Was he buzzed? Was he flirting?
Whatever Bill Schuette's frat-boy-lookin' ass was up to in this newly surfaced clip from 1989, it sure was creepy as hell.
The video obtained and posted to Twitter by liberal activist group American Bridge shows a then-34- or 35-year-old Schuette speaking strangely and, dare we say, seductively to a woman behind a camera.
"I will be happy to move closer to the lamp," he tells the woman with a horrifically DTF glint in his eye. "I will do anything you want. Some things I may not let you run the camera on."
It's slightly inaudible, but the woman seems to reply that she's just trying to make Schuette look as good as possible by having him move.
If American Bridge's estimated time frame for the footage is correct, Schuette was then a Congressman for Michigan's 10th district. On Twitter, the group did not provide information about the clip beyond its date.
We obtained this footage of @SchuetteOnDuty, dated from 1989. It seems... interesting. Can anyone give us more information about this video and who the woman is behind the camera? #migov pic.twitter.com/1ErYoodZZV
— American Bridge (@American_Bridge) October 11, 2018
In an emailed statement sent Oct. 10, hours before American Bridge tweeted out the clip, Schuette described his behavior as a bad joke.
"That apparently was my poor attempt to be humorous 30 years ago," Schuette said in a statement sent to media. "The video, which appears to be edited with only one short portion shown, has been in the public domain for some time.
"It’s fortunate for me that Cynthia came into my life and let me know that I am not a very funny guy, but this is no less embarrassing to me today and I regret it."
Schuette's campaign said he had no recollection of the details surrounding the recording.
Schuette's Democrat opponent, Gretchen Whitmer, who is a woman and survivor of sexual assault, issued this statement:
"I imagine everyone who’s watched it had the same uncomfortable look on our faces. But even more troubling is the fact that Schuette has spent the past 33 years in office attacking the rights of women and working to take away our access to contraception and health care."
Stay on top of Detroit news and views. Sign up for our weekly issue newsletter delivered each Wednesday.
