Special to WorldTribune.com
Hollywood is a moral cesspool. I’ve always known it. Now, with the Harvey Weinstein scandal, it’s official.
But the consequences of Harveygate go way beyond Tinseltown. A nuclear bomb has just been detonated in one of the major centers of liberal, Democratic power.
Weinstein is an evil, grotesque pervert. Over 40 women have come forward, accusing the Hollywood mogul of sexual assault. Five actresses — and counting — have alleged he raped them. Many of the victims of sexual abuse are A-list celebrities — Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie and Kate Beckinsale (to name just a few).
Weinstein is a serial sexual predator. And everybody in Hollywood knew. It was an open secret. Instead of speaking out, however, the powerful in Tinseltown — from actors to directors to producers — either enabled him or deliberately turned a blind eye.
Why? The reason is obvious: Because Hollywood’s culture of sexual depredation is rampant. The Weinstein scandal is simply the tip of the iceberg; other high-powered celebrities are being dragged down with him.
Actor Ben Affleck (and big Elizabeth Warren supporter) has been accused of sexual misconduct, and then seeking to blacklist the actress who complained about his abusive behavior.
Director Oliver Stone allegedly groped women at parties.
Actress Jennifer Lawrence says that at the age of 15—15! — she was told by a Hollywood bigwig she was “perfectly f**kable” and ordered to stand in a nude lineup. Actress Reese Witherspoon claims she was sexually assaulted by a director at the age of 16. I could go on, but you get the point: Hollywood is full of perverts, sexual deviants and pedophiles.
For example, when former child actor, Corey Feldman, admitted on “The View” in 2013 that he was sexually molested as a kid by several top Hollywood producers, Barbara Walters shot back: “You’re damaging an entire industry.”
Her main concern was to protect the interests of liberal Hollywood, not sex abuse victims. Walters needs to be held accountable and publicly shamed. So, when it came to Weinstein, celebrities looked the other way because many of them were guilty of their own crimes and sins. Or like Walters, who made her career out of having “access” to Hollywood stars, they had too much financial interest at stake to expose the moral rot.
Harveygate is similar to the Catholic Church’s sex abuse scandal; the number of victims — and culprits — will only grow with time. The floodgates have been unleashed.
The result is the end of liberal Hollywood’s political dominance. For decades, leftist stars have lectured Americans on climate change, racism, sexism, transgenderism, gay rights, abortion, open borders, immigration, guns, and of course, the supposed evils of Trump. They have also been closely intertwined with the Democratic Party. President Obama, Hillary and Bill Clinton, Elizabeth Warren, Nancy Pelosi, Al Gore and countless other Democratic luminaries relied upon the Hollywood left — its money, power, glamor and prestige.
Obama and the Clintons, for example, were very close with Weinstein. He was not just their friend, but a major source of their campaign contributions and access to big Hollywood fund-raisers.
Obama and Hillary knew Weinstein was a sexual predator. They just didn’t care. Hollywood liberals have not just been exposed as cynical hypocrites. They have lost their moral authority and political credibility. No matter how hard they try to come across as social justice warriors, they now will be indelibly stained with having embraced a culture of rape and sexual abuse. From this point on, no one will — and should — take them seriously.
To be honest, I am not shocked by the news of Harvey Weinstein and the Democrats’ closeness to such a depraved, degenerate man. We’ve been down this road before. There is nothing — not a scintilla — that Weinstein has been accused of doing that Bill Clinton did not do.
Like Weinstein, Clinton sexually assaulted and harassed numerous women, such as Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones and Kathleen Willey. Clinton was also credibly accused of rape by Juanita Broaddrick.
And like Weinstein, Democrats for years enabled and shielded Clinton from being exposed. They covered up for Bubba like they did for good old Harvey. And Hillary turned a blind eye to Harvey’s criminal behavior like she did for Bill’s.
Harveygate reveals the utter bankruptcy not only of Hollywood, but of the Democratic left. Liberals ultimately don’t care about women’s rights, the dignity of women or sexual harassment. They care about only one thing: power. They have used feminism — and faux outrage — as a club to bludgeon conservatives with, seeking to assert their moral superiority.
Since Trump’s election, liberals have incessantly railed about his infamous Hollywood Access tape. Yet, Trump engaged in the equivalent of locker room talk, discussing how groupies will allow celebrities to just grab them anywhere.
In the end, Trump’s misdeeds amounted to words — obscene and vulgar — but simply words nonetheless.
Weinstein, however, didn’t just talk about it. He did it — repeatedly, incessantly and almost indiscriminately (is there any actress he didn’t grope?) for decades. Until the New York Times finally broke the story several weeks ago, liberals remained stone silent. Which begs the question: Will they now be wearing their p***y hats and organize a huge march on Hollywood?
Don’t bet on it.
Jeffrey T. Kuhner is a columnist at WorldTribune.com and the host of “The Kuhner Report” weekdays 12-3 pm EST on WRKO AM-680 in Boston.
Hollywood depravity, like the Bill Clinton culture, has been enabled by the Left added by World Tribune on
View all posts by World Tribune →