[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 47 (Tuesday, March 14, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S768-S769]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NOMINATION OF ERIC M. GARCETTI
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, last Congress, I spoke of my strong
opposition to the nomination of Eric Garcetti to be Ambassador to the
Republic of India. I opposed the nomination due to the serious and
credible allegations that he enabled sexual harassment and racism to
run rampant in the Los Angeles mayor's office. When the nomination
expired, I had hoped President Biden would recognize his egregious
mistake, believe the victims, and change course.
President Biden failed to do so. Indefensibly, at the same time the
Biden administration decries sexual harassment and racism, it has now
twice nominated an individual to represent our country abroad who has
enabled those very same disgusting acts. Accordingly, I continue to
oppose Garcetti's nomination and ask this question: What will it take
for the Biden administration to believe the victims? That same question
should be posed to every Member in the Senate that is considering
voting for him.
During my career, I have prioritized protecting victims of sexual
harassment and abuse. In 2005, I cosponsored the Violence Against Women
Act. That bill provides vital aid to the Justice Department's Office on
Violence Against Women and to law enforcement to protect victims of
sexual harassment and abuse. Last Congress, I cosponsored bills
introduced by Senator Gillibrand to protect and defend victims of
sexual harassment and sexual misconduct. I cosponsored resolutions
introduced by Senator Feinstein to raise awareness of sexual assault.
These include the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and
Sexual Harassment Act of 2021, the Military Justice Improvement and
Increasing Prevention Act of 2021, the Speak Out Act, the Campus
Accountability and Safety Act, and a resolution supporting the goals
and ideals of National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.
This Congress, I have sent several bipartisan letters to the
Department of Justice seeking information regarding sexual misconduct
by Bureau of Prisons personnel and inmates against staff. With Senators
Durbin and Padilla, I met with the Bureau of Prisons Director to
further investigate sexual misconduct and discuss reforms to enhance
prevention, reporting, investigation, prosecution, and discipline of
these matters.
With respect to Mayor Garcetti, I have made clear to my colleagues
and
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the American people that credible whistleblowers approached my office
about concerning allegations that he was aware of and enabled his
deputy chief of staff, Rick Jacobs, to sexually harass several
employees within the mayor's office. These men and women alleged that
Rick Jacobs engaged in inappropriate and degrading physical contact
without their consent. They alleged that Rick Jacobs made crude sexual
remarks and gestures towards staff and others. They alleged that he
made blatantly racist remarks towards Asians and other minorities.
These allegations have also been publicly reported by many news
outlets. Text messages made public by the Los Angeles Times indicate
that these incidents were common knowledge among Garcetti's staff. A
now infamous picture shows Jacobs inappropriately touching an
individual next to him. In the picture, Mayor Garcetti is standing on
the other side of Jacobs.
Mayor Garcetti said under oath during his nomination that ``I want to
say unequivocally that I never witnessed, nor was it brought to my
attention, the behavior that's been alleged, and I also want to assure
you if it had been, I would have immediately taken action to stop
that.''
How can that statement be true when there is a photo with Jacobs
inappropriately touching an individual next to Garcetti? How can that
statement be true when text messages exist from his own staff
discussing the toxic work environment within the mayor's office?
In total, my office identified over 19 individuals who have either
witnessed Jacobs' behavior or were the victims of it. So who are these
brave and courageous individuals who made these allegations? Are they
Republican operatives? No. They are his former communications director,
senior staffers, junior staffers, businessmen, civic leaders, and a Los
Angeles Police Department officer assigned to protect him. This isn't a
political hit job. This is a bipartisan endeavor to stop an inadequate
nominee.
To defend himself, Mayor Garcetti has pointed to a report which
inconceivably purports to clear Jacobs of any wrongdoing. The report
was conducted by a law firm hired and paid for by the city of Los
Angeles. Mayor Garcetti and the city of Los Angeles would be liable if
the report concluded sexual harassment occurred. The report was also
delivered to the city of Los Angeles under attorney-client privilege,
apparently in the hope that no one outside the city would ever see it.
The report failed to interview multiple firsthand witnesses. The
interviews weren't taken under penalty of perjury. The report focused
exclusively on allegations of sexual harassment made by the Los Angeles
Police Department officer and failed to give due weight to other
witnesses. For example, the report includes an interview with Jacobs in
which he admits to using racist language, kissing, hugging, and
squeezing people's shoulders. The report also identifies the individual
in the lewd photo I mentioned earlier. The report says that the
individual stated that Jacob's actions weren't funny and embarrassed
that person. That makes it clear nonconsensual physical contact
occurred. It is evidence that sexual harassment occurred. And it
literally occurred right next to Mayor Garcetti.
The last time I spoke about this matter was right after President
Biden signed the Speak Out Act into law. I cosponsored that bill, which
Senator Gillibrand led. The law enables survivors to speak out about
workplace sexual assault and harassment.
So, on the one hand, the Biden administration says it supports
victims. Yet, on the other hand, the Biden administration supports a
nominee who enables misconduct that creates more victims. The Biden
administration's positions are irreconcilable. They are the very
definition of tone deafness. The Biden administration and all those who
support this nomination have sent a message that victims will only be
believed when politically convenient. The Biden administration has no
credibility when it comes to protecting victims of sexual harassment.
To my Senate colleagues, do you support victims of sexual harassment
and racism or a man who enabled it for years, leaving many victims in
his wake? You can't support both.
Mayor Garcetti's own staff have spoken out to stop this nomination at
a risk to their careers. One of them is Naomi Seligman, who was Mayor
Garcetti's former communications director and one of the many
whistleblowers who worked with my office regarding this nomination. She
said that Garcetti's vote out of the Foreign Relations Committee ``on
International Women's Day no less, shows a real disconnect between the
rhetoric we hear from elected leaders who claim to support victims of
workplace sexual harassment and the pass they give to party loyalists
in the next breath. It's disheartening to say the least.''
I agree. Mayor Garcetti is incompatible with the office that he
seeks. I, again, strongly encourage my colleagues--Democrats and
Republicans alike--to review the evidence found in my investigative
report, as well as in the press. Most importantly, listen to the
victims. The facts and the evidence compel me to vote no, and my
colleagues must join me in doing the same.
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