Report: Conyers settled wrongful dismissal complaint over 'sexual advances'

[oberliner]

Source: The Hill

Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the longest-serving current House member, reportedly settled a wrongful dismissal complaint in 2015 after a former employee accused him of firing her for resisting his "sexual advances."

Four former staffers signed affidavits, three of which were notarized, saying that Conyers, top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, repeatedly made engaged in unwanted sexual behavior with his female staff, BuzzFeed News reported Monday night.

Documents examined by BuzzFeed described a wide-range of inappropriate conduct, including making requests for sexual favors, caressing and touching, as well as having his staff contact and transport women they believed were sexually involved with him.

Four unnamed sources who were involved with the case confirmed to BuzzFeed News that the documents are authentic.

Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/361301-report-conyers-settled-wrongful-dismissal-complaint-over-sexual-advances

[CTyankee]

1. Oh, shit...

[riverwalker]

2. Cernovich gave the documents to Buzzfeed

Now he’s crowing about “the biggest story of the year” and now “all of Congress knows my name”

Link to tweet

[oberliner]

4. He (Cernovich) is an egomaniacal lunatic

But the evidence here speaks for itself.

Have you read the affidavits?

[highplainsdem]

7. Cernovich is just the delivery troll, not a journalist. Someone else used him to get these docs

out and try to keep the real source of the leak hidden:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029869670

[Initech]

10. I reported that tweet as abusive.

That fucking dick needs to be kicked off Twitter ASAP.

[BeyondGeography]

31. Buzzfeed sought and received independent verification

Buzzfeed said it first received the documents from the right-wing activist Mike Cernovich but independently verified their authenticity with four people connected with the case, including the accuser. The outlet also linked to redacted versions of the affidavits posted online.

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/2017/11/21/conyers-sexual-misconduct/107895986/

[cilla4progress]

3. Too bad

Always liked him.

Men and their dicks.

[pnwmom]

5. Okay, can we stop piling on Al Franken now? There is a qualitative DIFFERENCE

between the kinds of complaints being aired about him and those against Conyers, Moore, and Trump.

Anyone with common sense can see this.

[7962]

13. yes. Don't see how people can't get this.

just as there are different levels of the same crime.

[snooper2]

24. should Conyers resign?

I'm leaning towards yes...We should have the moral majority the right wing hypocrites claim all of the time.

[pnwmom]

45. I don't know what excuse he can have for this, so I'm also leaning toward yes. n/t

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

51. No question, this situation is considerably worse...

so disappointed to hear this about Rep. Conyers... such a strong leader on progressive issues. Ugghhh!!

[orleans]

6. crap. how disappointing n/t

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

52. So upset... can't watch the news anymore. (Was bad enough after the election!)

[FarPoint]

8. Well...

The two parties are in an agreement...it's done and Over.... it's done... settled.

[mr_liberal]

9. Like Fox News and O'Reilly. nm

[FarPoint]

12. They agreed to an acceptable plan....

I will respect their decision to end it...they should too..

[rzemanfl]

37. Or the secret Moose and Squirrel settlement. n/t

[mr_lebowski]

11. I'm going to go out on a limb and say 'unwanted sexual advances' between adults ...

Are pretty significantly different from taking 14 year old's to remote homes and making them put their hands on your privates, or forcing your hands down the pants of 16 year olds ...

Not saying 'it's okay' by any stretch, but ... it's pretty different in the grand scheme of things.

I'd imagine Conyers isn't banned from any shopping malls for creeping on teenage girls.

But watch in astonishment as utterly twisted logic ensues from the right-wing as they attempt to paint the less-severe crimes perpetrated by Conyers as being far-more severe than anything Moore stands accused of ... just because he's ... well ... a Democrat, and ... that other thing.

[TexasBushwhacker]

22. True. But firing someone because they rebuffed advances

is very bad as well. The settlement was just a couple of years ago. Conyers is 88.

[7962]

14. Just further proof that "power" is a bigger problem than a particular "party"

Too many people are happy to savage one side and give a pass for their own for basically the same offense.
Whether we're talking about producers, TV personalities, Congressmen or Presidents.

[BumRushDaShow]

16. I think the key take-away here is

this has always been a "societal" problem (and really, is world-wide). The various fits and starts of the "Women's Lib" movement came out of this continual and pervasive issue.

Although you do have some women who prey and harass, it's mostly a male thing and millions have done it because it was par for the course in the mentality of women being the "inferior or weaker sex", leading to the encouragement of men to establish their libido in various ways. Not all obviously did such but quite a few, even "innocently", participated in what could be considered "denigrating behavior" when it comes to women.

What we are seeing are essentially low-hanging fruit (public figures) now being excoriated for behaviors and practices that have been going on for a long long time and were considered "acceptable" by the power structure.

