any appointees on the state party board, unlike all the other statewide elected officials. In addition to running for president, Trump is facing four separate and unrelated criminal cases along with the Carroll defamation suit and another civil suit to wipe out his Trump Organization family business in New York.
“Trump’s a little busy,” deadpanned one Trump confidant. “And he doesn’t like to join the mob with stuff like this, and frankly he values people who stand their ground like Ziegler is.”
One Florida executive committee member who spoke to Ziegler and is organizing opposition to him did not want to go on record with The Messenger because, he said, Ziegler has become threatening and "delusional."
The official said party officials overwhelming believe Ziegler needs to step down because he’s a distraction. Some want him to take a leave of absence, but he has so far refused.
Party rules don’t spell out procedures for removing a chair, so members have been told by legal counsel that they’ll have to follow Roberts Rules of Order, which could require them to form an investigative committee, perform an investigation and then hold a trial before voting to remove him. Executive board members plan to strip him of his salary and authority so that he’s a chair in name only until they remove him.
“Trump’s not coming to save Christian. So Christian can fight and lose,” the official said. “He can say he’s playing the Trump card, but the Trump card works for Trump. There’s no Ziegler card.”
Joe Budd, another Republican Party of Florida executive committee member, said he wants Ziegler to step down and believes Trump should call on him to do so.
“But you have a weakened [former] president with issues in his own past,” said Budd, who is supporting DeSantis in the primary. “So how could he stand there and call for Christian’s resignation? It’s just Trump out there reminding people who he is.”
Florida GOP executive committee member John Vacchiano said the overwhelming number of party members he has spoken to want Ziegler to quit and are ready to vote him out. Vacchiano heads the party’s faith committee that called for him to step down. Like Budd and Thompson, Vacchiano said he believes Ziegler’s denial about committing rape, but his admitted conduct -- threesomes with his wife – are not in keeping with the "family values" image the party wants to project.
Asked about the scandals involving Trump that Ziegler has privately raised, Vacchiano said “everything with Trump was a prior-presidency issue” that voters weighed. In contrast, he said, Ziegler’s scandal occurred while he was in his party office.
“This isn't about Trump. This about Christian,” said Republican Party of Florida Executive Committee Member Shawn Foster. "He needs to step aside. He doesn't have to step down. But we need to move forward and focus on the future."
Florida school board may seek ouster of Moms for Liberty co-founder over Republican sex scandal
SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) — A co-founder of the conservative Moms for Liberty group could move a step closer to getting ousted from a Florida school board on Tuesday, as she is embroiled in the fallout of a sexual assault investigation into her husband, the Republican Party state chairman.The Sarasota County School Board cannot directly remove Bridget Ziegler from the panel but was set to vote on a resolution requesting that she step down. The resolution was authored by board Chair Karen Rose, who said in an email that she is “shocked and deeply saddened” by the rape allegations involving Ziegler's husband, Christian Ziegler, and the couple's admissions about having a three-way sexual encounter previously with the accuser.
“I personally care about Bridget and her family and deeply regret the necessity for this course of action, but given the intense media scrutiny locally and nationally, her continued presence on the Board would cause irreparably harmful distractions to our critical mission,” Rose wrote.
Bridget Ziegler has served on the board since 2014, when she was appointed by then-Gov. Rick Scott, and has previously been its chair. She did not respond to email messages seeking comment about the resignation resolution, which is on the board's agenda for a Tuesday evening meeting.
The Sarasota Police Department is investigating a woman's accusation that Christian Ziegler raped her at her apartment in October. Police documents say the Zieglers and the woman had planned a sexual threesome that day, but Bridget Ziegler was unable to make it. The accuser says Christian Ziegler arrived anyway and assaulted her, according to the documents.
Christian Ziegler has not been charged with any crime and maintains his innocence, contending the encounter was consensual. Scott, Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Florida Republicans have called on him to step down as GOP chair, but he has refused to do so.
In a recent message to Florida Republicans, Christian Ziegler said he would remain as chair "because we have a country to save and I am not going to let false allegations of a crime put that mission on the bench as I wait for this process to wrap up.”
Christian Ziegler's lawyer, Derek Byrd, said in an email Monday he is “hoping (the) investigation is closed soon.” A Sarasota Police Department spokesperson said there is no timetable for the probe to conclude.
Bridget Ziegler has long been active in conservative politics. She was a champion of the DeSantis-backed law known by critics as “Don't Say Gay,” which restricts teaching of sexual and gender material in early school grades. Moms for Liberty, which she co-founded in 2021, aims to inject more conservative viewpoints in schools, restrict transgender rights, battle pandemic mask mandates and remove books they object to from school classrooms and libraries.
In addition, DeSantis appointed Bridget Ziegler to the new Central Florida Tourism Oversight District that oversees Walt Disney World's operations. That panel — which replaced one controlled by Disney — was created by the Legislature at DeSantis' request after Disney objected to the “Don't Say Gay” law. The board currently is the subject of state and federal lawsuits over control of the huge theme park outside Orlando.
