An image posted to Reddit purportedly from 2002 shows a then-candidate for Senate Jim Bob Duggar posing with his son Josh Duggar on a political mailing flyer. Both the date of the flyer and the message written upon it have taken an ironic twist now that Josh has been arrested on charges of child pornography. Gossip Cop tracked down the origin of this flyer and can confirm that its message wasn’t altered, though it didn’t age very well at all considering the current charges Josh is facing.
Viral Image Recalls Jim Bob Duggar’s Newly Relevant Take On Rapists, Incest
In a 2002 flyer supporting his run for U.S. Senate, Jim Bob Duggar poses with his eldest son, Josh. That year is significant, since it’s reportedly around the same time that a young Josh was caught molesting several underage girls, including a few o f his own sisters. The caption, that was possibly photoshopped on after the fact, on the flyer was a quote purportedly from Jim Bob which read, “Rape and incest represent heinous crimes and as such should be treated as capital crimes.”
The quote is especially ironic since Josh Duggar not only previously admitted to molesting his own sisters, but also because Josh was recently arrested on charges of receiving and possessing child pornography. Considering the extensive charges his own son is facing, many people have pointed out the irony in Jim Bob Duggar’s view on capital punishment for committers of rape and incest. But is the quote real?
The Quote Is Absolutely Real
Gossip Cop looked into the matter and traced the quote back to its origin. Jim Bob did advocate for rape and incest to be “treated as capital crimes” in 2002. Back then, Jim Bob, who’d once served in the House of Representatives, was running for Senate. Though his bid was ultimately unsuccessful, Jim Bob did create a website for himself which included a list of his positions on various issues.
On the issue of abortion, Jim Bob laid out his view on when the medical procedure was appropriate. He explained that he did not believe in it for cases of rape or incest, and argued that “the rapist should be executed instead of the innocent unborn baby,” since it had “committed no crime and should be allowed to live.”
The quote about treating rape and incest as capital crimes has circulated in the past. It first made the circuit in 2015, when it was first revealed that Jim Bob and his wife, Michelle, had been aware that Josh had molested several underage girls. Several other reputable outlets at that time verified that the quote belonged to Jim Bob Duggar, though it’s likely that it’s coming back to haunt him now.
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