Senator gets sexually graphic to shame opponent
American political culture hit a nadir this month, when a Nebraska state senator unleashed what can only be described as a verbal sexual assault on a female colleague during a debate about keeping obscenity out of schools.
From the floor of the legislature, Republican Senator Steve Halloran read a passage from the book, “Lucky” by Alice Sebold.
The best-selling memoir tells the story of how Sebold’s life was transformed after she was brutally raped and beaten as a college freshman. Halloran, who wants the memoir banned, read an explicit and graphic rape scene from the book. That’s been done before, sadly.
But he decided to add his own sick twist, taking time to insert the name of a Democratic senator throughout. At one point, as he read, “I want a b*** job,” he deliberately added the words, “Senator Cavanaugh,” and looked up for emphasis.
Halloran was widely condemned for his actions by Democrats and Republicans, but he has been bold and unashamed in rejecting immediate calls for his resignation. Such behavior would be grounds for immediate dismissal in most workplaces in America.
What’s ugly about this incident is not just that Halloran had the temerity to insert the name of a female colleague in a passage recounting a violent sex act. It also serves as a nasty reminder of what’s become far too normal in American politics, where elected officials seek attention through coarse, profane language, gestures and tactics— and with few to no consequences.
Little appears to be out of bounds, especially among the party that claims Donald Trump as its avatar. Beginning with his vulgar comments on the infamous Access Hollywood tape. He was found liable for sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll — then and defaming her. Trump has made a specialty of denigrating women, his opponents and anyone he doesn’t like— from humiliating nicknames to sexist, racist and bigoted slurs. He laces his rally speeches with profanities to the delight of his adoring audiences, which often include children.
State Senator Machaela Cavanaugh, the target of Halloran’s attack, was clear in her response, and told Halloran she considered his speech harassment.
“That was so out of line and unnecessary and disgusting to say my name over and over again like that,” she said from the floor. “You don’t know anything about anyone else’s life, and I can tell you that women in this body have been subjected to sexual violence. I didn’t know you were capable of such cruelty.”
Halloran did offer an apology of sorts the following day, but used much of his time on the floor to restate his issues with the book itself, saying “that’s what we should be outraged about.”
He also insisted, belatedly, that his remarks were addressed not to Machaela Cavanaugh, but to her brother, Senator John Cavanaugh, who serves alongside his sister. As if that somehow made his behavior okay.
Cavanaugh is right to be angry with Halloran. But there is plenty of blame to go around, including the legislature’s speaker, Senator John Arch, who could have stopped Halloran immediately rather than let him continue reading the passage and degrading Cavanaugh. Instead, Arch merely agreed to adjourn early, saying “this is one of those times,” to step back from debate.
There are Halloran’s colleagues, who mostly allowed him to finish his methodical and deliberate recitation of the rape passage, in which he went on to say, “Something tore. I began to bleed there. I was wet now, Senator Cavanaugh.”
Senator Julie Slama, a conservative Republican, did send a post on X to Cavanaugh afterward, calling his actions “disgusting,” adding that “no context makes this appropriate.” Patricia Lopez is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering politics and policy. This article was published in the Bloomberg News and distributed by Tribune Content Agency.