A Florida school board passed a resolution Tuesday calling for the resignation of one of its members, Moms for Liberty co-founder Bridget Ziegler, amid a rape investigation into her husband, the state GOP chairman.
The Sarasota County School Board could not remove Bridget Ziegler from the panel but voted 4-1 to recommend that she step down in the wake of the massive sex scandal.
Ziegler, who voted against the bipartisan measure, dismissed it as “toothless” and said he was “disappointed.” He gave no indication that he would resign – and remained on the bench after the vote.
Board Chairwoman Karen Rose, who introduced the resolution against Ziegler, said in an email that she was “shocked and deeply saddened” by the rape allegations targeting her husband, Republican Chairman Christian Ziegler, and the couple’s admission of a previous threesome with the accuser.
“I personally care for Bridget and her family and deeply regret the need for this action, but given the intense media scrutiny locally and nationally, her continued presence on the Board will cause irreparable disruption to our critical mission,” wrote Rose.
The Sarasota County School Board voted 4-1 to call on board member Bridget Ziegler to resign amid a sex scandal. REUTERS Ziegler’s husband, State GOP Chairman Christian Ziegler, is being investigated for rape. Dave Decker/Shutterstock
Board member Tim Enos said it was up to Bridget Ziegler to decide whether to step down. Only Florida’s governor can remove school board members, and only under certain conditions, such as criminal charges.
“If he continues and doesn’t resign and stay, we have an obligation that we all have to focus on education,” said Enos. “Politics needs to be outside the boardroom. It should just be about the kids.”
Bridget Ziegler is the co-founder of the conservative parent rights group Moms for Liberty. He has served on the board since 2014, when he was appointed by then-Republican Gov. Rick Scott, and previously served as its chairman.
Before Tuesday’s board meeting, several dozen protesters marched outside carrying signs reading “Ban Bridget, not the book,” and chanting, “Hey hey, ho ho, Bridget Ziegler has to go.”
Board Chair Karen Rose wrote that Ziegler’s continued presence on the panel would cause “irreparable disruption.” REUTERS Protesters march with signs calling for Ziegler’s resignation ahead of Tuesday’s vote. Reuters
The Sarasota Police Department is investigating a woman’s allegation that Christian Ziegler raped her in her apartment in early October.
Ziegler and the woman, described as Christian Ziegler’s friend of 20 years, had planned a three-way sexual encounter that day, but Bridget was unable to make it, according to the documents.
Accusers say Christian Ziegler kept showing up at her house, bent her over the bar and raped her.
Ziegler also allegedly filmed himself engaging in sexual acts with his accuser, according to news reports and police affidavits.
Ziegler, who has always spoken for conservative values, was called a hypocrite after it emerged that the couple had a threesome with accuser Christian Ziegler. AP Lisa Schurr (center) with Support Our Schools, briefly stops a man from using his megaphone after he tried to disrupt a protest outside the Sarasota County School Board Tuesday. AP
The graphic video allegedly shows the woman “bent over a piece of furniture in the bedroom,” the Florida Trident reported. He can reportedly be heard telling the Florida GOP chairman to “climax in his mouth instead of his new shirt.”
The state GOP chairman has insisted that the meeting was consensual. He has not been charged with any crime so far.
Scott, now a US senator, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida House Speaker Paul Renner (R), Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (B) and the Pinellas County GOP have called on Christian Ziegler to step down, but he has refused.
In a recent message to Florida Republicans, Ziegler said he will remain chairman “because we have a country to save and I’m not going to let false allegations of crime put that mission on the bench while I wait for this process to come up.”
Ziegler has been labeled a hypocrite by their critics on the left, given that they have long portrayed themselves as champions of traditional family values.
Bridget Ziegler is a staunch supporter of the DeSantis-backed law commonly known as “Don’t Say Gay,” which bans the teaching of sexual and gender-based material in the early grades of school.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state GOP leaders have called on Christian Ziegler — pictured with Donald Trump — to step down. AP
Moms for Liberty, which she co-founded in 2021, is dedicated to pushing for conservative policies in schools, restricting transgender rights and purging gang-object books from classrooms and school libraries.
“Ziegler has made a habit out of attacking anything they deem to be against ‘family values,’ whether it’s 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 astounding.”
The Florida Republican Party has called an emergency meeting for Sunday in Orlando where a vote on whether to force Ziegler out as chairman is expected.
With Postal wire
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
