WMG Volume 7 • Issue 6 February 19, 2020
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COMMUNITY
Rep. Deutch Endorses Bloomberg for President
But stays silent on accusations of sexual harassment against the former mayor By Jason Parsley U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch endorsed former Mayor Michael Bloomberg for president last week, citing his commitment to strengthening gun laws and fighting climate change. “While states across the country have taken steps to strengthen gun laws, America continues to fall victim to gun violence. We need to take immediate action before another mass tragedy unfolds, and tomorrow is too late to start. Mike Bloomberg will make gun safety a national priority and he has a plan that could actually prevent these atrocities from happening,” Congressman Ted Deutch said in a prepared statement. “Not only that, Mike is our country’s answer to fighting pressing issues like climate change and will use integrity and real leadership to restore America’s place in the global community.” However Deutch did not address Bloomberg’s stop and frisk policy that targeted minorities in New York City, or his decades old lawsuits against him accusing him of sexual harassment and the degradation of women. Bloomberg has repeatedly apologized for his stop and frisk policy, but in the past has repeatedly denied the sexual harassment allegations.
Deutch, who serves on the House ethics committee, has been a leader in combatting sexual harassment. In 2018 he led the charge on the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 Reform Act, which according to his website “will improve workplace protections in Congress and strengthen responses to sexual harassment cases.” Deutch said at the time: “The halls of Congress are not absent from sexual harassment. Just like every other workplace in America, we need to strengthen our anti-harassment policies for Congressional offices to create a safe environment for all employees. We are sending an important message to the entire country that perpetrators - even Members of Congress - will be held accountable. With unanimous passage of this bill in the House, we are starting to change the culture by preventing future abuse and empowering victims to seek justice without fear of retribution.” Additionally when former Minnesota Senator Al Franken came under scrutiny in 2017 for allegations of sexual misconduct Deutch appeared on CNN telling the host the photos of Franken pretending to grope a woman were “absolutely revolting.” On the same show Deutch also supported a Senate
DEUTCH, WHO SERVES ON THE HOUSE ETHICS COMMITTEE, HAS BEEN A LEADER IN COMBATTING SEXUAL HARASSMENT.
investigation into the allegations even though many of them happened before Franken took office. Franken later resigned. “I saw a statistic last night that one in six women in America claimed to have been sexually harassed in the workplace and it’s not just Congress, and we need to do more […] but it’s every workplace in America,” Deutch told CNN at the time. “This is a moment of reckoning in this country, it’s really an important conversation we need to have.” Rep. Deutch also said, “Well, in my role on the ethics committee I, I would want to have the opportunity to speak with the woman who I’ve seen on television.” SFGN reached out to Deutch’s office by email twice for comment, but did not get a reply back before press time. Over the weekend Washington Post published an in-depth story looking at some of the allegations including whether Bloomberg once told a pregnant to “kill” her unborn child. According to the Post, Bloomberg, through his lawyer, denied ever saying it. However the Post was able to track down another employee who worked at the company at the time, who corroborated the woman’s story. In addition GQ reported that Bloomberg and his company have fielded about 40 sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuits over the years. Last month Bloomberg was confronted by one of hosts of the View on ABC over some of the allegations where he told the hosts
Rep. Ted Deutch. Photo via Facebook.
he would not release the women from the nondisclosure agreements. “We don’t have anything to hide but we made legal agreements, which both sides wanted to keep certain things from coming out, they have a right to do that,” Bloomberg said on the show. “Remember, just because you signed a nondisclosure doesn’t mean you can’t talk about other things. You just can’t talk about what was in that agreement where perhaps you don’t disparage the other party or you don’t want to retell a story, whatever it is.” Deutch represents Florida’s 22nd congressional district that covering parts of Broward and Palm Beach Counties including Wilton Manors. WMG
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