Disgraced Ex-GOP Rep. Blake Farenthold Dies At 63

June 21, 2025 Republicans, Trump cultists

The Texas Tribune reports:

Former U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, a four-term Republican congressman from Corpus Christi and local radio host, died this week from a heart attack after struggling with chronic liver disease, according to a close friend who worked on his radio show. He was 63.

Farenthold’s time in Washington came to a fraught end in April 2018, when he resigned from Congress amid allegations of sexual harassment, an ethics investigation and pressure from the Republican leadership to step down.

Politico reported in December 2017 that Farenthold had settled a sexual harassment lawsuit brought against him by a former staffer using $84,000 in taxpayer money that he promised to pay back, but did not ever appear to do so.

Read the full article.

Farenthold was QAnon before QAnon was a thing and appeared here many times for spreading idiotic conspiracy theories, perhaps most notably when he claimed that “stuff circulating on the internet” proved that Russians hacked the DNC’s server to cover up Hillary Clinton’s murder of DNC staffer Seth Rich.

In 2017, he offered to literally duel three Republican women “Aaron Burr-style” because they opposed Trump’s attempt to repeal Obamacare. One of Farenthold’s prospective dueling opponents, Sen. Susan Collins, was later caught on a hot mic dissing Farenthold, saying, “He’s so unattractive, it’s unbelievable.” Collins’ comments came in reply to an unnamed male GOP Senator telling her, “You could totally beat the shit out of him.”

In 2018, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott got permission from AG Ken Paxton to suspend a state law in order to speed the special election to replace Farenthold. Earlier this year, Abbott waited months to set a special election to replace a Democratic rep who died in office.

Later in 2018, Abbott demanded that Farenthold pay for the special election to replace him with the funds he allegedly misappropriated to pay off a sexual harassment suit. Farenhold refused.

The following month, Farenthold landed six-figure lobbying gig with a Texas port authority, which renewed calls for him to pay back the above-cited $84,000. He again refused, telling ABC News that as a “private citizen” he was under no obligation to comply. The new gig was also controversial, with some saying the hiring was illegal.



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