Capitol Rattled by Republican Sex Scandal

GOP lawmaker's salacious sex-bragging caught on tape.

Assemblyman Michael Duvall, (R-Yorba Linda) resigned in disgrace this week after he was caught on tape bragging about extramarital affairs with two women, one of whom is a lobbyist. The conversation took place during a lull in business at a legislative hearing between Duvall and Assemblyman Jeff Miller (R-Corona), who has since been removed from his position on the Assembly Ethics Commission. Duvall, 54, is married and has two children.

Duvall can be seen and heard on the tape leaning over to Miller to whisper, "She wears little eye-patch underwear ... the other day she came here with her underwear, Thursday. And so, we had made love Wednesday a lot! ... she's all, 'I am going up and down the stairs, and you're dripping out of me!' So messy!'"

Duvall revealed more information about the women with whom he is involved. "And so her birthday was Monday. I was 54 on June 14, so for a month, she was 19 years younger than me. I said, 'Now, you're getting old. I am going to have to trade you in.' And she goes, 'I'm 36.' She is 18 years younger than me. And so I keep teasing her, and she goes, 'I know you French men. You divide your age by two and add seven, and if you're older than that, you dump us.'"

Duvall continued, "So, I am getting into spanking her. Yeah, I like it. I like spanking her." Miller can be heard asking if she likes it and Duvall responded, "She goes, 'I know you like spanking me.' I said, 'Yeah! Because you're such a bad girl!'"

News reports revealed one of the women to be Heidi Dejong Barsuglia, a married 36-year-old lobbyist who works for an energy company. Duvall´s State Assembly website was obliterated of data immediately after his resignation. However, Duvall did post a notice on his campaign website stating that his resignation was not an admission of having an affair. "I want to make it clear that my decision to resign is in no way an admission that I had an affair or affairs. My offense was engaging in inappropriate story-telling and I regret my language and choice of words."

Duvall, who campaigned as a "family values" lawmaker, received a 100% approval score from the Capitol Resource Institute (CRI), a conservative lobbying group in Sacramento. Duvall has been a staunch opponent of gay rights and supported Proposition 8, a ban on same-sex marriage in California.

Lorri L. Jean, Chief Executive Officer of the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center was outraged at Duvall's request for privacy. "Even as he resigns in shame," Jean said, "former California Assemblymember Michael Duvall is wallowing in hypocrisy. While engaging in extramarital affairs, he used 'family values' as a justification to vote against every bill that would have provided any measure of equal treatment or fairness to LGBT people. He used the same justification to support taking away the lawful right of same-sex couples to marry. Now he has the temerity to protest that his adultery (with lobbyists) 'is a private matter' and asks that 'everyone respect the privacy of all involved?!"

Jean continued, "It's Duvall's hypocrisy regarding his infidelity that makes him so especially despicable. He joins a long line of equally discredited, anti-gay 'family values' conservatives like evangelical U.S. Senators David Vitter and John Ensign, and South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford. At least Duvall had a modicum of decency and resigned, while those of the Vitter/Ensign/Sanford ilk brazenly continue on, still embraced by their 'family values' colleagues."

Duvall was first elected to the State Assembly in 2006. He represented Fullerton, Anaheim, Placentia, Orange, Brea and Yorba Linda. He served six years on the Yorba Linda City Council and owns an insurance agency.