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March 01, 2018 12:01 PM UTC

BREAKING: GOP Attempts To Derail Sexual Harassment Investigations

  • 38 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE 3:45PM: After a long day of debate and caucus meetings by both Republicans and Democrats, House Speaker Crisanta Duran told reporters a short while ago that the vote to expel Rep. Steve Lebsock from the Colorado House will take place tomorrow. 44 votes are required for the expulsion resolution to succeed, and by most reports the whip count for Democrats is either unanimous or close to it with the obvious exception of Rep. Lebsock.

With House Democrats ready to vote to expel Lebsock, it is House Republicans who are are now in the position of either supporting victims of harassment, or a lawmaker who has been found in an outside investigation to have more likely than not committed all of the harassment that has been alleged. Needless to say political considerations like how this may affect Republican lawmakers down the road are at work, but there is a transcendent moral imperative to act that could leave Republicans in a very bad place depending on what they decide to do tomorrow.

All we can say is, everyone is watching.

—–

UPDATE #5: Senate Minority Leader Lucia Guzman:

“The legislature’s decision to take disciplinary action and whether or not allegations merit a criminal investigation are separate questions. To suggest otherwise is an attempt to delay and distract from what should be a straightforward process informed by the findings of experienced, objective workplace investigators.

The public rightly expects elected officials to do more than make it through the workday without committing a crime. The potential for a criminal investigation does not remove our obligation to create a work environment free from all forms of harassment.”

—–

GOP Senate President Kevin Grantham.

UPDATE #4: Statement from the Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault:

The Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault applauds the efforts of House Leadership to balance the need for a fundamentally fair process with the need to exercise one of the state’s core principles, accountability. Therefore, we call on the House to vote yes on HR18-1005 to expel Representative Steve Lebsock from the Colorado General Assembly, and we call on the Senate to hold accountable those in their chamber who have been found to have credible complaints against them, and restore our state Capitol as a safe and welcoming place.

As investigations have unfolded, we have heard countless survivors express that the state capitol building no longer feels like a safe place to participate in civic engagement of any kind whether that be testifying in committee, meeting with their elected officials privately behind closed doors, or simply getting onto the buildings elevators with no ability to control who they might have to share that elevator with. Survivors have described the Statehouse as a hostile environment after months of investigations have produced little to no consequences for cases of sexual misconduct that resulted in findings of responsibility. For any survivor who has reported sexual victimization, it is imperative that disclosures be taken seriously and that those who have caused harm be held accountable. Failure to acknowledge and address sexual harassment conveys both the message that the behavior is acceptable and that reporting harassment does nothing to effectively end it.

When elected officials in positions of power commit sexual harassment, this affects not only the survivor but also the entire community and state. The State Capitol is a workplace and, in this historic moment, all of Colorado is looking to the General Assembly to set a tone and standard for accountability in the workplace. The cornerstone of a successful harassment prevention strategy is the consistent and demonstrated commitment of senior leaders to create and maintain a culture in which harassment is not tolerated. The process that has been set in place by the General Assembly itself to investigate complaints has been followed and it is now the responsibility of the General Assembly to act on the findings by the investigators.

—–

UPDATE #3: Denver7 reports as everyone tries to make sense of today’s bizarre GOP-engineered scrambling of the process of investigating sexual harassment in the Colorado General Assembly:

McCann’s office said it had not received the request from Grantham as of 11:30 a.m., though Grantham said his office had sent the request over.

Colorado has two criminal statutes that could be used in such a prosecution, but sexual harassment is not a criminal offense.

Prosecutors would likely have to charge any lawmaker with criminal sexual assault or unlawful sexual contact, a class 1 misdemeanor in most cases and a class 4 felony if the person uses force, intimidation or a threat to make the contact. Another option would be to charge them with harassment, a class 3 misdemeanor. There is a civil statute for sexual harassment. Grantham noted in the press conference, “I’m not a lawyer and I don’t pretend to be one,” but said legislative counsel had been working on the issue.

—–

UPDATE #2: 9NEWS’ Brandon Rittiman points out an obvious problem with Senate President Kevin Grantham’s plan to ditch the agreed process for the higher bar of a criminal investigation–that’s not how it’s supposed to work:

UPDATE: Denver Post’s Gold Dome troika reports:

Colorado House Republicans on Thursday tried to invoke a little-used House rule to postpone the expulsion vote of Democratic Rep. Steve Lebsock and establish an Ethics Committee to review the sexual harassment complaints against him.

But the motion was shot down by House Speaker Crisanta Duran, a Denver Democrat, and an attempt to overrule her was defeated along party lines.

The tense exchange Thursday morning saw Rep. Yeulin Willett, R-Grand Junction, pleading with his colleagues to give lawmakers more time to determine whether Lebsock should be expelled. A vote to remove him from office is scheduled for Friday, just three days after an independent investigation’s findings were announced. The vote requires a two-thirds vote, or 44 of 65 lawmakers, to succeed, and a preliminary Denver Post tally shows many lawmakers remain undecided or refuse to say ahead of Friday how they’ll vote.

