A message for Michelle Malkin and Marine Corporal Matt Sanchez - Go to jail

Michelle Malkin is attempting to do damage control in her blog today. The Marine darling of the Republican Party, Cpl. Matt Sanchez has been outed as an ex gay porn star – this after many pictures of him with top ranked conservatives at the recent CPAC.

Malkin takes liberals to task for relishing the schadenfreude of watching conservatives do a collective double take over Cpl Sanchez’s past. From Malkin’s blog today:
I said the other day I thought CPAC organizers would be justified in being embarrassed if the rumors about Sanchez's porn star past 15 years ago turned out to be true. Well, the rumors are true. But it is neither CPAC nor Cpl. Sanchez who should feel embarrassed.

It's the nasty, gloating liberals who claim to stand for tolerance, privacy, human rights, and compassion. I predicted the other day that left-wing bigotry would rear its ugly head. I was right. The e-mail I've received is more disgusting than anything Ann Coulter stupidly said at CPAC. And I can imagine the vitriol Cpl. Sanchez is enduring.

We are all fallible people.


Cpl. Sanchez, it was an honor to meet you and a privilege to know you.
Malkin's words are nothing more than rank hypocrisy, and Corporal Sanchez's actions are not only immoral, but illegal, and liable to land him in jail.

Malkin also quotes another blogger who quotes the New Testament about forgiveness, and reprints in full the article that Cpl. Sanchez wrote for Salon.com. From that article:
Why did I become a conservative? Just look at what I left, and look at who is attacking me to today? Let's face it people, you're all cynical enough to know that if I had espoused liberal causes, spoken out against the military, got a liberal award for courage and then outed with a porn-past, you'd be clamoring for my memoir, and nominating me for a diversity ticket with Barack Obama. Instead those who complain about wire-tapping reserve the right to eavesdrop on my private life for political brownie points. Sure, I took a picture with Ann Coulter, I don't endorse what she said, but anyone in the military would defend her right to say it.
Cpl. Sanchez, your dishonesty is astonishing. Staggeringly astonishing. I expect such dishonesty from someone like Michelle Malkin or Anne Coulter, but I hold a Marine to a higher standard, one you have failed to meet. You do not deserve to wear your uniform.

It isn’t that you smear progressive positions with distorted half-truths about how people, veterans like myself, are supposedly against the military when we speak up and suggest that it would be better to bring the troops home instead of let them fight and die in an illegal war.

It isn’t about your past in the gay porn industry; although I admit I’m curious – are you homosexual for pay, or just in denial?

And yes, I completely agree with you that anyone has a right to free speech, as long as it is “within limits” as Richard Dawkins has said. (That means no yelling “fire” in the theater.)

No, my problem with you, and with Michelle Malkin, is that you are both hypocrites. Malkin should be embarrassed with you, as should every conservative Republican - including yourself. Conservative endorsement of you, Cpl. Sanchez, is a wink and a nudge at your breaking the law.

That’s right, you have broken a Federal law, and what is worse; you planned to break the law - not in an act of civil disobedience, but for your own gain. You broke the law by enlisting into the Marines.

This isn’t about forgiveness of your gay past Cpl. Sanchez, forgiveness is easy. Any religious person should know this. I learned this a long time ago, from a Sunday school story:
The boy confessed to his teacher that he had stolen the apple from her desk, and thrown it away. “I’m so sorry Ms. Richards, can you forgive me for stealing?”

“Of course I forgive you Johnny. Now hold out your hand so I can punish you with a ruler.”

“But Ms. Richards,” wailed Johnny, “I thought you said you forgave me.”

“I do forgive you,” said the teacher kindly, “but you must still pay for breaking the rules.”
Cpl. Sanchez, you didn’t steal an apple, you broke the law, and in order to be forgiven you must pay for your actions.

You are guilty of enlisting into the Marines fraudulently, under section 654 (b) and (c) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. That law states:
(b) Policy. - A member of the armed forces shall be separated
from the armed forces under regulations prescribed by the Secretary
of Defense if one or more of the following findings is made and
approved in accordance with procedures set forth in such
regulations:
(1) That the member has engaged in, attempted to engage in, or
solicited another to engage in a homosexual act or acts unless
there are further findings, made and approved in accordance with
procedures set forth in such regulations, that the member has
demonstrated that -
(A) such conduct is a departure from the member's usual and
customary behavior;
(B) such conduct, under all the circumstances, is unlikely to
recur;
(C) such conduct was not accomplished by use of force,
coercion, or intimidation;
(D) under the particular circumstances of the case, the
member's continued presence in the armed forces is consistent
with the interests of the armed forces in proper discipline,
good order, and morale; and
(E) the member does not have a propensity or intent to engage
in homosexual acts.
...

(c) Entry Standards and Documents. - (1) The Secretary of Defense
shall ensure that the standards for enlistment and appointment of
members of the armed forces reflect the policies set forth in
subsection (b).
(2) The documents used to effectuate the enlistment or
appointment of a person as a member of the armed forces shall set
forth the provisions of subsection (b).
The documents of enlistment you signed Cpl. Sanchez, asked if you had engaged in homosexual activity – and you answered with a resounding “NO”. That was a lie. You signed those documents, Cpl. Sanchez, and thereby broke the law. And you did it not because you wanted to advance any sort of homosexual “agenda” – you weren’t looking at improving basic human rights – no, you lied, you broke the law because you wanted to be a hero, and because you hoped to advance your position in the Republican party.

You broke the law for your own selfish reasons.

By signing those documents you come under the jurisdiction of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Section 883, Article 83, “Fraudulent enlistment, appointment, or separation”:
Any person who -
(1) procures his own enlistment or appointment in the armed
forces by knowingly false representation or deliberate
concealment as to his qualifications for that enlistment or
appointment and receives pay or allowances thereunder; or
(2) procures his own separation from the armed forces by
knowingly false representation or deliberate concealment as to
his eligibility for that separation;

shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.
According to the Manual for Courts Martial, page IV-8, (link to PDF) Cpl. Sanchez you are subject to a maximum penalty of a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for 2 years.

And this illustrates the hypocrisy of conservatives like Michelle Malkin. I have yet to hear anyone call for your court martial, although I’m sure the Marines will get around to it eventually, unless the Commander in Chief steps in on your behalf.

You have put conservatives in a bad position, corporal, they must either clamor for your discharge, or they must lobby for the right of homosexuals (excuse me, homosexuals for pay) to serve in the military.

Conservatives who straddle the line, hailing you as a hero, and a darling of the Republican party, while at the same time upholding the military policy against homosexuality, are displaying their sheer hypocrisy and are deserving of nothing less than scorn.

And Cpl. Sanchez, painting yourself as a 'victim' of the liberal left is no more than a ploy to increase your credibility among the radical right-wing talk radio crowd. You aren't being maligned by because you are gay, you are being taken to task because you are a self-serving fraud.

Cpl. Sanchez – I am ashamed of you.

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