U.S. envoy asked auditors to delete claims of offensive remarks from report
WASHINGTON
The American ambassador to Britain, Robert
Wood Johnson IV, urged State Department investigators against publicly reporting allegations that he made sexually or racially inappropriate comments to embassy staff, according to a report released on Wednesday.
The report, the product of a routine inspection of the U.S. diplomatic mission to Britain that was conducted over a three-month period in the fall, recommended that officials at the State Department’s headquarters review Johnson’s conduct.
But the senior diplomat overseeing European issues in Washington indicated he would not open a new investigation of the findings and said Johnson has since watched a video about workplace harassment and could receive additional training to prevent violations of employees’ civil rights.
It was not clear if Secretary of State Mike Pompeo or other top leaders would demand an additional inquiry amid a groundswell from American diplomats who are women or people of color and say they have been sidelined at a department that promotes equal rights and civil liberties around the world.
The final report from the State Department’s Office of Inspector General said that staff at the U.S. Embassy in London had reported being subject to
United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom Robert Wood Johnson IV also owns the New York Jets.
“inappropriate or insensitive comments” by Johnson
on topics that may have included references to
“religion, sex, or color.” It did not provide specific examples of his remarks.
Several current and former American diplomats have told The New York Times that Johnson, a pharmaceutical heir who owns the New York Jets, often made female and Black staff members uncomfortable with comments about their appearances or race after he took up his post in London in November 2017.
Some staff members attributed some of Johnson’s behavior to his age and social status. But others said they were also distressed by suggestions that they were disloyal to President Donald Trump or the United States when they resisted his directives.
In a May 27 letter to the inspector general’s office, Johnson said he rejected the conclusion that he may have violated the civil rights of embassy employees.
He also said that, since no employee had filed a formal complaint against him, inspectors should reconsider “including the recommendation in the final report and concluding that my actions have negatively affected morale.”