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Secrecy surrounds sexual harassment settlements in Congress
Scaremento Bee ^

Posted on 11/19/2017 12:25:06 PM PST by TigerClaws

WASHINGTON State governments’ practice of spending taxpayer funds to settle sexual harassment lawsuits against legislators and staff has created an uproar in California’s Legislature and other statehouses around the country. Now a picture is emerging of how the U.S. Congress is doing the same thing, with less fanfare and even less transparency.

Democratic Rep. Jackie Speier of Hillsborough said Wednesday that over the last 20 years, Congress has settled 260 complaints of workplace discrimination “at a cost to taxpayers of this country of $15 million,” reiterating a figure she quoted on NBC Tuesday. But it’s unclear how many of those complaints were related to sexual harassment, versus racial or other forms of discrimination, because Congress doesn’t release that information, nor is it subject to Freedom of Information Act requests.

Speier and a handful of other Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate are pushing to make that information public as part of new legislation they unveiled Wednesday. The Member and Employee Training and Oversight on Congress – or ME TOO CONGRESS – Act would overhaul the system for reporting harassment via the Office of Compliance or OOC, a tiny congressional agency that oversees workplace policies for the nation’s legislative branch, lifting the cloak of secrecy that critics say empowers harassers. “Congress created the Office of Compliance to protect itself from being exposed,” Speier charged at the press conference. “And it has been very successful.”

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article184870288.html#storylink=cpy

(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
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1 posted on 11/19/2017 12:25:06 PM PST by TigerClaws
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To: TigerClaws

Considering it’s my tax dollars subsidizing this abuse, I demand an accounting and an explanation from the Republican “leadership” in Congress.


2 posted on 11/19/2017 12:31:14 PM PST by Arm_Bears (Rope. Tree. Politician/Journalist. Some assembly required.)
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To: TigerClaws

The Kingdom Of Congress


3 posted on 11/19/2017 12:33:31 PM PST by butlerweave
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To: Arm_Bears

The people who received the checks had to sign a non-disclosure agreement. The people who released the checks did not. Release the names. If Moore is not acceptable (in their eyes), these scumbags certainly aren’t.


4 posted on 11/19/2017 12:35:11 PM PST by fhayek
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To: TigerClaws

I do not understand why this has not become a full blown scandal.

Where are the names?


5 posted on 11/19/2017 12:35:53 PM PST by tennmountainman ("Prophet Mountainman" Predicter Of All Things RINO...for a small fee.)
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To: Arm_Bears

That’s hilarious.


6 posted on 11/19/2017 12:36:03 PM PST by Wolfie
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To: TigerClaws

For over a hundred years the feminist movement has sought to tear down the pedestal that women were on now they want to climb back on it.


7 posted on 11/19/2017 12:38:34 PM PST by fella ("As it was before Noah so shall it be again,")
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To: TigerClaws

So there is a fund used to pay off people who file complaints. So what? Its extremely expensive to defend these sorts of accusations even when they’re false and sometimes it’s cheaper to pay the accuser than it is to fight it out in court.

Without specific evidence this is just rumormongering.


8 posted on 11/19/2017 12:41:33 PM PST by RKBA Democrat (Christianity and politics don't mix.)
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To: Arm_Bears

You will be waiting a long time.
The leadership of Republicans in Congress are all undocumented Democrats in R jerseys.


9 posted on 11/19/2017 12:42:00 PM PST by Lurkinanloomin (Natural Born Citizen Means Born Here Of Citizen Parents - Know Islam, No Peace -No Islam, Know Peace)
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To: TigerClaws

“”Congress created the Office of Compliance to protect itself from being exposed,” Speier charged at the press conference. “And it has been very successful.””

True for much of our Congress critters’ behaviors — not seeable. Tagline.


10 posted on 11/19/2017 12:42:14 PM PST by polymuser (Enough is enough.)
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To: TigerClaws

I would suspect that the reason this is not a full blown scandal is that most of the culprits are dimoKKKRATS. If most were Republicans the media would be all over it.


11 posted on 11/19/2017 12:48:47 PM PST by Parley Baer
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To: TigerClaws

I would suspect that the reason this is not a full blown scandal is that most of the culprits are dimoKKKRATS. If most were Republicans the media would be all over it.


12 posted on 11/19/2017 12:48:48 PM PST by Parley Baer
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To: TigerClaws

13 posted on 11/19/2017 12:50:45 PM PST by llevrok (Swamp nothing! Give Washington DC an enema !)
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To: fella

This is about underage people who work in Congress. It would, of course, include boys and well as girls.


14 posted on 11/19/2017 12:51:37 PM PST by miss marmelstein
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To: Lurkinanloomin

“....The leadership of Republicans in Congress are all undocumented Democrats in R jerseys....”

The leadership of Republicans in Congress are all undocumented Democrats in R jerseys = UniParty members. They’re all UniParty members, including the accused. Therefore, there will be NO RELEASE of names. Another great waste of taxpayer (the unwashed masses) dollars.


15 posted on 11/19/2017 12:54:46 PM PST by lgjhn23 (It's easy to be liberal when you're dumber than a box of rocks.)
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To: RKBA Democrat
So what? Its extremely expensive to defend these sorts of accusations.

No its not, neither the court costs or the settlement fees comes out of the congress critters pocket or their operating budget.

Its a separate account set up by congress with your money.

The real reason for the account is to settle these things before they get to federal court where congressmen can't control the process or keep it out of the headlines.

16 posted on 11/19/2017 12:57:17 PM PST by usurper ( version)
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To: TigerClaws
No wonder they can't balance the budget! Sheesh!!!
17 posted on 11/19/2017 1:01:36 PM PST by Know et al ( Keep on Freepin'!!!)
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To: TigerClaws

This case will ALWAYS remain a secret. You think that any of our Congress critters will admit that they were gropers in their past? But if just one of them gets convicted, they will rat on each other and will fall like dominoes. When will the allegations start?


18 posted on 11/19/2017 1:05:09 PM PST by 353FMG
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To: fhayek
The people who received the checks had to sign a non-disclosure agreement.

What's the penalty for breach of an NDA? Then, what is the penalty for breach of an NDA when politicians are involved?

19 posted on 11/19/2017 1:08:28 PM PST by wastedyears (US out of the UN, UN out of the US.)
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To: RKBA Democrat
So there is a fund used to pay off people who file complaints. So what? Its extremely expensive to defend these sorts of accusations even when they’re false and sometimes it’s cheaper to pay the accuser than it is to fight it out in court.

Then, let them pay for it out of their own pockets - NOT MINE!!!

20 posted on 11/19/2017 1:10:12 PM PST by 2nd amendment mama (Self Defense is a Basic Human Right!)
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