Joey Freshwater

I bucked all advice from my friends (and resisted my conservative bias) and decided to fully trust the Times journalists. As they left my home they asked that I not talk to any other outlets and I insisted then and repeatedly over the following weeks that I would keep my word and only share this story with them. But then the weeks dragged on. They kept coming back to us saying the editors needed more. I needed to go on the record (okay). We need more screenshots (okay). I met every bench mark they set, eager to provide more sources or evidence as needed. After the story went up I began to ask them … wait, where are the stories from the other women? Where are their accusations of sexual assault? Why am I the focus? Why are there 11 paragraphs dedicated to detailing my work history (more than has been published about Graham’s by far)? Why does it say “nobody could corroborate” when I offered them sources that COULD corroborate? Why did they include an out of context quote from a friend joking “do not call Graham” after I called off my wedding? (Because she knew I would never). Where were the screenshots they’d said they would use? Or the mention that I’d supported local democrats and that most of my family (and husband) are liberal? The editors said it was too much, they explained. The Times also failed to include any mention that I DID confide in multiple friends through the years that Graham had been abusive — long before he was running for office. Those friends confirm they told the Times so. It dawned on me that this really was a set up all along. The journalists I trusted who convinced me to share a story I never wanted to tell methodically delayed and twisted this into a gift to the Platner campaign. Violating the trust of his victims. Shattering the trust I placed in them with the most vulnerable story of my life. And at the end of my call with them I reluctantly accepted their insistence that this was still a powerful story and that I had done a brave thing. And I thanked them for all the hard work they had put into it. Still fawning after all these years.

Hit me with the harshest reality truth.

BREAKING: Four Senate Republicans just joined Democrats to block one of President Trump’s key legislative priorities. In a setback for the White House, GOP Sens. Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Thom Tillis and Mitch McConnell broke with their party to help stop the SAVE America Act from advancing in the Senate. The vote exposed a familiar divide inside the Republican conference, with concerns over the bill’s provisions outweighing pressure from Trump and GOP leadership.

SEC. BESSENT: "Who was the president during World War I?" REP. JUDY CHU : "I don't know."