Lauren Boebert Called Everyone a “Groomer.” Now Her Son Faces Child-Exploitation Charges.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit michaelfanone.substack.comSuddenly, Lauren Boebert believes an accusation isn’t a conviction.Her 21-year-old son, Tyler, has been arrested again — this time on five felony charges, three of them tied to the alleged sexual exploitation of a child. Let me say the important part first and plainly: these are allegations. Tyler Boebert has not been convicted. Prosecutors will have to prove their case, and he’s entitled to the same presumption of innocence as anyone. Hold onto that, because it matters to where this is going.Here’s what’s on the record. Tyler was arrested in Garfield County, Colorado, after an investigation by the sheriff’s office and a felony review by the district attorney. The counts: sexual exploitation of a child by inducement or enticement, sexual exploitation involving possession with intent, sexual exploitation involving video, and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Authorities say the alleged conduct dates back to January 1, 2024. They haven’t disclosed much more, because the investigation is ongoing. He was booked into the Garfield County Jail, released the same day on a $10,000 bond, and is due back in court August 19.And these aren’t even his only open cases. Tyler is already awaiting sentencing in two others — one child-abuse case stemming from an incident involving his young son, and a 2024 vehicle-trespassing and theft case in which he pleaded guilty to attempted identity theft. At 21, he’s already got a remarkable history with the justice system.His mother, Congresswoman Lauren Boebert, responded to the new arrest by saying, “I love my son,” that the family takes the allegations “very seriously,” and that they’re praying for everyone affected.And that’s a perfectly reasonable response from a mother whose adult son has been accused of a serious crime. Take it seriously. Don’t prejudge. Let investigators investigate and prosecutors present evidence. Let the process decide.There’s just one problem. Lauren Boebert has spent years extending exactly none of that restraint to other people — whenever an accusation about children was politically useful to her.Remember when Republicans decided everyone they disliked was a “groomer”? Boebert was one of the loudest voices doing it, and she never needed anyone to actually be accused of anything. In 2022, a North Carolina teacher used LGBTQ-inclusive flash cards in an elementary classroom — illustrations of different kinds of families. No allegation of abuse. No allegation of exploitation. Boebert looked at that and declared, “The Left is grooming our kids.”Think about how heavy that word is. Grooming isn’t a synonym for “teaching kids something Lauren Boebert doesn’t like.” It describes the manipulation of children for sexual abuse. That’s one of the most serious accusations a person can make — and she turned it into partisan slang. She did it again that year going after Tyra Banks, an executive producer of a reality show about teenage drag performers, with “Siri, define grooming.” No evidence. No criminal allegation. Just association she could weaponize.And it was part of a much bigger campaign — LGBTQ people, drag performers, teachers, Democrats, providers of gender-affirming care, all tarred with the language of child predation. Then five people were murdered at Club Q, an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, in November 2022. When people confronted Boebert about the rhetoric she’d aimed at that community, she called it “disgusting” that anyone would connect her words to hostility.See the machine? When it’s someone else, a teacher’s flash cards become proof “the Left is grooming our kids.” When it’s her, connecting rhetoric to consequences is irresponsible. And now that her own son is facing real felony charges involving the alleged exploitation of a child, the response is careful, restrained, wait-for-the-process.That is how she should respond. The hypocrisy isn’t that Lauren Boebert loves her son. It’s that she clearly understands nuance perfectly well when she needs it. When it’s your family, an allegation isn’t a conviction. When it’s your family, words matter and the situation is complicated and painful. We even saw it before — when Tyler faced that separate child-abuse case after his young son wandered from a family home, she called it a “miscommunication.” Maybe it was, and he was entitled to have the circumstances weighed instead of being branded a monster.That’s the whole point. Extend that same courtesy to everyone else.Because this is what makes the “groomer” rhetoric so poisonous. Child sexual abuse is real. Grooming is real. The exploitation of children is real, and those crimes destroy lives. When politicians grab those words and slap them on teachers, LGBTQ people, and opponents without a shred of evidence, they don’t make a single child safer — they turn the gravest accusations imaginable into a Twitter insult.Tyler Boebert deserves the process. The alleged victim or victims deserve a serious investigation. And if prosecutors prove these charges beyond a reasonable doubt, he should face the consequences. That’s how justice works — for him, and for everyone his mother ever pointed at.Maybe she remembers that the next time she sees a rainbow flag and reaches for the word “groomer.”🟧 Paid subscribers get 15% off your next merch order🟧 Founding Members get 20% off for lifeYou’ll get the link in your welcome email.GET DISCOUNTS BELOW! ENJOY!