Mississippi State Rep. Robert Foster: Gubernatorial candidate and coward

I say "coward" because Rep. Foster, Robert, Bob, has denied access to his campaign tour around the state of Mississippi because, well, he doesn't want to be alone with a female reporter, Larrison Campbell, of Mississippi Today.

Her take on the ride-along was that she wanted to "better inform readers."  Makes sense, right?
Not so far.  What Foster does, is pull a "Mike Pence" move and claim that he can't allow that alone time with a female reporter because it would create "an awkward situation."

Really, Bob?? Seriously???

So, in her official capacity as a reporter for Mississippi Today, you can't trust yourself around her to do her job as a reporter and you as the potential Governor of Mississippi?  Again, really, Bob??

Mississippi State Rep. Robert Foster

Foster told Supertalk Mississippi Radio on Wednesday, "It's a ride-along request for a 16-hour day that we were going to be on the road.  The other opponents of mine got a male reporter to ride along with them, which is a little bit different situation.

In our case it was a female reporter asking to ride along, and my campaign director is in and out and gone sometimes -- we have to divide and conquer -- and there was just going to be a lot of opportunities where it would've been an awkward situation I didn't want to put myself in."

Foster also defended his decision on Twitter Wednesday, citing his Christian faith as the reason he denied access to Campbell.  "As I anticipated, the liberal left lost their minds over the fact I choose not to be alone with another woman," he said.  "They can't believe, that even in 2019, someone still values their relationship with their wife and upholds their Christian Faith."

Kind of sounds like that marriage to a woman of "Christian Faith" must be on pretty delicate, shaky ground if he can't trust himself to be alone with a female reporter doing her job for 16 hours.  

Marriage counseling, maybe?  Nah, that's not gonna happen.

Nope, we're going full-on VP Mike Pence here.  I just won't be alone with a woman who isn't my wife... or mother.  Classic Pence.

Let's just back up here a second.  Many thousands, perhaps millions, of people rely on that "Christian Faith" every day to help them make decisions in their lives both personally and professionally.  Nothing wrong with that.  Faith can be very comforting, soothing;  it's like taking us to our safe, "happy place."

Here's the thing, Robert:  Those same people, just like you and me, us, don't try and hide behind their faith and weasel out of something as important as the good people of Mississippi know what kind of a candidate, what kind of a man, you truly are.

A little advice here -- Put your faith back in your pants, keep it there, take it out ONLY in church, and INVITE Ms. Campbell on your 16 hour, ride-along through Mississippi.  Show your potential constituents that you CAN handle it.

These are Ms. Campbell's final thoughts on this issue:

"My job is to let the readers know what is happening in Mississippi," she said.  "I felt this was a service to our readers."

She added:

"If it makes people angry, if it makes people fall in love with him, that's beside the point.  I sort of see this as a part of the public service of the job."

Ms. Campbell also warned against the assumption that her denied access to Foster's campaign is a "Mississippi Story," stating Wednesday that women everywhere are "sexualized" as they try to do their jobs.

"I don't think this is a Mississippi story," she said.  "I think it's a universal story."

Sounds like a future Pulitzer Prize winner to me!




* Note:  Portions of this piece were written by Paul LeBlanc of CNN. 
 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

** Update:  By Jen Psaki, CNN Contributor

Updated 6:05 PM ET, Fri July 19, 2019

An open letter to officials who won't meet with a woman alone

 

Dear State Representative Robert Foster and former Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr.,

At a time when young people in your state of Mississippi are dealing with both the lowest earnings and the highest unemployment rate for their age group, when tens of thousands of people don't have health insurance in part because of the refusal of current leadership to expand Medicaid, you have made your way into the headlines by boldly pledging not to meet alone with a woman other than your wife. Congratulations to both of you for all of this national coverage.

Your constituents probably won't know anytime soon, if ever, whether this proclamation was inspired solely by the teachings of Billy Graham, by a fascination with the Victorian era or doubts about your own self control, but there are a few questions to consider to make sure you are achieving your stated goal of avoiding speculation resulting from the evils of the #MeToo movement.

Is having another man present really the answer? So I understand you think that having another man present will really help you control your unbridled masculine urges, but doesn't having two men present with a woman make it even more questionable? According to your way of thinking, I would feel a lot safer, as a supporter of the #MeToo movement, if you had two women present instead.

Should you really be meeting alone with men either? It is very clear that you believe marriage is only between a man and a woman, despite the rulings of the Supreme Court, and therefore any sexual relations are only between a man and a woman. But wouldn't it help avoid and question that you are going outside of your marriage with a man if you always had a woman present as well?

What kind of women should be present? Now that I think about it, it would really make sense for these women chaperones to be married and also mothers. I mean, who can even trust a married woman if she hasn't yet procreated?

How do you make sure you are taking into account their roles as wife and homemaker? From reading your statements, it sounds like you really value the role of wives, mothers and homemakers, so you should also factor in what work schedule will make that possible. These married mothers who will be the acceptable chaperones will need to be able to drop their children off at school and pick them up and will probably need an hour or two mid-day to ensure your shirts are pressed, the home is clean and that the evening meal has been prepped so that it can be on the table when their husbands finish their hard day of work. This likely means you have a window of 10 a.m.-12 p.m. for any meetings.

Should you consider body cameras? Now I don't want to overthink this too much, but at the end of the day it is your word against someone else's. So to be absolutely certain you won't run into trouble, you should consider committing to recording all private meetings and making that video available to the public -- including your meetings with lobbyists, lawmakers and financial supporters. Yes, you will need a wide lens to fit all the chaperones into the shot, but this level of transparency will ensure you are protected.

Having worked in government for quite a few years myself, I will admit these are pretty cumbersome guidelines if you want to get something done as governor of Mississippi. So in case it all feels like too much, I have also taken the liberty of outlining an alternate approach.

Don't touch anyone inappropriately. This sounds pretty straightforward, but as a rule of a thumb, a handshake with a person of any gender will do.

Don't make any remarks about a woman's figure, including her bust or backside. This includes comments that were once acceptable, such as "nice rack" or "your butt looks great in that skirt." I am happy to provide an additional list if this is not clear enough.

Don't ask anyone, including women, for a sexual favor because of your place in power. This is generally a good rule to follow even if you are not elected, but there are a number of cases I am sure you are aware of that have left your fellow former and current public servants in hot water as a result.

Hire women to be on your senior team. I know this one probably sounds extreme, but having a woman's perspective, and the counsel and advice of a group of women you trust, may turn out to be illuminating. And if you follow rules 1-3 you won't have any issues.

Finally, if you are looking for anyone to help you overcome your fear of any supposed lying, confused or predatory women in public service and journalism, I know a number of excellent professionals of all political stripes who can help you overcome your fear of powerful women. I am easy to reach.

Sincerely,

Jen Psaki