Democrats and other critics say the Zieglers are hypocritical because the alleged sexual activities are completely at odds with the conservative views they push on others, particularly LGBTQ people.
“The Zieglers have made a habit out of attacking anything they perceive as going against ‘family values,’ be it reproductive rights or the existence of LGBTQ+ Floridians,” state Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said in a statement. “The level of hypocrisy in this situation is stunning.”
The state GOP has called a meeting for Sunday in Orlando to discuss Christian Ziegler's future as party chair.
hahahhahahahha Mom's for Liberty Husband
Republican leaders in Florida are expressing outrage over a reported proposal that party chairman Christian Ziegler be paid as much as $2 million before he’ll step down amid a sexual assault investigation.
Ziegler is battling to keep his powerful position despite dual scandals, one of which has also ensnared his wife, Bridget Ziegler, a Moms for Liberty co-founder who sits on the Sarasota County School Board.
The couple, whose political influence has grown along with the ascent of the Florida GOP, have been asked to quit their jobs, even by friends and allies as well as political opponents. Each has refused.
Party members say a buyout for Christian was floated more than a week ago. Florida Politics first reported on it Thursday, saying the demand may have been as high as $2 million.
Ziegler, in reply to a text message, said the buyout report was “100% not true.”
Michael Thompson, who leads the Lee County Republican Executive Committee, said two individuals are trying to broker a resolution on behalf of Ziegler in advance of a meeting Sunday, where the committee will be asked to vote him out of the chairmanship.
“My first thought when I heard it was I laughed, and so did the person who told me what was being discussed or asked,” Thompson said. “There will never be a buyout.”
Ziegler’s annual salary as chairman is $120,000. He was elected to the position by party members in January for a two-year term.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, all members of his cabinet, the speaker of the Florida House and the state Senate president, along with U.S. Sen. Rick Scott and others, have called on Ziegler to step down. Rep. Vern Buchanan, who hired Ziegler for his congressional staff in Washington when he was first elected in 2006, also said this week that Ziegler should resign.
The 40-year-old chairman has refused despite the increasing pressure. In a statement to the party earlier this month, he denied the rape allegation against him and called the interaction in question consensual. It involves a woman with whom he and his wife have acknowledged having a three-way sexual encounter. The woman claims Christian Ziegler raped her after she tried to cancel another meeting with the couple when she learned Bridget would not be there.
Sarasota police say their investigation is continuing.
Bridget Ziegler sits through a meeting of the Sarasota County School Board on Tuesday, ignoring calls for her to resign.© Steve Nesius/Reuters
On Tuesday, Bridget Ziegler sat through a heated meeting of the Sarasota County School Board as her colleagues, as well as many speakers from the community, pressed her to resign. A board member since 2014, she has spearheaded efforts to remove books and ban what she calls “woke ideology” from schools. She also helped influence the Parental Rights in Education law, called “don’t say gay” by opponents.
Only DeSantis, who has not commented on her future, can remove her from that board seat.
State Rep. Spencer Roach said reports of a buyout request from Christian Ziegler have alarmed many in the party.
“I would be vehemently opposed to giving one single dime of donor money to make him go away,” Roach said. “He deserves nothing, he should get nothing, and he should not be able to profit one penny off of discrediting the party. This is the worst form of political grift.”
Embattled Florida GOP chair demands $2 million buyout to quit, party members say
Republican leaders in Florida are expressing outrage over a reported proposal that party chairman Christian Ziegler be paid as much as $2 million before he’ll step down amid a sexual assault investigation.
Ziegler is battling to keep his powerful position despite dual scandals, one of which has also ensnared his wife, Bridget Ziegler, a Moms for Liberty co-founder who sits on the Sarasota County School Board.
The couple, whose political influence has grown along with the ascent of the Florida GOP, have been asked to quit their jobs, even by friends and allies as well as political opponents. Each has refused.
Party members say a buyout for Christian was floated more than a week ago. Florida Politics first reported on it Thursday, saying the demand may have been as high as $2 million.
Ziegler, in reply to a text message, said the buyout report was “100% not true.”
Michael Thompson, who leads the Lee County Republican Executive Committee, said two individuals are trying to broker a resolution on behalf of Ziegler in advance of a meeting Sunday, where the committee will be asked to vote him out of the chairmanship.
“My first thought when I heard it was I laughed, and so did the person who told me what was being discussed or asked,” Thompson said. “There will never be a buyout.”
Ziegler’s annual salary as chairman is $120,000. He was elected to the position by party members in January for a two-year term.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, all members of his cabinet, the speaker of the Florida House and the state Senate president, along with U.S. Sen. Rick Scott and others, have called on Ziegler to step down. Rep. Vern Buchanan, who hired Ziegler for his congressional staff in Washington when he was first elected in 2006, also said this week that Ziegler should resign.
