>> JOINING ME NOW IS BOB NORMAN, STRAIGHTER THE FLORIDA CENTER FOR GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY, ANTON EDWARDS, A MEMBER OF THE SCHOOL BOARD IN SARASOTA COUNTY, FLORIDA. THANK YOU BOTH FOR BEING HERE. NORMAN, CONGRATS ON BREAKING THIS STORY. WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE ALLEGED VICTIM AND THIS COUPLE? HOW FAR DOES IT GO BACK? AND HOW DID YOU ALL FIND OUT ABOUT THIS CASE? >> WILL, THANKS FOR HAVING ME ON, JOY. THE RELATIONSHIP, AS WE KNOW IT, COMES FROM THE AFFIDAVIT. AND FROM YOU RECORDED MESSAGES AND PHONE CALLS BETWEEN MR. ZIEGLER AND THE VICTIM, WHO WE UNDERSTAND IS THEY HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER, CHRISTIAN, AND THE VICTIM, FOR 20 YEARS. NOT EXTREMELY CLOSE, BUT THEY DEFINITELY HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER FOR 20 YEARS. THE OTHER THING WE KNOW IS THAT MORE THAN A YEAR AGO, AT SOME POINT, MORE THAN A YEAR AGO, THE ZIEGLER'S, CHRISTIAN AND BRIGITTE, HAD A THREE-WAY SEXUAL ENCOUNTER WITH THE WOMAN. AND THAT'S JUST ABOUT IT IN TERMS OF THE RELATIONSHIP. IN TERMS OF HOW WE GOT THE STORY, MOSTLY FROM OUR COLLEAGUE IN SARASOTA, MICHAEL BARFIELD, THE HEAD OF PUBLIC ACCESS, WHO ORIGINALLY DUG IT UP. WE JUST GOT TOGETHER AND STARTED PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER AND GOT IT OUT THERE. >> WE'RE GLAD YOU DID. TOM EDWARDS, THE IRONY OF THIS IS STRIKING. THE ZIEGLERS HAVE BEEN AT THE FOREFRONT OF THE DON'T SAY GAY LAW. THEY ARE ALLIES OF GOVERNOR RON DESANTIS, UNTIL HE RECENTLY CALLED FOR MR. ZIEGLER TO CALL DOWN STEP DOWN. I WANT TO TAKE THIS FROM A MEETING WHERE YOU WERE SLANDERED. TAKE A LISTEN. >> MR. EDWARDS APPEARS TO BE A LAW BREAKER AND AN LGBT COUP GROOMER. I'M CALLING INTO AN INVESTIGATION INTO MR. EDWARDS AND THE DETAILS OF HIM WORKING FROM THE INSIDE TO BRING ABOUT HIS WOKE AGENDA. >> WHAT TOM STANDS FOR WANTS TO DO TO OUR CHILDREN IN THIS SCHOOL DISTRICT ISN'T WHAT A MAJORITY OF -- >> EVERYONE, EXCUSE ME, CALM DOWN. THERE HAVE BEEN MULTIPLE COMMENTS ABOUT LOTS OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE. IF WE JUST ALLOW THE PEOPLE TO SPEAK AND MOVE FORWARD. THE PICKING IN CHOOSING -- >> [APPLAUSE] >> I WILL NOTE THOSE WERE ACTUALLY TWO DIFFERENT ROOM MEETINGS, MARCH 7TH AND MARCH 21 WHERE YOU WALKED OUT. TALK ABOUT WHAT THE ZIEGLERS HAVE BEEN TRYING TO DO AND IMPLEMENT IN THE SARASOTA SCHOOL DISTRICT, AND ALSO WHY YOU WALKED OUT. >> WELL, JOY, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME ON. I WALKED OUT BECAUSE THE UGLY HATE LGBTQ+ RHETORIC DIDN'T AFFECT ME PERSONALLY, ALTHOUGH IT WAS DIRECTED AT ME BECAUSE I AM A MEMBER OF THE LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY. WHAT I WAS MOST CONCERNED ABOUT IS OUR CHILDREN AND