—–

We are working on obtaining details of what is occurring at the state capitol right now as the crisis over widespread sexual harassment by legislators in both chambers and parties continues to unfold. This morning, House Republicans attempted and failed to sideline the expulsion resolution against Democratic Rep. Steve Lebsock:

And that’s not the end of it–moments ago, Senate President Kevin Grantham reportedly called for a new investigation into sexual harassment at the capitol led by the Denver District Attorney Beth McCann. This is problematic for a number of reasons, including the fact that sexual harassment is a civil matter not a criminal one–and the likelihood that McCann would have to recuse herself from any investigation as a former legislator who knows many of the parties involved.

The situation remains highly volatile as of this writing, and we’ll update with more information as it becomes available. But we’re sorry to report that the course of events is not leaning toward accountability, and that’s the decision of one party. We’re genuinely shocked at how badly Republican leadership in both chambers appears to be handling this.

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38 thoughts on “BREAKING: GOP Attempts To Derail Sexual Harassment Investigations”

  2. Pronouns, please…

    …Grantham reportedly called for a new investigation into sexual harassment at the Capitol by the Denver District Attorney Beth McCann.

    So is McCann the accused or the investigator?

     

  3. Why would we overturn the will of the voters for anything less than a criminal conviction? I think Democrats have forgotten what a democracy is all about.

    1. So.  He abused his position of power and those around him to the point that he created a toxic environment.  Retaliated aganst his accusers and bullied them.

      Are you okay with his behavior nutlid?

      Btw. You know what happens when you do this in a job? You get fired. Which is effectively what is going on with Lebsock. You wouldn’t know this because you have never had a real job. Have you basement dweller?

    3. Democracy is all about not being criminally convicted?????????

      ???????????????????????????

      ???????????????????????????

      Jezus Crust, you are a dumb fuck . . . 

      (PS — aren’t you the single yugest assfan of pointing out how this is a republic, not a democracy? You’re a real voice of the majority of voters’ opinions, right up until the time you’re not, eh, Fluffy?)

    5. So 20 years ago when you guys wanted to overturn the will of the voters over a third rate blow job, that was okay? Had you forgotten what democracy was all about?

  4. Why don't they just tell the truth: Colorado legislative Republicans (and some of their supporters) do not believe that repeated sexual harassment is grounds for punishment or firing. They're okay with it. Stand up for your convictions, people! No need to hide behind obfuscating pseudo-legal gibberish. Be proud that you'd rather be back in the 1950s or earlier; that's what "consevative" is, right?

    1. Nah.  It's not about moral 50's values.  If the libtards are for expelling the perv then they are for keeping him.  If libtards want to have harassment free workplaces then they want to have grabbing pussy at work an Olympic competition.  Libs want it.  They hate it.

  5. If the GOPer leaders can’t pawn their sexual harassment housecleaning debacle onto someone – anyone – else, it’s got the potential to severely crimp the time available to pursue their bedrock annual legislative agenda of:  arming every Coloradan toddler, denying basic reproductive rights to women, imposing fundamentalist religious law, cutting Larry Mizel’s taxes and regulatory requirements, and screwing every one of Colorado’s state employees and teachers . . . 

    (. . . that last being literal and figurative.)

    . . . “The same thing we do every night year, Pinky.”

  6. Dear women of the Colorado Senate.  Just walk out.  Senators, grab your female staff and male allies.  Walk out.  And don't come back until the senate president shows that protecting you is more important than protecting the abusers he so seems to admire.

    It's not hard.  Hold a press conference on the steps.  Play some ball in the park.  Grab an ice cream cone.  Do some service at local women's shelters.  Come back when he takes your safety seriously.

      1. Yes and no. The optics of what they are doing depends upon through whose eyes those optics are being viewed.

        Picture Hillary Clinton's Basket of Deplorables and Irredeemables. (I know, she was foolish to use that term outloud, but we all know that there are a good number of people who fit the description.)

        From their perspective, sexual harassment claims are just another aspect of political correctness run amok. They are taken back from the idea that a powerful politician is somehow not allowed to pat a woman's ass or feel her breasts. Just like they are upset by the removal of the confederate military and political statues. Or the fact that they cannot tell racist or vulgar jokes anymore. 

        They see this as some kind of blow for freedom. Just look at Nutlid bleating on about due process and the burden of proof for a criminal conviction.

        1. True.  They will say it.  But I don't think it will work like Hillary's basket of deplorables. That was an insult no matter how you cut it.  I think the majority of Coloradoans will see through these shenanigans.  Most are not even close to as dumb as nutlid.

          Especially when framed as abuse of power and holding perps responsible.

  8. Well, they can't possibly screw this up, can they?

    Hours before vote on whether to expel Rep. Steve Lebsock, Colorado Capitol inches toward political bedlam
    House Democrats weighed whether to delay the expulsion vote while some Republicans alleged a cover-up

    In their own meeting across the hall, Democrats disagreed about whether to move forward with Friday’s expulsion vote or wait until Monday.

    “We want to get this right,” said Rep. Joe Salazar, D-Thornton. “… I would just feel more comfortable to have a little bit more time.”

    Oh, OK.

    1. Oy Vey.

      And that Salazar comment??  Jesus. Nothing like giving the Republicans your very own words to use as both ammunition and cover that this process hasn’t been thought out?

      It’s that kind of political acumen that makes me want to reregister as a Democrat, just so I can quit the Party again!

    2. Friday or Monday doesn't make a political difference. If "getting this right" means dotting another 'i' or crossing another 't' – or giving Republicans a weekend to pretend they don't have time to review documents – then fine, delay the vote.

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