We live in divisive times.
Americans are split on whether the climate crisis is real, whether everyone should have access to affordable health care, and whether the wealthy should pay their fair share in taxes. The pandemic demonstrated that Americans can’t even agree on whether it’s worth trying to prevent hundreds of thousands of death from an infectious disease. The last few days have proved they can’t even agree on an adversarial authoritarian superpower invading an allied democracy is a bad thing.
There is, however, one thing on which all Americans can agree: Attending a middle-school sleepover, getting drunk, taking sleeping pills, berating a bunch of pre-teens, and vomiting in a hamper is not a good look if you’re trying to get elected to Congress.
Democrat Abby Broyles didn’t know this until recently. The 32-year-old U.S. House of Representatives candidate in Oklahoma apologized last Friday for causing a scene at a Valentine’s Day sleepover hosted by the daughter of one of her friends. Broyles was invited to hang out at the party, which reportedly featured eight girls between the ages of 12-13 watching Titanic. Broyles got drunk and started lashing out at the girls, according to NonDoc. Broyles says she does not remember what happened, but she’s accused of calling one of the girls an “acne fucker,” one of them a “Hispanic fucker,” and one of them a “judgy fucker.” At least one of the girls left the room crying. Broyles eventually vomited in a laundry basket.
“Instead of helping me sleep, I hallucinated,” Broyles told local station KFOR of the medication she mixed with wine. “And I don’t remember anything until I woke up or came to, and I was throwing up in a hamper.”
“I want to say sorry from the bottom of my heart, I apologize for any hurt or damage or trauma that my behavior, when I didn’t know what I was doing, caused,” Broyles added. “I’m deeply sorry.”
NonDoc, which broke the story last week, spoke to multiple parents of girls at the sleepover about what happened. Broyles’ friend who hosted the party confirmed that Broyles had caused an event of some “magnitude.” Sarah Matthews, the mother of another girl in attendance, took to Twitter last week to bash Broyles for not apologizing sooner.
For someone who pontificates to be undyingly pro woman, I am disgusted by your behavior and find it appalling you couldn’t understand why their parents are angry. Your vile, cruel, and bigoted behavior should not be excused or ‘swept under the rug’. 2/4
— Sarah Matthews (@ma66915987) February 16, 2022
Despite apologizing for what happened, Broyles is now alleging that coverage of the incident is part of a political smear campaign, and says she’s determined to stay in the race to represent Oklahoma’s 5th District in Washington, D.C. “The things I’m accused to have said are not who I am,” she said in a statement provided to the Associated Press. “They’re not a reflection of my beliefs at all. It’s clear this media smear campaign is politically backed, and I won’t stop fighting for Oklahomans.”
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