[Lulu KC]

19. Well said n/t

[Not Ruth]

27. The low hanging fruit are the first to go

[BeyondGeography]

15. This is our ranking member on Judiciary

If we take the House and this tenured old fool is re-elected, he’s going to lead impeachment hearings...kindly stand down, asshole.

[BumRushDaShow]

17. He was supposed to lead impeachment hearings for Shrub

and even wrote a whole book about it...



But we know how that went (or didn't go).

[Yupster]

54. If he gets reelected?

He has been elected and reelected every two years since 1964 and the lowest percentage he's ever gotten is 77 %.

[BeyondGeography]

55. And how sad is that?

It’s a safe seat, he’s 88 years old and he stopped being effective 10 years ago. Think of all the talented young Democrats who could have replaced him by now. Instead, we have to watch him game the system to try and avoid an ignoble departure, which will surely happen anyway.

[Yupster]

57. I know it's an unpopular opinion here, but

I believe in term limits.

Not because of Republican versus Democratic, but because of Strom Thurmond and Bobby Byrd.

Thurmond wasn't going to be challenged by a Republican because he was a legend. He wasn't going to be beaten by a Democrat because he was a Republican in South Carolina. So he lived his last years in a hospital getting wheeled out for key votes at age 100.

Byrd wasn't going to be beaten by a Democrat because he was a legend and he wasn't going to get beaten by a Republican because it was West Virginia (how times have changed), so he could be a former Ku Klux Klansman as the President of the Senate at age 90.

It's for those situations that I'd support term limits, or how about a mandatory retirement age of 80.

[BeyondGeography]

58. Democrats can term limit ranking members on their own but they do nothing

That’s how we wind up with barely coherent people like Conyers chairing committees. Part of the reason why he is receiving zero support within his own party right now is that he has overstayed his welcome and the knives are out.

[truthisfreedom]

18. I think it's time for a moment of silence.

Until we can figure out just how much mother Russia is f-ing with us.

[BeyondGeography]

20. What does this have to do with Russia?

Then again, please do me a favor and don’t try to explain.

[Jake Stern]

30. For some DUers, Russia is a convenient scapegoat whenever a Dem gets in trouble.

Russia didn't make John Conyers fondle his staffers. Russia didn't make Anthony Wiener send dick pics. Russia didn't make Bill repeatedly break his marital vows.

So Jan Bradyesque, "Russia, Russia, Russia!"

[7962]

48. HA!

[IronLionZion]

21. Even Conyers? Damn

[Jose Garcia]

23. So, they basically gave her a no-show job in exchange for keeping quite

[Bradical79]

26. Conyers claiming there was no settlement

Link to tweet

Weird strategy when there's documentation.

[Abouttime]

29. Right wing hate FAKE NEWS!

Nothing but a cheap shot hit job from the purveyors of FAKE NEWS.
Don't fall for it!
Conyers will be the chair of the house Judiciary Committee next year, he will be our man leading the way to tRump's impeachment. This is all a desperate ploy by trump to take him out.

[B2G]

32. Yes! The conspiracy started in 2015

because these women, who signed affidavits, just KNEW Trump would be elected.

Get ahold of yourself.

[7962]

50. A 2nd woman has also come forward. Is she fake too?

As the door swings open, this wave is going to catch many. From BOTH parties

[rzemanfl]

33. "Affidavits, three of which were notarized?"

If it ain't notarized its a statement.

[B2G]

34. How many do you need? nt

[rzemanfl]

36. Please read the whole post. Thank you very much and have a wonderful day.

[B2G]

40. I did.

Maybe you could help me out and elaborate on what your point is exactly.

[rzemanfl]

41. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affidavit

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affidavit

[oberliner]

42. An affidavit that is not notarized is still an affidavit

It's just an affidavit that is not notarized.

[rzemanfl]

43. Have it your way, this place is like Burger King these days!

[LanternWaste]

44. And a car lacking a motor is yet a car...

And a car lacking a motor is yet a car, capable of doing so much...

[7962]

49. You've been reprimanded!!

With some it never stops.

[24601]

56. An affidavit is a sworn statement before someone authorize to administer an oath or affirmation. It

be be a notary, but that's only one of the options. They are often administered by officers of a court who are not notaries.

[Baclava]

46. Conyers admits financial settlement with former staffer but denies misconduct

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/conyers-admits-financial-settlement-former-staffer-denies-misconduct-n822966



but he paid for the shush anyway

[Sunlei]

53. on the positive side, good to see the system to claim a "wrongful dismissal complaint" worked.

system worked. The employee made a complaint, went through the process and a "settlement" was reached. A leap to call it "severance pay", it would only be severance pay if all employees received severance.

If the other woman feel they were wrongfully dismissed, they need to get a Lawyer and file claims.