A big story dropped in The New York Times this morning targeting the grift-PAC known as The Lincoln Project. A collection of Never Trump figures and former GOP hangers-on started the organization in late 2019 to target Republican figures that they felt were too obedient to Donald Trump. That focus quickly expanded to going after GOP politicians like Sen. Susan Collins after their mission shifted to being full-blown pro-Democrat.

Reports of how they spend their money have plagued The Lincoln Project for most of their existence. Financial disclosures show much of their expenditures paying subsidiaries of their leadership for things like “consulting” and ad work. How the entire setup is legal is beyond me, but no one ever claimed the system was moral, I suppose.

Regardless, let’s get to the latest report that alleges John Weaver, a co-founder of The Lincoln Project, targeted at least 21 men, offering some offers of career help for sex. One of those targeted was as young as 14 when communication first began. New York Times reporter Maggie Astor said that 11 men spoke to her on the record, and that nearly all of the 21 men she and her colleague spoke to were able to provide screenshots of their exchanges with Weaver.

Allegations became public this month in @amconmag and an open letter from @GarrettHerrin, one of the men Weaver messaged. My and @dannyhakim's reporting shows how widespread the harassment was — 21 men came forward within days — and how aggressive it got. https://t.co/agnfQZubW5

— Maggie Astor (@MaggieAstor) January 31, 2021

The youngest victim I spoke with was just 14 when Weaver started messaging him. https://t.co/agnfQZubW5

— Maggie Astor (@MaggieAstor) January 31, 2021

Weaver separated from The Lincoln Project prior to the Times posting this report. It should also be noted that other, less establishment media had this story long before the Times, though it was mostly ignored by the news media and The Lincoln Project themselves at the time. Here’s Ryan James Girdusky, who originally had the story, asserting that Weaver’s activities were not a secret to other members of The Lincoln Project.

There is only one problem with this story about John Weaver. Members of the Lincoln Project absolutely knew about his predatory behaviorhttps://t.co/LN9kaxSyN7

— Ryan James Girdusky (@RyanGirdusky) January 31, 2021

According to several mutual friends, @MollyJongFast heard I had this story back in the early summer. And that it was circulating several outlets.

— Ryan James Girdusky (@RyanGirdusky) January 31, 2021

Whether the allegations that others knew about what Weaver was doing are true or not will have to be explored and adjudicated in either the public square, the courts, or both. But, for their part, the remaining members of The Lincoln Project are basically denying all knowledge and complicity in a statement released Sunday.

Lincoln Project: "John Weaver led a secret life that was built on a foundation of deception at every level… Like so many, we have been betrayed and deceived by John Weaver." pic.twitter.com/lwvRki0hh9

— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) January 31, 2021

Being in physical proximity to Weaver seems rather irrelevant here. How much were they paying the guy? How involved in the decision making was he? How extensive was their knowledge of his activities, if any existed? Those are questions that have to be answered.

This group was promoted constantly in the mainstream media throughout the election season. From Jake Tapper to 60 Minutes, some major outlets will have to explain why they were so eager to promote a group like this. It’s not that they knew about Weaver’s activities, but the other shadiness and general bad faith of The Lincoln Project was on full display. The orange man being bad is not an excuse.

I’ll leave you with this thought I posted on Twitter.

Given that so many big GOP politicians, from Bush to McCain, hired people like John Weaver and his grifter clan for years and years…we should probably ask if they were truly a “better” class of politician as so often claimed, or if they were just better at faking than Trump.

— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) January 31, 2021

I think it’s worth pondering, especially by those that routinely insist Trump was some kind of unique evil. Washington D.C. is not a good place, and we should stop pretending every politician prior to Trump was some kind of saint.