People were surprised – and confused – last week when it became clear that Tennessee Lt. Gov. Randy McNally regularly posted comments on the Instagram profile of a 20-year-old gay man.
Since the Tennessee Holler reported on the comments, McNally has apologized. Franklyn McClur, the man from the profile, said he hopes the politician is okay.
“I didn’t even know what a damn lieutenant governor was… I was thinking, it’s kind of random, but I’m grateful that someone’s being nice to me,” he told the Cut of McNally’s comments, which began when he was 17. “You could look at a heart-eye emoji and think someone is telling you that they have a crush on you, I guess. But it’s also valid for someone to just be saying you’re pretty or you look good.”
McNally, 79, had a career as a pharmacist and has been in politics since 1978. He is a Republican who has supported an anti-drag bill, according to the Cut.
“‘Are you doing okay?’ I’d probably ask him that,” McClur told the Cut. “Cause he’s 79, so, you know, life expectancy!”
McClur added that he would also ask McNally about the drag bill. He said that “taking away someone’s way of expressing themselves,” is “evil,” but that he has “compassion for everyone because I know how it feels to be hated on.”
According to the Cut, McNally sent McClur a direct message that read: “Thank you Finn. I appreciate your truthfulness if you ever need anything let me know.”
McNally never asked McClur for nudes or asked him out on a date, the 20-year-old said. The lieutenant governor first met the younger man on Facebook and then followed him on Instagram.
“Trying to imply something sinister or inappropriate about a great-grandfather’s use of social media says more about the mind of the left-wing operative making the implication than it does about Randy McNally,” said a spokesperson for McNally cited by the Cut.
One of McNally’s Instagram comments included three red hearts and three “on-fire” emojis as well as the comment “Finn, you can turn a rainy day into rainbows and sunshine.”
He also apparently liked a post where McClur referenced sex work.
In an interview with News Channel 5 last week, McNally said it was probably inappropriate to like that post. He also said he was sorry if his Instagram comments embarrassed his family, friends or other legislators.
“I have long been active on social media,” he said in a statement to CBS News. “I have made a point to engage with people not only in posts, but in comments and messages as well. My comments to Franklin [sic] McClure and others, which have recently drawn so much attention, are no different,” said McNally in a statement to CBS News.”
Per the Cut, McClur is one of several queer people McNally interacted with in social media, including a trans woman. News Channel 5 said that there is “no doubt McNally is extremely active on social media, often offering positive comments about people’s families, latest achievements, as well as birthdays and anniversaries.”
McNally, who is a married Roman Catholic with two adult daughters, told the outlet that he plans to be more careful about what he posts going forward.
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