The state of Tennessee has become a hotbed of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. Last week, the state’s governor, Bill Lee, signed a bill into law that banned trans youth healthcare as well as the nation’s first-ever drag felony bill. And that’s not all: There are another 26 bills targeting our community moving through the state’s legislature.
Lee was called out for the hypocrisy of the drag bill, as he has been photographed in... wait for it... drag.
But the hypocrisy doesn’t stop there. This week, the Tennessee Holler has released an interview with Franklyn McClur, 20, a young gay influencer and performer whose thirst pics Tennessee Lt. Gov. Randy McNally has been committing on — for years.
McNally voted for the anti-gay legislation but has been posting fire and heart emojis on steamy booty pics. We would be shocked if it wasn’t so utterly predictable.
The photos came to the attention of the Holler when an anonymous fan of McClur spotted them and pointed them out to the publication. “McNally repeatedly used his VERIFIED account to post underneath some of Franklyn’s raciest pictures,” writes Justin Kanew. “McNally is very big on heart and flame emojis.”
The two were friendly enough that McNally would call McClur by his nickname, Finn, in the comments — information that the publication notes wasn’t listed anywhere on his bio.
@franklysuperstar/Instagram/courtesy of TN Holler
According to McClur, the two have been friends online for years. They first met through “mutual friends” on Facebook where MacNally got his Instagram and began commenting there. McClur said he wasn’t aware that McNally was the same person who has been heavily involved in leading the anti-LGBTQ+ charge in his home state. “I just thought he was older and out of touch. I’ve always taken it as a compliment. I don’t dislike him or think he’s a bad person, he’s one of the only people who has consistently uplifted me and made me feel good,” said McClur.
The story has now made its way to local news, which reported on both its racy nature and McNally’s surprise response of not denying that he did indeed write the comments. Many assumed he would just claim he had been hacked.
However, McNally also released an incredibly gaslighting statement claiming that all his fire emojis on the thirst pics were being misrepresented and that he was just communicating with one of his constituents.
“Trying to imply something sinister or inappropriate about a great-grandfather’s use of social media says more about the mind of the left-wing operative making the implication than it does about Randy McNally,” the statement read. “As anyone in Tennessee politics knows, Lt.Governor McNally is a prolific social media commenter. He takes great pains to view every post he can and frequently posts encouraging things to many of his followers. Does he always use the proper emoji at the proper time? Maybe not. But he enjoys interacting with constituents and Tennesseans of all religions, backgrounds, and orientations on social media. He has no intention of stopping.”
Sure, Jan.
This would honestly be hilarious if McNally weren’t simultaneously cheering on thirst posts while actively working to push through increasingly discriminatory legislation that would make McClur and other queer and trans people’s lives harder and more painful.
We wish we could say we’re shocked, but instead we’re just saddened and infuriated at the standard hypocrisy.
