A scandal involving sex AND ethics violations? Katie Hill does what Ilhan Omar SHOULD have done months ago — she turned in her resignation.
Unlike Ilhan Omar, Katie Hill gave lip service to the negative impact her misconduct would have on the country and the party. Ilhan Omar apparently has no such concerns.
Rep. Katie Hill (D-Santa Clarita) announced Sunday that she would resign from Congress after allegations that she engaged in affairs with a congressional aide and a campaign staff member became public this month.
Hill announced the resignation in a letter to constituents, saying she was stepping down “with a broken heart.”The letter did not specify when the resignation would take effect. Hill will be the first female member of Congress to resign in a post-#MeToo era. Her resignation will also be the first after a House rule banning sexual relationships with staffers was enacted last year in response to nearly a dozen male members of Congress resigning amid sexual harassment allegations.
Katie Hill was a personal favorite and protege of Nancy Pelosi herself:
But the highest-ranking freshman on Oversight? That would be Katie Hill, the 31-year-old Democrat from Southern California. Hill made headlines in November when she flipped her district after going up against an incumbent, becoming California’s first openly bisexual congressperson. Since then, the Los Angeles Times has called Hill one of the most powerful freshmen in Congress, noting that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has taken Hill under her wing. In January, Hill was voted Vice Chair of Oversight—an important job at any time, and right now, a highly-scrutinized one. A seasoned Democratic aide says it’s rare for a freshman member to get elected.
Source: Elle
There is some irony in the fact that Hill was part of the ‘Blue Wave’ that resulted in a Dem pushback against Trump; a pushback rising in part because of allegations against his mistreatment of women. So far, despite the hype, there is greater evidence of nonconsensual misogynistic behavior by Resistance Dems than there is against Trump.
For a little context, here is Katie Hill — who, ironically, was Vice-Chair under Cummings in the Oversight Committee — doing some serious fingerpointing:
During an appearance on MSNBC, Hill said that she’s doubtful that Conway will show up to the hearing, adding, “It’s action after action by the Trump administration and all of the people that he surrounds himself that shows that he does not care about the law, he does not care about presidential norms and he believes that he’s above the law.”
Source: IJR
THAT quote did NOT age well, did it Katie?
Her resignation came with a tweet. And typical of what we’ve come to expect of Democrat apologies it came with a healthy dose of scapegoating and fingerpointing.
It is with a broken heart that today I announce my resignation from Congress. This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do, but I believe it is the best thing for my constituents, my community, and our country.
See my official statement below. pic.twitter.com/nG97RQIwvO
— Rep. Katie Hill (@RepKatieHill) October 27, 2019
The text of her announcement:
It is with a broken heart that today I announce my resignation from Congress. This is the hardest thing I have ever had to do, but I believe it is the best thing for my constituents, my community, and our country.
This is what needs to happen so that the good people who supported me will no longer be subjected to the pain inflicted by my abusive husband and the brutality of hateful political operatives who seem to happily provide a platform to a monster who is driving a smear campaign built around cyber exploitation. Having private photos of personal moments weaponized against me has been an appalling invasion of my privacy. It’s also illegal, and we are currently pursuing all of our available legal options. However, I know that as long as I am in Congress, we’ll live fearful of what might come next and how much it will hurt. That’s a feeling I know all too well. It’s the feeling I decided to leave when I left my marriage, and one I will not tolerate being forced upon others. I can no longer allow my community, family, friends, staff, supporters, and especially the children who look up to me as a role model, to suffer this unprecedented brand of cruelty.
For the mistakes made along the way and the people who have been hurt, I am so sorry, and I am learning — I am not a perfect person and never pretended to be. It’s one of the things that made my race so special. I hope it showed others that they do belong, that their voice does matter, and that they do have a place in this country. That is something I believe with all my heart.
Those of you who know me personally know that I’m a fighter. And it’s thanks to countless other fighters who supported me that we were able to stand up for the ideals we believe in. Now, my fight is going to be to defeat this type of exploitation that so many women are victims to and which will keep countless women and girls from running for office or entering public light. Thank you for allowing me to turn my focus to this particular battle right now, and know that I stand with you as we continue to fight for the many important issues that brought me to Congress in the first place. I love this country, I love all of you, and I thank you for allowing me the great honor of serving you.
A couple of observations on our part:
Her ‘apology’ presents us with the image that she, alone, is a victim here.
But that isn’t consistent with the known facts, is it? The reason Congress prohibited intimate relationships between elected representatives and staffers (with the exception of married couples) is because the power imbalance makes issues of true consent more complicated. Can you REALLY say ‘no’ to someone who potentially holds your entire career path in the palm of their hands, and who just might be able to execute that age-old threat ‘you will never work in this town again!’.
These rules were passed as a response to the MeToo movement. But clearly, this isn’t just a ‘toxic masculinity’ problem, it’s an ‘exploitation of power’ problem.
That muddied question of consent came into play in this story too. It isn’t entirely clear that the staffer was pleased with the way things were working out.
But in this telling of the story, the only ‘victim’ here is Katie herself.
She proclaims her concern for young women of the future, and how she will ‘defeat this exploitation that so many victims are to and which will keep countless women and girls from running for office’.
Is that REALLY where someone who believed she had done something this unethical would go in this moment? That she is the great defender of women? The facts of the case are still sorting themselves out, but at this point, there is at least a better-than-average likelihood that if ANY ‘exploiting’ of women was happening in this sordid affair, it was done by her, and her alone.
What about the circulation of that photo of her ‘intimate’ moments?
Has anyone asked themselves ‘WHY’ was it circulated? Would it have been circulated if she had picked up some rando from Tinder or Craigslist? Would it even have been circulated if she’d had been knocking boots with some college friend? Not at all.
She already was up-front about her sexuality. This was about another Clintonian Employer/subordinate sexual mismatch. By entering into such relationships — with, apparently, more than one person — she crossed an ethical line.
But, without the photos, would anyone have even believed that about her? Or would she have played the same ‘victim’ game she’s holding to even in her resignation?
We’ll never know for certain, but it sure looks like she’s slow to take on real responsibility, and that the decision to ‘resign’ was made FOR her rather than BY her… and that the only thing that truly held her accountable to crossing that line was these photos themselves.
After all — Ilhan Omar and some other members of the squad have gotten away with (arguably) far worse. But Democrat insiders have made the call that it’s less costly to keep them on than to cut them loose. It could be that each of them takes AOC’s threat of ‘making a list’ for the primarying of anyone who disagrees with her VERY seriously.
Related…
#METHREE: Rep. Katie Hill’s ‘THROUPLE’ Relationship May Not Have Been So Consensual After All
Meanwhile, Ilham Omar keeps her seat despite (and this isn’t even getting into her more ‘mundane’ objectionable behavior):
EXPOSED: Ilhan Omar’s Not-So-Secret DOUBLE LIFE With Tim Mynett
Is Ilhan Omar Even Her REAL Name? Here’s Why Some Are Saying ‘Maybe Not’…
Plot Twist: New Wrinkle In Ilhan Omar’s Soap Opera Marriage Saga
MORE MARRIAGE DRAMA: Ilhan Omar Files For DIVORCE From Current Husband
