At the behest of Illinois Republican Party Chair Pat Brady, the president of the Chicago Young Republicans has been ousted amid a growing scandal for the state GOP.
An allegation of sexual misconduct against CYR President Jeremy Rose -- and the alleged cover-ups, blind eyes turned and retributions made in its wake -- resulted in Rose vacating the post Monday.
Chairman Brady said Rose's continued involvement with the Young Republicans was "a distraction to what we're trying to accomplish."
In addition to being the longtime CYR president, Rose was hired by Cook County Republican Party chairman Lee Roupas as political director in 2009. He was promoted in early 2010 to CCRP Executive Director, though Roupas knew full well of the allegations against Rose.
But as details of the situation emerged, the GOP began damage control. Within an hour of being interviewed by Huffington Post Chicago last Tuesday, Roupas circulated Jeremy Rose's letter of resignation from the Cook County Republican Party.
Rose remained president of the Chicago Young Republicans, however, through the end of last week. Then, party chairman Brady intervened.
In an interview today, Brady told HuffPost Chicago that Rose was removed at his instruction.
"I told the board of the Young Republicans that Jeremy needed to step down immediately," Brady said. "The Young Republicans aren't under my jurisdiction per se, but I did tell the board that it's time to have Jeremy step down."
Brady's involvement in the scandal has increased in recent days. On Friday, female Democratic officials gathered for a press conference demanding accountability from the state's Republican leadership over the issue.
And just today, Brady spent the majority of his appearance on WBEZ's "Eight Forty-Eight" fending off questions about the situation, including allegations that he made homophobic remarks about bloggers covering the story. (Click here for audio.)
But through it all, Brady stands by Cook County Chair Roupas.
"I support Lee. I think he's been a great chairman," Brady told HuffPost Chicago today. When asked if he thought Roupas should resign, he said, "No, I don't. I think it's up to the organization to determine what they should do going forward."
He described those seeking Roupas' resignation as "a very vocal minority within the Cook County organization."
Rose has been replaced at the Young Republicans by Meredyth Richards, who had previously served as the CYR's Political Action Committee Chair.