Sweatin’ with Cong. Schock

When Barney Frank came out as gay in his forties, he was relieved to discover that his constituents really didn’t care about the sex life of a middle-aged man, and the world moved on. The same cannot be said for a colleague of Frank’s in the U.S. House, the still serving Aaron Schock, an Illinois Republican who’s attracted lots of attention, not for coming out as gay, but for not coming out, persistent rumors to the contrary. Also, if the shallow truth be told, for the fact that this is what he looks like at poolside; but he also looks great in pressed plaid shirts or even in sweats, which he wears during (well-documented) workouts. Then there was that shirtless pose on the cover of Men’s Health. Against this backdrop, it turns out that Schock has one of the worst records on gay rights in Congress, so he’s been deemed fair game for “outing” by some journalists. And, inevitably, his denials have become fair game for ridicule. A twitter feed has opened up under @GayRepSchock called “I’m not gay, I’m fabulous.” A send-up at bentspud.com that went viral was titled, “Aaron Schock denies gay rumors, reveals engagement to Liza Minnelli.” Next thing you know, he’ll be launching a fitness program and appearing shirtless to demonstrate its benefits! Oh, wait, he’s already doing that.