I’m not 100% convinced of the authenticity of the video (available after the fold) showing Republican North Carolina Congressman Madison Cawthorn’s scheduler, Stephen Smith, grabbing his crotch as Cawthorn drives down the road.  The cutaway–when the camera goes to the aide–goes back to the crotch grab, but doesn’t show Cawthorn’s face, which leaves the possibility that it wasn’t Cawthorn’s crotch and that the confusion of the shot camoflauges a switch of the subject.   (It’s a technique used in filmmaking to make the viewer assume it’s a continuous shot when in actuality, something got switch out–usually before something explodes or gets shot.)

But the tweet, from MeidasTouch, is getting views and attention, and there’s no definitive sign that it’s not authentic.  And only because of the attention it’s getting from social media, I’m covering it here.

Cawthorn has been having a no good, very bad week, and it’s sparking massive schadenfreude among the various people he’s annoyed/pissed off/insulted.  A professed “christian” who regularly demeans LGBTQ people, Cawthorn being caught on video getting groped by a staffer won’t have an easy explanation for him.  The fact that the person groping him is a staffer makes it a matter for the House and potential sexual harassment complaints.  The fact that he’s supposedly a straight cis male makes it more hilarious-but-sad that he’s apparently scared of his own sexuality.  And the fact that he’s not getting invited to the cocaine-fueled orgies on Capitol Hill makes it apparent that he’s hosting his own, in his car, for which he doesn’t have a valid driver’s license.

Breaking: New leaked video shows GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn caught on video with male scheduler's hand on his crotch pic.twitter.com/Y8gtGMFdrw

— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) April 28, 2022