Florida GOP Police Blotter #4

This new feature is almost too easy. Blast Off!'s exclusive Florida GOP Police Blotter adds another name:

An organizer for a Rudy Giuliani presidential event plans to step down amid revelations of his arrests for allegedly extorting an FSU student in a sex case and his conviction for dealing in stolen state computers.

Barry S. Edwards, 45, told The Miami Herald that the charges against him were "old news" --- and were 'unfounded' in the student sex case -- but he nevertheless thought it would be best to withdraw from the Pinellas County Republican Party fundraiser because "I'm not relevant and I shouldn't be the story."

[...]

The two criminal incidents involving Edwards were unrelated, and occurred within months of each other in 1998.

According to a Florida State University arrest affidavit: Edwards was first charged after a 19-year-old FSU political science intern claimed Edwards, then an adjunct professor, plied him with beers, trolled briefly for prostitutes, watched "heterosexual" pornography and then exhorted him to masturbate in a game.

The intern said Edwards threatened him with bad grades if he didn't "get into it." He declined to press charges. Edwards said the claims were "lies" but he didn't "want to revisit it." Edwards was fired from FSU.

Shortly after his extortion arrest, state Capitol police then arrested Edwards on charges of theft, burglary and dealing with stolen property after the cops said he stole at least $10,000 worth of computer equipment from offices of the Florida Legislature.

Wow. This one has it all. A Republican operative for a cross-dressing, serial-marrying presidential candidate has two arrests on his record, one involving at least arguably homosexual activity (a Republican covering up gay sex?!? Say it ain't so!) and one theft from the state government (insert joke here).

Edwards is as contrite as Republican doctrine requires -- which is to say not at all. First, he steps down from working the Giuliani event even though the charges were "unfounded." Yeah, every innocent person quits for the good of the Party. Just ask Larry Craig, another one who's probably thinking he and his behavior are "irrelevant."

But Edwards goes on to point out, in case it wasn't obvious, that he's really the victim here -- the victim of a system gone horribly awry:

The fact that the charges are coming up again, Edwards said, is just another example of the viciousness and coarseness of politics today.

"Whether you did something or were accused of something you didn't do almost doesn't matter. Perception is reality," he said. "This chills people from becoming involved."

Said Elliott Bundy,* a spokesman for Giuliani, "[T]his gentleman was organizing the event on behalf of the Pinellas County party and not us. We have no further comment."

And so the Giuliani campaign backpedals as fast as its tiara and stylish high-heeled shoes will let it.

Boy, that denial by Edwards is strongly worded, isn't it? "Whether you did something or [not] almost doesn't matter ..." Whoa, you got me there, pal.

Who started the viciousness and coarseness, by the way? Think about it ...

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* This is the same Elliott Bundy who had to explain away his boss' decision to skip the Miami debate to be conducted in Spanish ... man, Elliott's having a tough week.