Rising Republican Star Pleads Guilty to Rape

(That's the appropriate headline, though the Cleveland Plain Dealer went with the gentler Michigan Young Republican pleads guilty in sex case—grumble.)

Michael Flory, a 32-year-old attorney from Jackson, Michigan once hailed by the Michigan Young Republicans' website as "one of the rising stars of GOP politics in America" who "has earned a great name for himself" doing things like giving a nationally televised speech at the 1992 Republican National Convention, pleaded guilty to sexual battery yesterday.

The teary-eyed college student he overpowered in a downtown hotel room gasped and dabbed her eyes as Flory replied to Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Peter Corrigan's question, "Are you indeed guilty?"

"Sure - yeah," Flory said.

As eloquent as he is ethical, I see.

Since last summer's Young Republicans convention, where Flory escorted the young woman back to her hotel room after a party then "violently forced several sex acts upon" her as she slept, he's spent his time rallying his Republican troops to try to ruin his victim's reputation for having the temerity to report him.

She and some supporters lamented when the incident became public last winter that Flory and his followers within the Republican organization had been smearing her reputation in retaliation for accusing Flory of rape. [Assistant County Prosecutor Carol Skutnik] said she found that to be true.

"People were using every opportunity to try to trash her, on Web sites or whatever," the prosecutor said. "He's been running around telling everybody what a piece of trash she is, so she was very happy to see him plead guilty."

What a charmer!

So charming, in fact, that Skutnik may soon "present evidence of several 'other incidents of sexual misconduct' in which Flory took advantage of vulnerable young women."

Wonkette adds: "Oh, and obviously he was on the Young Leaders Committee or whatever for John McCain’s campaign." Wow. McCain sure knows how to pick 'em.

[Thanks to Blogenfreude for the heads-up via email.]