Jeff Duncan Is No Ethical Slut

But he likes to complain about gender studies on Twitter

Detailing the moral bankruptcy of House Republicans these days seems rather pointless, since the real story would be a Republican who isn’t morally bankrupt (don’t get all excited about Mitt Romney again, people). But I want to share my thoughts on SC’s Representative for District Three, Jeff Duncan.

This is literally still his FB cover photo. Even Timmons (second from left) has scrubbed this shot by now.

Duncan and I go way back, to when I moved into his district in 2012, straight from western Oregon. Back then, I had naively assumed South Carolina was a state like any other, with representative democracy, and while I knew a lot of people voted for Republicans, I assumed that every now and then, surely, a Democrat or an independent would prevail. I was bummed to learn Duncan was a Tea Partier, one of that fun group of folks who ran for federal office in order to destroy as much of the federal government as possible (Jimmy Jordan sees that as his lot in life too, which I’m sure makes suddenly trying to run the government kind of weird for him).

In any case, back then I dutifully called Duncan’s office, asking him to not shut down the federal government because President Obama wanted to do awful things like give people healthcare. Despite my position of prestige as an assistant English professor at an institution of higher learning in his district, I never heard back.

Until he (or maybe an intern, but college students seem smarter?) started harassing me on Twitter last summer. I can’t find the Tweets now (Musk probably deleted them), but I was posting some kind of feminist propaganda I’m sure, like “women are people and deserve healthcare” and he clapped back something along the lines that the people of Laurens County surely didn’t need any of this gender studies baloney (paraphrasing here).

But looks like old Jeffy maybe should’ve sat in on some Gender Studies classes, now that his wife Melody filed for divorce last month. Turns out he’s been having a very public affair with a DC lobbyist. In the filing, Melody reports that Jeff had the affair while at the same time using her name and their marriage to claim his own commitment to “traditional family values.”

From the divorce filings.

I mean, in some ways, his actions do reflect how these traditional family values have historically worked out for women: sacrifice your career, your earning potential, do everything for other people, and then have your husband leave you for another woman, with potentially disastrous  results for your economic well-being in retirement. So it’s really no shocker, but I have to tell you, word on the street is the Laurens County who’s who is not impressed. I’ve also heard that they’re not impressed with how little he’s really done for the district (aside from take orders from the Heritage Foundation) and there’s real hope he won’t run again or at least that someone will challenge him. I’d vote for Melody, because if I had to guess, she’s probably the main reason he was able to have his career and his family and their life together these last 30 years.

He was quick to try to cover his tracks, looks like he’s not a Christian anymore lol.

And look, marriages end, people fall in love with other people, I get it. But to go around claiming some kind of family man title, and then to treat your wife in these ways, well…. his votes on women’s issues really come as no surprise, considering the complete lack of respect or consideration he’s shown Melody in his conduct. (He tried to save himself in the press by claiming they actually had a loveless marriage, but FFS. Then just be decent, negotiate a divorce, and THEN start seeing other people.)

Melody is asking the court for both of their houses (in the district, and apparently in Montana?), and all sorts of other financial support. Girl, you deserve it and I hope you get it all.

She’ll have to wait, though, because South Carolina mandates a year-long waiting period before a divorce can be finalized, you know just to make sure women are extra tortured trying to leave potentially unhealthy marriages. My House Rep (now that we live in SC-4) William Timmons, is also still waiting on his divorce to be finalized, after news of his own affair went public last year and his wife (who seems amazing, please run against him too!) filed for divorce. So we’ve got two hypocrite, anti-government philanderers making sure our districts don’t get federal funding we desperately need. I doubt whatever behind-closed-doors deals they’re making with their lobbyist and influencer lovers is going to get our labor and delivery unit reopened in Laurens County, or fix our schools and roads. Maybe Nancy Mace can lend them her scarlet letter.

And Jeff, if you’re reading this, here’s a good book list for how to have ethically non-monogamous relationships, if that’s your jam. First step though: women are people, and go from there. You can thank all us gender studies folks for these life-changing insights. Bless your heart.