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George Conway on John Weaver allegations: ‘I didn’t know John very well’

by Dominick Mastrangelo - 02/01/21 10:46 AM ET

Conservative attorney George Conway distanced himself from fellow Lincoln Project founder John Weaver following a new report alleging Weaver sent unwanted messages to young men, some of which were sexual in nature.

The New York Times reported Sunday that nearly two dozen men said Weaver had messaged them inappropriate things, sometimes offering political or job opportunities in exchange for sexual favors.

Weaver worked for several high-profile Republican candidates for public office during a career that spanned decades in conservative politics, including former 2008 GOP presidential nominee and Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) and former Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

He was a co-founder of the anti-Trump Lincoln Project along with longtime Republican strategist Steve Schmidt, former Republican party chair Michael Steele and Conway.

“It’s terrible and awful and appalling,” Conway said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Monday. “I didn’t know John very well. I frankly only spoke to him a couple times on the phone early on in the Lincoln Project. I just … it’s almost … I don’t even know what to say. It’s just terrible.”

Conway said the allegations left him “speechless.”

This morning, @morningmika asked @gtconway3d about 21 men accusing his Lincoln Project cofounder John Weaver of online harassment:

“It’s terrible and awful…I didn’t know John very well. I frankly only spoke to him a couple times on the phone early on in the Lincoln Project.” pic.twitter.com/eKo0meptls

— The Recount (@therecount) February 1, 2021

In one of the text messages Weaver reportedly sent to a young man, the Times reported he told the man he would “spoil you when we see each other,” adding he would “help you other times. Give advice, counsel, help with bills. You help me … sensually.”

In a statement on Sunday, the Lincoln Project called Weaver a “predator” and “a liar.”

“Like so many, we have been betrayed and deceived by John Weaver,” the statement said. “We are grateful beyond words that at no time was John Weaver in the physical presence of any member of The Lincoln Project.”
Weaver has acknowledged the messages, telling Axios earlier this year he was sorry for making the men he was in contact with “uncomfortable through my messages.”

“The truth is I’m gay,” Weaver said at the time. “I have a wife and two kids who I love. My inability to reconcile those two truths has led to this agonizing place.”

Tags George Conway John McCain John Weaver The Lincoln Project