[ad_1]
WASHINGTON – A White House press secretary was suspended for a week without pay on Friday, the administration said, after a detailed report of allegations he verbally harassed and threatened a Politico reporter.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki announced on Friday that Deputy Press Secretary TJ Ducklo had been suspended for a week without pay following a Vanity Fair report that Ducklo threatened the reporter after learning that Politico was planning to publish an article about his relationship with a journalist at Axios.
Ducklo, a former employee of the NBC News communications department, is expected to return to work after the suspension. Ducklo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
President Joe Biden campaigned on a message that he would restore respect and courtesy to the White House, frequently criticizing the behavior of the previous president and his staff, including the way the press was treated.
“I’m not kidding when I say this: If you ever work with me and I hear you treating another colleague with disrespect, talking to someone, I promise you I’ll fire you right away.” No ifs and no buts, ”Biden said during a virtual swearing-in of the appointees his first week on the job.
People magazine reported this month that Ducklo was dating Alexi McCammond, an Axios reporter who is also a contributor for NBC and MSNBC, in an article that was tweeted with approval by several senior White House officials. Politico then reported that it informed the White House of its intention to publish an article shortly before the People magazine article appeared.
Vanity Fair reported that Ducklo called Tara Palmeri, a Politico reporter, and threatened her when he learned that Politico was planning to publish an article.
The Vanity Fair article said Ducklo had made “derogatory and misogynistic comments” to Palmeri and threatened to “destroy” her.
Psaki said Ducklo would no longer be assigned to work with Politico reporters once he returned from his suspension.
“TJ Ducklo apologized to the reporter, with whom he had a heated conversation about his personal life. He is the first to admit that this is not the standard of behavior set by the president,” Psaki said in a statement. Tweeter. “In addition to his initial apologies, he sent the reporter a personal note expressing his deep regret.”
“I take this very seriously,” Psaki told reporters on Friday afternoon. “He [Ducklo] is the first to recognize that this is not the standard of behavior set by the President or the standard of behavior that I set.
Psaki said that while she did not apologize for Ducklo’s behavior, the story he discussed with the Politico reporter was about his personal life and not about an issue related to White House politics. Psaki acknowledged that the White House did not immediately suspend Ducklo after learning of the incident, but rather after being made aware of the Vanity Fair article.
Psaki said she did not directly discuss Ducklo’s behavior with Biden, but did approach it with White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain.
When asked how female journalists outside Politico were supposed to feel comfortable working with Ducklo upon his return, Psaki reiterated that Ducklo’s behavior was “completely unacceptable” and that she had been clear. : “This will never happen again and will not be tolerated here.” to the White House. “
[ad_2]
Source link