Disgraced Republican Roy Moore is facing legal action after suggesting that a woman accusing him of child molestation is a crazy liar.
Moore – who believes gay sex should be illegal – was the GOP candidate for Alabama’s US Senate seat last month, but lost to Democrat Doug Jones in a surprise upset after Moore faced allegations of child molestation.
Despite losing the election by more than 20,000 votes (1.5%) Moore has continued to refuse to concede, posting a surreal video in which he appeared to blame gay people for his election defeat.
Things went from bad to worse for Moore this week, after a woman who came forward to accuse Moore of sexually abusing her when she was 14 years old sued Moore and his campaign for defamation.
Leigh Corfman’s lawsuit, which was filed in Alabama’s Montgomery County Circuit Court, cites smears attacking her credibility from Moore and his supporters.
She is seeking a defamation judgement, a public apology, and legal costs.
A statement said: “Mr Moore has repeatedly attacked Ms Corfman despite knowing that he sexually abused Ms Corfman when she was 14 years old.
“At a minimum, Mr Moore made his false denials with reckless disregard of the truth.”
Ms Corfman said: “The decision to sue Mr Moore and his campaign committee was difficult, but they need to be held responsible for their actions.
“Mr Moore sexually abused me when I was only 14 years old. Then he and his campaign called me a liar and immoral when I publicly disclosed his misconduct.
“They ignored my requests to stop attacking me and to acknowledge the truth.
“Just last week, after the election, they filed a lawsuit in which they once again called me a liar.
“By this lawsuit, I seek to do what I could not do as a 14-year-old—hold Mr. Moore and those who enable him accountable.”
Prior to the allegations, establishment conservatives had flocked to back Moore despite his anti-LGBT views.
Moore has openly admitted that he thinks “homosexual conduct should be illegal”, and has also compared gay sex to bestiality, saying: “Just because it’s done behind closed doors, it can still be prohibited by state law.”
In a sinister move last week, Moore shared an article about Senator-elect Doug Jones’ gay son on social media.
Moore did not post a message alongside the link, but his supporters heard the dog whistle loud and clear – posting a string of homophobic abuse aimed at Carson Jones.
One wrote: “Well the way I see it if god wanted us to be with men on men and women on women and black with white he would have put us on earth that way guess what we are not that way it was Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve so with that said don’t push it on me I get sick and tried of hearing this crap.
“Just like Obama and the dem’s always trying to push it on us letting men go to girls bathroom just because one day they wake up and say o today I am a woman but to some that is ok well not by me it is not ok I don’t stand for it.”
The Daily Beast points out that the disgraced candidate should probably not be one to throw stones at other people’s families.
Moore’s own son Caleb has been arrested nine times, which Jones was decent enough to not bring up during the campaign.
The Facebook post was apparently a bridge too far for some of his supporters.
One wrote: “I supported you during the campaign. I defended you in discussions with friends and family. But I have to tell you, this is a cheap shot.
“It is unbecoming of a senatorial candidate to attack the family of your political opponent in my opinion. Just concede and go away. The Alabama GOP will just have to nominate a better candidate for 2020.”
Another added: “Judge Moore should have won, but who cares if Jones has a gay son? You can be sure God loves him as much as any of the rest of us. Let’s not be hypocritical people.”
The candidate’s Facebook page continues to refer to him as “Judge Roy Moore”, a title he has no claim to as a disgraced former judge who was sacked over an illegal anti-gay marriage crusade.
As Alabama’s Chief Justice Moore had abused his authority in a bid to block gay weddings in the state, issuing orders declaring the US Supreme Court ruling on equal marriage “doesn’t apply” in Alabama, and ordered probate judges to enforce a gay marriage ban.
He was ejected from his role after an ethics investigation found he had abused his power.
No amount of public disgrace appears to be enough to stop Moore, who blames gay people for his loss.
In a defiant video he ranted that “abortion, sodomy, and materialism have taken the place of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.
He continued to lash out at the “murder of unborn children and re-definition of marriage” before taking.
Moore continued: “We’ve even begun to recognise the right of a man to claim to be a woman and visa versa. We’ve allowed judges and justices to overrule our constitution and we’ve become slaves to their tyranny. Immorality sweeps over our land.
“Even our political process has been affected with baseless and false allegations which have become more relevant than the true issues.
“This election was painted by over $50 million from outside groups who want to retain power in their own corrupt ideology.”
Moore has previously praised Russia’s ‘gay propaganda’ law.
CNN’s K-File found that Moore’s political Facebook page had shared a 2015 article by anti-LGBT website Barbwire titled ‘Conservative Russians Give Moral Lesson to Facebook’s Homosexual Propaganda’.
The article addressed Russian efforts to ban a Facebook ‘Pride’ profile picture filter in the country under the gay ‘propaganda’ law.
It lavished praise on the country for its “strong stance in defense of traditional family values” by passing “what is commonly referred to as the law against gay propaganda” to jail “insolent demonstrators”.
Elsewhere on his Facebook page, Moore criticised local officials for permitting Pride parades to take place, and shared posts claiming that gay people have fabricated all instances of homophobic hate crimes.
GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said: “The people of Alabama have spoken and made it known that Roy Moore’s personal values around sexual assaults, racism, and anti-LGBTQ hate do not align with American values.
“Tonight’s results are a victory in the ongoing fight to uplift and support survivors of sexual assault, LGBTQ people, people of color, and other marginalized communities who are sick of seeing their humanity debated.
“Moore’s loss is also a strong signal that Americans want better than President Trump and elected officials like him who aim to divide and discriminate, rather than unite.”
HRC President Chad Griffin added: “In rejecting avowed bigot Roy Moore, Alabama voters solidified once and for all that attacking and demonizing the LGBTQ community is a sure-fire way to get yourself beat on Election Day.
“Doug Jones’ victory in Alabama is monumental, and was made possible by the overwhelming and unprecedented, grassroots resistance of ordinary Alabamians against the politics of hate and division.
“From our victories in North Carolina, Virginia, and now in Alabama, Equality Voters have proven that LGBTQ people and our allies are a voting bloc to be respected, sought-after and feared by candidates on both sides of the aisle.
“The American people will no longer tolerate discrimination against their family, friends and neighbors.”
