Ex-House Staffer Recalls Calif. Pol Asking Her to 'Twirl' For Him
Ex-House staffer recalls Calif. pol asking her to 'twirl' for him
BY NICOLE HENSLEY
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Monday, November 13, 2017, 11:37 PM
The open letter submitted on Monday is asking for mandatory sexual harassment training for congressional lawmakers and staff.
(MANDEL NGAN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)
An aide for former Rep. Gary Miller recalled receiving a cash perk after performing an unusual task for him, alone and in his office.
Rebecca Weir claims the leering Republican called her "stunning" before asking her to twirl for him during a 2001 encounter in his Diamond Bar, Calif., office, according to a New York Times report.
"I was stunned, but I was young and dumb and here's a member of Congress that I'm working for asking me to twirl in his office. So I did," the 39-year-old lawyer told the Times.
The aide soon received a $1,250 bonus at Miller's request, according to the paper.
Miller's wife, Cynthia, denied the allegation and told the Times, "I know my husband."
Weir's name is among scores of former House staffers demanding mandatory sexual harassment training for lawmakers and their employees after warning of rampant misconduct on Capitol Hill.
http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopo...ions-house.jpgA former aide to former Rep. Gary Miller claims he asked her to twirl for him in his Diamond Bar, Calif., office.
(J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE/AP)
More than 1,500 men and women signed an open letter Monday imploring Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Rep. Paul Ryan and more high-ranking politicians to require the training and revamp how a little-known independent agency accepts sexual harassment complaints.
Some of the signatures feature former aides whose employment dates back to the 1960s.
The Office of Compliance opened for business in 1996 to handle discrimination claims and workplace disputes for House employees, as part of the Congressional Accountability Act authored by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) the year prior.
The open letter featuring Weir's signature cites a CQ/Roll Call survey noting that 90% of House staffers never knew about the office during their employment. Had Weir participated in the study, she would be among the staggering statistic.
At the time of Weir's inappropriate brush with Miller, the Office of Compliance was in its sixth year.
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The open letter asks Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other high-ranking politicians to revamp the Office of Compliance.
(AARON P. BERNSTEIN/REUTERS)
The letter argues that office's workflow "may actually discourage victims from filing a grievance because of the excessive waiting period it imposes on victims."
A victim has to wait 90 days from the incident to file a claim and can expect to wait another six months while undergoing counseling and mediation before seeing results, according to the document.
The letter comes amid heightened focus on the scores of women going public with harrowing stories of sexual assault and harassment, especially in the entertainment industry.
Just last week, the Senate passed a bipartisan measure that now requires lawmakers and their staff to undergo sexual harassment training.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/poli...icle-1.3630930
