This is rather inconvenient for a presidential candidate, you've got to suppose: John Perry, the ghostwriter co-author of two of Mike Huckabee's books, who seems to have ghostwritten co-authored books with about nine million other rightwing Christians as well, was accused of molesting a child in two different lawsuits, according to a piece published Wednesday evening by BuzzFeed's Andrew Kaczynski and Ilan Ben-Meir.

Perry co-authored Huckabee's 2008 campaign bio Do the Right Thing: Inside the Movement That’s Bringing Common Sense Back to America, and he's also credited with research and writing for Huck's 2007 memoir about his time as Arkansas governor, Character Is the Issue: How People with Integrity Can Revolutionize America. Perry also co-wrote So Help Me God: The Ten Commandments, Judicial Tyranny, and the Battle for Religious Freedom, with Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice and all-around Christian wingnut icon Roy Moore.

The alleged abuse is discussed in Perry's divorce proceedings, in which his ex-wife says he admitted to "inappropriate marital conduct" -- which Buzzfeed notes "appears to be a euphemism for the alleged molestation" throughout the documents. One filing refers more directly to his “admitted sexual abuse” of a minor. There is some legalistic wrangling over whether those statements during the discovery process were actually "presented" before the court, but Perry's response doesn't deny that the abuse occurred, or that he admitted it to his ex.

Also, too, there's that 2012 police investigation, which couldn't be pursued because the statute of limitations had expired:

“The alleged sexual battery was reported to have occurred when the victim was between the ages of 11 and 14,” said Nashville police department spokesperson Don Aaron in a statement to BuzzFeed News.

“As a result of the investigation, the allegations of sexual battery were sustained, but it was determined that the statute of limitations had tolled, barring prosecution. The victim was age 18 when she first disclosed the allegations to non-law enforcement and said at that time she did not want the matter reported to the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services or the police.”

There's also another "series of lawsuits" in Tennessee involving the alleged molestation:

Austin Davis, a former parishioner of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Nashville, claims that the church covered up Perry’s alleged acts of child molestation and launched a campaign to silence and harass Davis.

In an affidavit in the case, Davis said the accuser told him the molestation occurred when she was 11 to 13. And then there's this very carefully phrased paragraph, which we'll assume BuzzFeed's lawyers looked at very carefully:

The individual Perry allegedly molested told BuzzFeed News that she believed that the church reacted appropriately, and did not cover up Perry’s alleged offense. Perry has not returned multiple requests for comment from BuzzFeed News.

That's not exactly a confirmation that there was any abuse, just that the woman says she thinks the church handled whatever may have happened just fine, and there was no cover-up. Mysterious!

Elsewhere in Davis's lawsuit, minutes from Covennant Presbyterian Church meetings show that Perry was "excommunicated from the church because he 'has confessed to committing heinous and repetitive sin […] and has not shown evidence of repentance.'" In addition, the "individual Perry allegedly molested also told BuzzFeed News that Perry was excommunicated from the church as a consequence of the alleged abuse." In another affidavit, Davis's wife, Catherine, wrote that in 2012 she had spoken to the woman "who confirmed the abuse occurred numerous times when the individual was a minor." Further:

Davis said the accuser told her that she broke her silence in 2007 and began telling friends, family members, church leaders, and school officials about what had allegedly occurred.

We are not a lawyer, but we think that gun just might be smoking some. Not surprisingly, Huckabee has not yet responded to BuzzFeed's requests for comment on Perry's alleged abuse. And when he does, it will no doubt be with sorrow, regret, and a reminder of Christ's forgiveness.

But golly, this Mike Huckabee character sure does have a penchant for befriending and working with people who like kids in an "inappropriate" way. You've got his very passionate defenses of Josh Duggar and his family, and his great affection for Ted Nugent, who wrote that one song about kittycats -- or maybe it was vaginas; Huck doesn't do innuendo.

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But Ted, too, has a fondness for, oh, what's that other song of his? And of course there's Ted's notorious strategy of becoming a 17-year-old girl's legal guardian, since marrying her wasn't an option. Aw, but Ted's just a good ol' boy with healthy interests in guns and freedom, so no harm, no foul there, either.

It's not like Huckabee has any skeletons in his closet. He merely happens to have a whole bunch of pals whose storage units rattle one hell of a lot.

[BuzzFeed / HuffPo]