Conyers, Charlie Rose, colluder Glenn Thrush accused of sexual harrassment

Downtown Detroit

Yesterday was a rough day for the Democratic Party and its media wing.

First I'll discuss Conyers, who is the ranking Dem on the powerful House Judiciary Committee:

From Buzzfeed:

Michigan Rep. John Conyers, a Democrat and the longest-serving member of the House of Representatives, settled a wrongful dismissal complaint in 2015 with a former employee who alleged she was fired because she would not “succumb to [his] sexual advances.”

Documents from the complaint obtained by BuzzFeed News include four signed affidavits, three of which are notarized, from former staff members who allege that Conyers, the ranking Democrat on the powerful House Judiciary Committee, repeatedly made sexual advances to female staff that included requests for sexual favors, contacting and transporting other women with whom they believed Conyers was having affairs, caressing their hands sexually, and rubbing their legs and backs in public. Four people involved with the case verified the documents are authentic.

Conyers is a real piece of work. In 2006 Conyers admitted that he violated House rules. He was accused of having his staff work on local political campaigns, as well as having them babysit and chauffeur his children around. The mother of those kids, Monica Conyers, served over two years in prison after being convicted of bribery. The couple is now estranged. Monica is the former presidential pro tem of the Detroit City Council.

Next...

From CBS:

CBS News has suspended "CBS This Morning" co-host Charlie Rose over allegations of sexual misconduct.

The Washington Post published claims from eight women who all worked or wanted to work for his PBS program. They describe Rose making unwanted sexual advances in the 1990s through 2011.

We've been able to reach one of the accusers. She didn't want to go on camera but confirmed the reporting is accurate, reports CBS News correspondent Bianna Golodryga. Additional women have since spoken out to Business Insider and the New York Times. Some say he groped them or exposed himself to them, and many paint a picture of a respected figure abusing his position.

Washington Post reporter Amy Brittain spent weeks reaching out to Rose's former employees and job seekers.

For his part, Rose, 75, seems somewhat contrite.

I'm saving the worst for last.

I detest Glenn Thrush. The former Politico reporter is one of the colluders with Democratic Party who was exposed by the Wikileaks scandal. Thrush asked Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta--a longtime Clintonista--to edit a story he was working on about the campaign.

After the 2016 Thrush was awarded for his, ahem, work, by getting hired by the New York Slimes.

But Thrush, who is a propagandist not a journalist, is worse than I thought.

From AP:

The New York Times says it has suspended White House reporter Glenn Thrush while it investigates charges that he made unwanted advances on young women while he worked as a reporter at Politico and the Times.

Laura McGann, a Politico colleague of Thrush's, wrote on Vox on Monday that Thrush kissed her and placed his hand on her thigh one night in a bar, after urging another person who had been sitting with them to leave.

The Times, in a statement, said "the alleged behavior is very concerning" and not in keeping with the Times' standards. The newspaper said it supports Thrush's decision to enter a substance abuse program. Thrush didn't immediately return a message seeking comment, but told Vox that he apologized to any woman who felt uncomfortable in his presence.

From Laura McGann of Vox, which broke the Thrush story:

Sexual harassment claims against yet another powerful man in media inspired New York Times White House correspondent Glenn Thrush to post an impassioned note on his Facebook page in October, calling on his fellow journalists to stand by women entering the field.

In the post, which linked to an article about the latest accusations against political journalist Mark Halperin, Thrush wrote, “Young people who come into a newsroom deserve to be taught our trade, given our support and enlisted in our calling — not betrayed by little men who believe they are bigger than the mission.”

It was a noble statement — but some Washington journalists I spoke to say it rings hollow, given Thrush’s own behavior with young women in the industry.