The 40-year-old chairman has refused despite the increasing pressure. In a statement to the party earlier this month, he denied the rape allegation against him and called the interaction in question consensual. It involves a woman with whom he and his wife have acknowledged having a three-way sexual encounter. The woman claims Christian Ziegler raped her after she tried to cancel another meeting with the couple when she learned Bridget would not be there.
Sarasota police say their investigation is continuing.
Bridget Ziegler sits through a meeting of the Sarasota County School Board on Tuesday, ignoring calls for her to resign.© Steve Nesius/Reuters
On Tuesday, Bridget Ziegler sat through a heated meeting of the Sarasota County School Board as her colleagues, as well as many speakers from the community, pressed her to resign. A board member since 2014, she has spearheaded efforts to remove books and ban what she calls “woke ideology” from schools. She also helped influence the Parental Rights in Education law, called “don’t say gay” by opponents.
Only DeSantis, who has not commented on her future, can remove her from that board seat.
State Rep. Spencer Roach said reports of a buyout request from Christian Ziegler have alarmed many in the party.
“I would be vehemently opposed to giving one single dime of donor money to make him go away,” Roach said. “He deserves nothing, he should get nothing, and he should not be able to profit one penny off of discrediting the party. This is the worst form of political grift.”
Stillwater Townie
Deputy
Ziegler is just a gross hypocrite who gets into seizing power and controlling people in how he sees fit. That his first name is Christian is further insane irony.
Klanned Karenhood at it again
I prefer "Ku Klux Karens".
Stillwater Townie
Deputy
Just what is the fear that reading the book "Gender Queer" will do to students, especially straight ones? That it will persuade straight students to become queer? But I doubt straight students would want to be caught dead with such a book.
I don't believe it. Let me see it and I will judge for myself.
Seems the GOP chair of Florida and co founder of Moms for Liberty and his wife may have been illegally recording their 3 somes with another female...without the concent or knowledge of the Erd party.... investigators are now looking at possible felony voyeurism charges
The Sarasota Police Department has expanded the investigation into Florida State GOP Chair Christian Ziegler from the original sexual battery allegation into a possible additional or alternate charge of video voyeurism. Zieger and his wife, Moms for Liberty founder Brigette, have admitted to a sexual relationship with the woman making the allegations.
Proving the Sexual Battery charge was always going to be problematic given the facts of the case and evidence available. However, the video voyeurism statute is fairly simple to prove - the State Attorney is only required to show that Ziegler filmed the woman without her knowledge for consent. Although that statute is less serious than Sexual Battery, it is still a felony that carries with it a penalty of up to five years in prison.
Ziegler's lawyer told detectives that the woman sent him an Instagram message after the encounter that acknowledged she was aware that she was filmed by asking him if she had shown it to his wife. However, the woman adamantly denied that she had ever sent that message or was aware that a video had been taken.
Detectives have now obtained a third search warrant for Ziegler's Instagram account, which should conclusively prove who is telling the truth. Ziegler has a history of deleting incriminating Instagram videos. He filmed himself marching to the Capitol on J6 and was posting clips to Instagram, then deleted all of them when the violence started to occur.
If the Instagram account confirms that Ziegler's lawyer's statement to detectives was untrue, then it would be extremely difficult for prosecutors to justify not filing the felony charge of video voyeurism.
Ziegler Investigation Expands to Video Voyeurism
The Sarasota Police Department has expanded the investigation into Florida State GOP Chair Christian Ziegler from the original sexual battery allegation into a possible additional or alternate charge of video voyeurism. Zieger and his wife, Moms for Liberty founder Brigette, have admitted to a sexual relationship with the woman making the allegations.
Proving the Sexual Battery charge was always going to be problematic given the facts of the case and evidence available. However, the video voyeurism statute is fairly simple to prove - the State Attorney is only required to show that Ziegler filmed the woman without her knowledge for consent. Although that statute is less serious than Sexual Battery, it is still a felony that carries with it a penalty of up to five years in prison.
Ziegler's lawyer told detectives that the woman sent him an Instagram message after the encounter that acknowledged she was aware that she was filmed by asking him if she had shown it to his wife. However, the woman adamantly denied that she had ever sent that message or was aware that a video had been taken.
Detectives have now obtained a third search warrant for Ziegler's Instagram account, which should conclusively prove who is telling the truth. Ziegler has a history of deleting incriminating Instagram videos. He filmed himself marching to the Capitol on J6 and was posting clips to Instagram, then deleted all of them when the violence started to occur.
If the Instagram account confirms that Ziegler's lawyer's statement to detectives was untrue, then it would be extremely difficult for prosecutors to justify not filing the felony charge of video voyeurism.
Okstatekerr
Sheriff
That's terrible. Where is this video located so I know to avoid those places?
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