Out Congress’ harassers
Another day, another powerful American man putting parts of his body where they do not belong. Sen. Al Franken deserves stern rebukes from his constituents and his colleagues for groping and allegedly thrusting his tongue down the throat of a woman backstage of a 2006 USO show in Afghanistan, two years before he was elected. Give him hell, and if more women come forward, give him more hell.
A Senate ethics investigation into bad but noncriminal behavior from years before he was in office, on the other hand, makes little sense and smacks of panic.
But that’s what Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, running scared of the daily drip of disgusting depravities of Roy Moore in Alabama, has called for, likely because of fears more allegations against more senators may soon surface. He seemingly wants to show that he’s on the case — without giving into a mob that demands any and every accusation should ipso facto force a resignation.
The far more immediate problem facing legislative leaders is the revelation that over the decades, they’ve paid out more than $15 million in taxpayer cash in secret settlement funds, with some big chunk of that sum going to to employees to address office sexual harassment claims.
And with recipients forced to sign nondisclosure agreements in order to collect the cash, the identities of the parties and particulars of the episodes have been kept under wraps.
It’s Albany on the Potomac: New York had a near-identical scandal in 2013, as the lecherous Vito Lopez forced staffers into silent suffering.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and California Rep. Jackie Speier are right to push to swiftly end the madness. Legislation they propose would mandate sexual harassment awareness training for all members and staff.
When senators and representatives are deemed culpable for bad behavior, they — and not us — would be on the hook to pay up.
Most significantly, a victim wouldn’t be compelled to sign a nondisclosure agreement.
What makes sense going forward should also be applied retroactively. Congress must do everything in its legal power to waive all existing nondisclosure agreements, too. Let victims tell their stories. Make the harassers face the music. Now.