The Lincoln Project released a statement on Twitter disavowing its association with one of its co-founders who has been credibly accused of sexually harassing and exploiting young men.

John Weaver, who was a Republican operative in the campaigns for John McCain and John Kasich, has been accused by 21 men of sending unsolicited provocative messages to them, with some of them being as young as fourteen when he sent them, hinting that he could help them get into politics if they accepted his advances, according to the New York Times.

“John Weaver led a secret life that was built on a foundation of deception at every level,” the Lincoln Project statement reads.  “He is a predator, a liar, and an abuser.  We extend our deepest sympathies to those who were targeted by his deplorable and predatory behavior.  We are disgusted and outraged that someone in his position of power and trust would use it for these means.”

Only one of the men engaged in a physical relationship with Weaver, and the individual admits that it was a consensual one.  Weaver, who has a wife and two children, this month admitted to sending inappropriate messages to men.

When confronted by Lincoln Project members about the accusations that he was preying on young men, Weaver initially denied it, but as another Lincoln Project co-founder, Steve Schmidt, said, the evidence has become overwhelming.

“There was no awareness or insinuations of any type of inappropriate behavior when we became aware of the chatter at the time,” Schmidt said in an interview with the Times.