In the occasional overreach of the aftermath of #MeToo, lowercase-l liberal critics have focused on the small but pernicious share of accusers who outright lie. Whether the reason for allegedly false accusations is for favorable publicity, a preferential divorce settlement, or even political persuasions, these debates about is-she-or-isn’t-she-lying almost always center on women.
But just as women aren’t the only ones capable of being the victim of sexual or domestic violence, women aren’t the only ones capable of lying during such accusations. For a textbook case in the news this past week, feminists ought to consider an unlikely victim of a possible false accusation: Lauren Boebert.
While the outspoken Colorado Republican has never allied herself with the feminist cause, her marriage and its subsequent breakdown point to the paragon of the sort of toxic masculinity feminists rightly loathe in the form of her ex-husband. Over the weekend, Jayson Boebert called the police and claimed he was a victim of domestic violence at the hands of the congresswoman. By Tuesday, he was charged with misdemeanor assault, prohibited use of weapons, harassment, obstructing a peace officer, third-degree criminal trespass, and disorderly conduct.
Even before his arrest gave the lie to his allegation, Jayson Boebert was never a credible accuser. One only needs a cursory read of his rap sheet to understand as much.
A 22-year-old Jayson Boebert first met Lauren Roberts when she was a 16-year-old working at Burger King. A few months later, he was arrested, charged, and eventually convicted of “harassing and physically assaulting” the teenager. He then impregnated her when she was 17, the age of consent in Colorado, and Lauren had to drop out of high school. The month before, she gave birth to their first of four children in March 2005, Jayson drunkenly exposed himself to a different 17-year-old girl, a crime for which he pleaded guilty in exchange for four days of jail time and two years of probation as well as alcohol and anger management training.
This evidence alone shows an angry, arguably alcoholic abuser who intentionally preyed upon underage girls, succeeding in keeping his eventual wife out of finishing her formal education. Now, couple that with the 911 calls Boebert’s son made in 2022 alleging the patriarch was “throwing” him around the house and Jayson’s public confession that he, through his infidelity, was responsible for his divorce, not Lauren.
While anyone who has seen that Beetlejuice video knows that Lauren is no saint, there’s an ocean of difference between a slightly mouthy mother forgetting her manners during a date when she perhaps drank too much and a man repeatedly accused of violent assault against women and minors. It’s not hard to imagine that as the congresswoman became a right-wing media darling, the marriage broke down, as it marked the first time that Jayson didn’t have all the power in the relationship.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
So when, after a rendezvous at a Colorado restaurant, the police are called and Jayson alleges that Lauren, perhaps 105 pounds soaking wet, punched him in the face, what is most likely? That the woman with no violent record to speak of randomly decided to punch the husband from whom she secured a divorce? Or that the repeat offender decided to offend again?
Feminists in particular, but really everyone with common sense, should know the answer: Lauren Boebert was a victim, not just of her husband’s various abuses, but of a likely false allegation.