{"id":253,"date":"2017-11-19T21:32:24","date_gmt":"2017-11-20T02:32:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gopplaybook.com\/?p=253"},"modified":"2018-03-01T10:27:36","modified_gmt":"2018-03-01T15:27:36","slug":"ohio-lawmaker-who-backed-family-values-resigns-over-inappropriate-behavior","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gopplaybook.com\/?p=253","title":{"rendered":"Ohio Lawmaker Who Backed Family Values Resigns Over \u2018Inappropriate Behavior\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By\u00a0JACEY FORTIN<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0MATT STEVENS<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>

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The Ohio Statehouse in Columbus. Wes Goodman, a state representative, resigned last week amid a sex scandal.<\/span>\u00a0Credit<\/span>Andrew Spear for The New York Times<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

An Ohio state lawmaker who defended conservative policies and family values resigned last week after officials said he acknowledged engaging in \u201cinappropriate behavior\u201d with a person at his office.<\/p>\n

The lawmaker, Wesley Goodman, 33, a Republican, was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives last year. He campaigned on states\u2019 rights, trimming the state budget and repealing the Affordable Care Act.<\/p>\n

Mr. Goodman, who is married, promoted \u201cthe ideals of a loving father and mother\u201d and \u201ca committed natural marriage\u201d on his campaign website, which has since been taken down. He worked for Jim Jordan, a congressman from Ohio known for his\u00a0staunch opposition to gay marriage<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A\u00a0series<\/a>\u00a0of reports\u00a0alleged<\/a>\u00a0that\u00a0for years<\/a>\u00a0Mr. Goodman had sought, or engaged in, consensual sexual encounters with men.\u00a0The Washington Post<\/a>also reported on an allegation that Mr. Goodman had groped an 18-year-old college student in 2015.<\/p>\n

Clifford A. Rosenberger, the speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives, said in a statement that he learned about \u201cinappropriate behavior\u201d by Mr. Goodman on Tuesday and met with him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Mr. Goodman \u201cacknowledged and confirmed the allegations,\u201d which led to his resignation, the statement said.<\/p>\n

Brad Miller, a spokesman for Mr. Rosenberger, said on Sunday that Mr. Goodman several months ago had an \u201cinappropriate interaction\u201d with someone at his office in Columbus, Ohio. He said the interaction was consensual, and there had been no complaints of harassment by Mr. Goodman while he was a representative.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all bring our own struggles and our own trials into public life,\u201d Mr. Goodman said in a statement on Wednesday. \u201cThat has been true for me, and I sincerely regret that my actions and choices have kept me from serving my constituents and our state in a way that reflects the best ideals of public service. For those whom I have let down, I\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ohio conservatives had considered Mr. Goodman a rising star, said Tom Zawistowski, president of the conservative Ohio Citizens Political Action Committee, which endorsed Mr. Goodman last year.<\/p>\n

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Wesley Goodman<\/span>Credit<\/span>Ohio House of Representatives<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe felt that he had some conservative credentials,\u201d Mr. Zawistowski said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t have a problem with someone that has a homosexual lifestyle,\u201d he added. \u201cThat\u2019s their decision. That\u2019s their right.\u201d<\/p>\n

But he said the allegation about an unwanted sexual advance had \u201ctipped the scales.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Post<\/a>, citing letters and emails, reported that conservative leaders knew that Mr. Goodman was accused of touching an 18-year-old in 2015. One of those leaders, Tony Perkins, is the president of the Family Research Council, an advocacy group that says \u201chomosexual conduct\u201d is \u201cby definition unnatural<\/a>.\u201d He urged Mr. Goodman not to run for office but did not make the allegations public, The Post reported.<\/p>\n