FYI, this also happened today:
U.S. Rep. Patrick Meehan saw his political future thrown into doubt Saturday after a report that the Delaware County Republican quietly used thousands of taxpayer dollars to settle a sexual-harassment claim from a former aide.
House Speaker Paul Ryan quickly removed Meehan from the House Ethics Committee and said the congressman would be investigated by the panel. Ryan also urged Meehan to pay taxpayers back for the settlement. Gov. Wolf urged Meehan to quit office.
Political operatives in Pennsylvania said they were surprised to see Meehan – widely seen as a mild straight-arrow type – drawn into a harassment scandal, but they questioned whether his career could survive the news at a time when similar revelations have brought down powerful men in Congress, Hollywood and elite media circles.
Meehan, a former federal prosecutor who is 62 and married with three sons, professed “romantic desires” to a decades-younger aide last year and grew hostile when she did not go along, the New York Times reported, citing 10 unnamed sources, including friends and former colleagues of the woman.
Here’s some more info:
A married father of three, Mr. Meehan, 62, had long expressed interest in the personal life of the aide, who was decades younger and had regarded the congressman as a father figure, according to three people who worked with the office and four others with whom she discussed her tenure there.
But after the woman became involved in a serious relationship with someone outside the office last year, Mr. Meehan professed his romantic desires for her — first in person, and then in a handwritten letter — and he grew hostile when she did not reciprocate, the people familiar with her time in the office said.
Life in the office became untenable, so she initiated the complaint process, started working from home and ultimately left the job. She later reached a confidential agreement with Mr. Meehan’s office that included a settlement for an undisclosed amount to be paid from Mr. Meehan’s congressional office fund.
On Saturday, John Elizandro, Mr. Meehan’s communications director, issued a statement saying that the congressman “denies these allegations” and “has always treated his colleagues, male and female, with the utmost respect and professionalism.”
Mr. Meehan called on the former aide to waive the confidentiality agreement in the settlement “to ensure a full and open airing of all the facts.” Mr. Elizandro did not respond to follow-up questions about why Mr. Meehan had agreed to the settlement and the confidentiality provision if the allegations were false.
Alexis Ronickher, a lawyer for the former aide, called Mr. Meehan’s statement “a desperate effort to preserve his career.” She said the congressman had demanded confidentiality in the first place, and was now asking her client to waive it knowing that she would not agree because she “prizes her privacy above all else.”
Now the action has been taken:
House Speaker Paul Ryan removed Rep. Patrick Meehan from the House Ethics Committee on Saturday following a news report that the Pennsylvania Republican used thousands of dollars in taxpayer money to settle a sexual misconduct complaint against him by a former aide.
Ryan told Meehan he must repay whatever taxpayer funds were used to settle the case and, although he has denied the allegations, be investigated by the Ethics Committee, Ryan spokesperson AshLee Strong said in a statement Saturday.
The New York Times first reported Meehan's settlement.
"Speaker Ryan takes the allegations against Mr. Meehan very seriously," Strong's statement read. "The speaker is committed to rooting out sexual misconduct in the House and providing victims the resources they need."
The statement added that the House is set to pass major bipartisan reform to the way the House handles claims of sexual harassment," and the speaker will apply these new standards to the allegations made against Mr. Meehan."
And he might have to pay, literally:
Meehan's office did not respond to questions about whether he used taxpayer money to settle the case or whether he would submit to the Ethics Committee investigation. However, his office said Meehan would only act with advice of House lawyers and in line with House Ethics Committee guidance to resolve any allegation.
"Every step of the process was handled ethically and appropriately," Meehan's office said.
Meehan represents a closely divided district that Democrat Hillary Clinton narrowly won in the 2016 presidential election.
Calls from Democrats for Meehan to resign were immediate, including one from Pennsylvania's Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf, who said the U.S. House should investigate "how this matter was handled from top to bottom."
But Meehan needs to do is what Governor Tom Wolf (D. PA) has called for: resign. Keystone Progress is echoing that call:
Rep. Pat Meehan(R-Cheltenham) settled a sexual harassment claim against himself using thousands in public dollars. Additionally, Meehan has been a "leader" in the effort by this congress to, ostensibly, investigate sexual harassment.
Meehan's conduct should be disqualifying of a congressperson.
Join us in calling for Pat Meehan's resignation, for conduct unbecoming of the office and for abuse of the public trust.
Every man should be held accountable when they violate a woman, including elected officials.
Pat Meehan can no longer serve the interests of his constituents, and we call on him to resign immediately.
In Solidarity,
The Keystone Progress Team
Click here to add your name.
Also, there are quite a few Democrats running for the seat. I won’ t be supporting State Senator Daylin Leach (D. PA) anymore because of the allegations against him but here are the other candidates you should support. Click below to donate and get involved in their campaigns:
Dan Muroff
Molly Sheehan
Drew McGinty
Elizabeth Moro