THEIR LGBTQ+ CHILDREN THAT WOULD HEAR THAT UGLY RHETORIC AND THINK THAT THEY WERE GOING TO GROW UP TO BE GROOMERS OR PEDOPHILES. THAT'S UNACCEPTABLE TO ME. AND SO I ASKED MRS. ZIEGLER TO GET ON THE MEETING AND THE COMMENTS. SHE REFUSED, SO I HAD TO HAVE TO FIGURE QUICKLY ON MY FEET, HOW CAN I GET THIS MEETING AND UGLY RHETORIC TO STOP, SO I GOT UP AND WALKED OUT. SURE ENOUGH, THAT'S WHAT STOPPED IT. I DO TO PROTECT OUR STUDENTS, PROTECT OUR STUDENTS FRIENDS AND OUR COMMUNITY FROM THAT UGLY HATE SPEECH. >> YOU ARE ALSO IN THE MEETING WHERE MS. ZIEGLER TRIED TO GET VERMILION HIRED TO CONSULT TO THE SCHOOL BOARD AND IMPLEMENT WHAT REALLY AMOUNTS TO A CHRISTIAN NATIONALIST AGENDA, WHITE CHRISTIAN NATIONALIST AGENDA. WHAT IS IT THAT THEY, IN YOUR VIEW, ARE TRYING TO DO? IT SEEMS THAT AT LEAST MISSES ZIEGLER IS IN SOME WAY, SOMEHOW, PART OF THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY, OR AT LEAST SOMETIMES. >> WELL, YOU KNOW, WHAT PEOPLE DO IN THE PRIVACY OF THEIR OWN HOMES IS NOT MY CONCERN. WHAT IS MIKE AND SOONER SERNA THE STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT GAPS. WHAT I FOUND SO HORRIFYING ABOUT THIS PROCESS, FROM THE ORIGINS OF MOMS FOR LIBERTY, WHAT I WAS FIRST ELECTED AS A SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER, RIGHT THROUGH THE TERMINATION OF THE SCHOOL BOARD OR SUPERINTENDENT, AND THEN INTO INTRODUCING HILLSDALE COLLEGE WHITE CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM INTO PUBLIC EDUCATION AND NOW THIS. IT'S A CONSTANT DISTRACTION, AND FRANKLY, WHAT IS THE MOST DISTURBING IS THE DAMAGE THAT THE ZIEGLERS, ALONG WITH THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE, AS CAUSED FOR OUR LGBTQ+ TO GUNS AND THE BLACK COMMUNITY, WHETHER IT'S WE HAVE TO ERASE A WHITEWASH BLACK HISTORY IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE WAIT STUDENTS AREN'T UNCOMFORTABLE, OR TO HEAR -- ALL THAT TIME PERIOD WHILE WE ARE DISCOVERING YOUR OWN IDENTITY. >> AND I WILL NOTE THAT AS 80 SCORES -- HAVE PLUMMETED IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA. THEY'RE NOW RANKED 46 IN TERMS OF S.A.T. SCORES. BOB NORMENT, I WILL GIVE YOU THE LAST WORD. WHERE DOES CHRISTIAN ZIEGLER STAND POLITICALLY, AND WHERE DOES THIS CASE STAND? >> POLITICALLY CHRISTIAN ZIEGLER IS UNDER TREMENDOUS FIRE. I HEARD BEFORE WE CAME ON THAT RICK SCOTT, SENATOR, WAS REALLY BEHIND HIS WIFE'S POLITICAL CAREER. BRIGITTE HAD NOT BEEN INVOLVED IN POLITICS UNTIL SHE PUT HER NAME IN FOR THE SCHOOL BOARD. IT WAS RICK SCOTT WHO APPOINTED HER. IT WAS RICK SCOTT WHO MET WITH HER AND SAID YOU ARE GOOD, WE'RE GOING TO USE YOU IN OUR MOVEMENT. RICK SCOTT HAS COME OUT AND TROLLED FOR CHRISTIAN ZIEGLER'S RESIGNATION. IT'S A BIG STEP. NUMEROUS REPUBLICAN -- ACROSS THE BOARD
