Austin-based sociopaths, polyamorous prowlers, and eccentric lawyers with cryptic arm tattoos aren’t the only grifters Ryan Walters is helping to take advantage of the state payroll!
According to a recent report by Oklahoma Watch, Ryan has apparently hired Chad Gallagher — a conservative politico and public school grifter from Arkansas who once helped the Duggar family explain away sex abuse crimes — on a $96,000-a-year salary to serve as a “temporary senior advisor” at the OSDE.
Here’s a pic of him praying for God to funnel him taxpayer money from Oklahoma...
I’m not sure what a “special advisor” does, but in this case, I’m guessing Chad’s primary responsibility will be training students who were sexually molested by their teacher, coach, or guidance counselor into sticking up for their abuser. You know, to help the school district avoid a seven-figure settlement.
Well, at least that’s based on Chad’s past work experience.
Way back in 2015, after news broke that Josh Duggar — the oldest of the 19 and Counting kids — molested his younger sisters, Gallagher helped arrange a damage control interview with Megyn Kelly to clean up the family’s image and keep their profitable reality show on the air.
Via The Sun:
In 2015, Jill Duggar and her sister, Jessa Duggar, did an interview with Megyn Kelly about Josh Duggar's abuse.
In the clip, the sisters heavily downplayed their abuse and even went as far as defending their brother's actions…
In the upcoming Duggar documentary, Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets, Jill and her husband, Derick Dillard, reveal that the interview was Gallagher's idea.
"Chad was the one who was setting up the Megyn Kelly [interview] to try and like get it to where TLC would be cool with like moving forward with the show," Jill said.
"In hindsight, I wouldn’t have done the Megyn Kelly stuff. I felt like I was in a place again of like bearing the burden and the weight of just — even though you volunteer, it’s like you feel obligated to help."
"It’s not something that I’m proud of," Jill added, via the Los Angeles Times. "We were taken advantage of."
Yep, that’s right.
We have good news for all the perverted educators out there who use their positions of power, authority, and access to prey upon vulnerable children!
Here in Oklahoma — a state that sees an inordinately and inexcusably high number of school district employees charged with sex abuse crimes — the Superintendent just hired a guy best known for helping sexual abusers clear their name to serve as a “special advisor.”
If you see Coach Koons teaching nude exercise techniques on Fox and Friends next week, I guess that will explain why!
For what it’s worth, I should probably clarify that Chad’s experience in protecting perverts who were later convicted of molestation and child pornography charges could just be a secondary perk.
The real reason Ryan probably hired Chad is his association with ClassWallet. Remember them? They were the third-party vendor Walters and Stitt used to help funnel COVID education funding into the hands of their homeschool grifter pals so they could buy TVs, grills, and Pac-Man video game cabinets.
It was a big scandal a few years ago, and even led Walters and Stitt to file some face-saving lawsuits against the company in an effort to deflect blame — lawsuits that AG Gentner Drummond eventually dropped.
Well, according to Oklahoma Watch, Chad’s consulting company — Legacy Consulting — is a registered lobbyist for ClassWallet.
It kind of makes you wonder if Chad’s first act as “special advisor” will be to advise the state to rehire ClassWallet so every homeschool living room can get a new TV — and a Pac-Man cabinet, too.
Gallagher, in addition to advising Huckabee, founded Legacy Consulting, a firm that works on political campaigns, messaging, and crisis management…
Legacy Consulting lobbies for ClassWallet in Arkansas, which was awarded $63 million in contracts to manage Arkansas’ private school voucher program. Gallagher, along with his wife, also founded a private Christian school.
Jesus Christ. They’re not even trying to hide the grift anymore! How can Ryan hire the lobbyist for the vendor he sued as a Senior Advisor? What’s next? Hiring Brent Swadley to run school nutrition programs???
As Oklahoma Watch noted, Gallagher is the latest political campaign consultant Walters has slipped onto the state payroll, leading many to wonder if Ryan is stacking his staffers for a future run for Governor:
“If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s probably a duck,” said Appleseed Center for Law and Justice Executive Director Colleen McCarty. “It sure looks as though he’s assembling a campaign team on the public payroll. If he is, those can be crimes, and Oklahoma has convicted elected officials for a lot less.”
Geez, way to throw ducks under the bus! What did they ever do to deserve that? When Colleen finds her car covered in duck shit and learns her AFLAC was cancelled, I guess she’ll know why!
Anyway, regardless of how ducks walk and quack, I have a hard time believing Ryan Walters will be held accountable for turning the OSDE payroll into his own campaign slush fund.
Although a few lawmakers and politicians have put up token resistance, most have either looked the other way — terrified of the political consequences of crossing him — or gleefully supported the Superintendent in his effort to turn Oklahoma public schools into for-profit religious indoctrination centers.
Basically, if it walks like a spineless enabling coward and quacks like a spineless enabling coward, it’s probably an Oklahoma lawmaker.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
