Meet John Diehl. John is 49 years old, Republican, married with three children, and he is the Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives. ALSO, he just got caught sexting with an intern.
The Kansas City Star obtained text messages between Diehl and a college freshman intern, and they're equal parts creepy, sad, and embarrassing:
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Oof. A man using the lips emoji while trying to be sexy? And then he said "quivering?" In the words of Diehl's texts: "Damn." In case you've never thought about what your parents' sexts look like, well, now you know. And I'm really sorry for that.
Diehl declined to comment on the alleged texts, while the intern in question claimed that they were not real, though the Star reports that she has told friends that she had an ongoing relationship with Diehl. Despite the denials, multiple sources have reportedly confirmed that the text messages came from the intern's phone and went to Diehl's business number. Women and men lie, but sexts don't.
A month ago, the Missouri Capitol's internship program with Missouri South State University was suddenly shut down after an "unspecified incident." As of now it's unclear whether that incident was a House Speaker texting pictures of himself next to a Rolls Royce as masturbation material.
Update: John Diehl has taken responsibility for the texts (which despite what any of you say, are inappropriate and wrong) and issued a statement about the incident:
I take full responsibility for my actions and am truly sorry to those I let down. I apologize for the poor judgment I displayed that put me and those closest to me in this situation. I also regret that the woman has been dragged into this situation. The buck stops here. I ask for forgiveness. I will begin immediately working to restore the trust of those closest to me, and getting back to the important work that is required in the final days of session.
Update 5/14/15 (4:58 p.m.): John Diehl has resigned from the state legislature, Talking Points Memo reports. "For the good of my party, the caucus, and this state, I'm not going to further jeopardize what we have accomplished this year and what can be accomplished in the future," he said in a statement. "Therefore, I will be resigning the position of Speaker of the House and the office of State Representative in a way that allows for an orderly transition."
