Democrats’ projected vice presidential nominee’s handling of a sexual harassment case has revived Vice President Kamala Harris’s longstanding harassment hush money problem.
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s (D-PA) administration paid nearly $300,000 in 2023 to settle a sexual harassment claim against one of his aides in a shadowy deal that involved a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). Shapiro defended himself Thursday after vice presidential rumors revived the settlement involving his former cabinet secretary and longtime aide, Mike Vereb.
However, the scandal has revived allegations — perhaps even more damning — against the top of the Democrats’ ticket as well.
“Guess who covered up sexual harassment claims in her office — Kamala Harris,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung posted along with a Los Angeles Times report from 2019. “Her office paid $1.1 million in settlements. Birds of a feather, flock together.”
Guess who covered up sexual harassment claims in her office— @KamalaHarris.
— Steven Cheung (@TheStevenCheung) August 1, 2024
Her office paid $1.1 million in settlements.
Birds of a feather, flock together.https://t.co/phzyiW2GYw https://t.co/UgXHxEXnLz
The California Department of Justice (DOJ) paid more than $1.1 million to settle claims — including hundreds of thousands of dollars for alleged sexual harassment — during Harris’s tenure as the state’s top cop, according to documents that the Times cited.
A spokesman for then-Sen. Harris claimed at the time of the report that Harris did not know about the case that the state’s DOJ settled until the Times brought it to her attention despite her serving as the state’s top law enforcement official at the time of the seven-figure settlements.
The Times reported that Harris took “responsibility for what happened in her office,” writing:
“As the chief executive of a department of nearly 5,000 employees, the buck stopped with me,” Harris said in a statement. “No one should face harassment or intimidation in the workplace, and victims of sexual misconduct should be listened to, believed and protected.”
Harris said that since her election to the Senate she has made it clear to her staff that she will be involved whenever there is an allegation of misconduct by an employee.
“In my Senate office, if a harassment complaint is made, it immediately comes to me,” Harris said Thursday. “No office is immune to misconduct, and there is much more work to do to ensure all are protected.”
As a senator, Harris was a vocal proponent of the #MeToo movement, even introducing legislation called the Empower Act, which “aims to reduce barriers preventing victims of harassment from speaking out by prohibiting nondisclosure and nondisparagement clauses in legal settlements.”
One of the financial payments that the state of California made hit especially close to home for Harris. According to the Times:
The financial settlements paid by the state on claims filed during Harris’ tenure include a previously reported $400,000 payment to settle a 2016 lawsuit involving Larry Wallace, a longtime top aide to Harris who resigned from her Senate staff in December after media reports about the payment. Danielle Hartley, an executive assistant who worked for Wallace, alleged in the suit that he engaged in gender harassment and discriminated against her.
A spokeswoman for Harris said in December that the senator was unaware of the allegations against Wallace.
“Mr. Wallace offered his resignation to the senator and she accepted it,” the representative said.
Wallace had served as “one of Harris’ closest aides for 14 years,” according to the report.
The Harris campaign scheduled a rally Tuesday in Shapiro’s state of Pennsylvania amid ongoing rumors Shapiro has emerged as Harris’s top choice to join her on the ticket.
Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye.
