In an interesting coincidence, on the heels of AVN's review of his blockbuster tell-all history One Nation Under Sex, Hustler publisher and political activist Larry Flynt has taken out ads on several major newspapers headlined, "Have you had a gay or straight sexual encounter with Governor Rick Perry?"
"Can you provide documented evidence of illicit sexual or intimate relations with the governor?" the ad continues. "LARRY FLYNT and HUSTLER MAGAZINE will pay you up to $1 Million if we choose to publish your verified story and use your material."
Of course, Flynt is no stranger to ferreting out politicians' sexual secrets. Back in 1998, he made essentially the same offer to anyone with information on the sexual escapades of Republican politicians. The ad caused the revelation that Louisiana Republican Sen. David Vitter had been a customer of Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the "D.C. Madam," and forced Louisiana Republican Rep. Bob Livingston out of the running for the Speaker of the House position which had then just been vacated by Rep. Newt Gingrich, and in fact, out of the House entirely. Gingrich had resigned from Congress in the wake of his own sex scandal: he had been carrying on an affair with Callista, his current wife, while the woman he was then married to was hospitalized with cancer. Flynt had discovered that Livingston too had had at least one extramarital affair.
(Note: Several news stories have claimed that Flynt's '98 ad targeted the sexual history of Bill Clinton. Not true: Clinton had already weathered two sex scandals—Ginnifer Flowers and Paula Jones—and was about to be impeached for allegedly lying about his relationship with intern Monica Lewinsky. Flynt's '98 ad referred specifically to Republican politicians—Clinton's persecutors.)
"I've been doing this for 35 years," Flynt said in a telephone interview with Reuters. "We've found running these ads were very successful in finding sources to come forward."
Flynt told an Austin Chronicle reporter that his office had heard "considerable chatter about Perry's private life.
"That’s the reason why we decided to run the ad; otherwise we wouldn't do it," Flynt said Thursday. "We hope to get leads. If we do, we have good investigators to put on the story."
Interestingly, Flynt isn't the first to run an ad seeking details of Perry's sex life. Robert Morrow, a supporter of Libertarian-turned-Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, had placed an ad also in theAustin Chronicle asking, "Have you ever had sex with Rick Perry? Are you a stripper, an escort, or just a 'young hottie' impressed by an arrogant, entitled governor of Texas? Contact CASH, and we will help you publicize your direct dealings with a Christian-buzzwords-spouting, 'family values' hypocrite and fraud."
A sentence at the bottom of the ad reads, "Note to gay people: If you know the truth about Rick, please QUIT covering for him."The note appears to be a reference to what Salon reporter Justin Elliott referred to as "the longtime (and equally unsubstantiated) rumors that Perry, who has pursued sundry anti-gay policies, is himself gay."
The Perry campaign has branded Morrow "not stable," and has released a compendium of other causes Morrow has taken up, including accusing George H.W. Bush of trying to have opponent Ross Perot murdered during the 1992 presidential campaign.
But although the Austin Chronicle allegedly investigated the Perry infidelity/gay rumors in 2004 and found them "extraordinary in their baroque detail and remarkable persistence," with Larry Flynt joining the fray, perhaps Rick Perry should get ready for a new sheriff in town—one with up to $1 million to pay for information Perry would want kept secret.
"CASH" is Morrow's anti-Perry organization, the Committee Against Sexual Hypocrisy.
