Fogbow

Sexual misconduct lawsuit doesn't sound like CPAC head Matt Schlapp's only problem

Apparently sexual misconduct isn’t Matt Schlapp’s only liability as the head of the Conservative Political Action Conference. Far-right Republicans closed ranks around Schlapp last fall after a former staffer on Herschel Walker’s Senate campaign accused Schlapp of having "groped" and "fondled" his crotch. But now, complaints are leaking out about Schlapp’s leadership of CPAC, The Washington Post reports.

More than half of CPAC's staff members have left since 2021. A former employee has complained to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, saying she was fired in retaliation for her complaints about a coworker’s sexist and racist comments. Meanwhile, Schlapp and his wife Mercedes are raking in hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, a departure from the past when chair of CPAC was a volunteer role. That changed as Schlapp’s lobbying income dropped from its Trump-era highs and he seemingly decided to augment it through CPAC.

Employees also told the Post that Schlapp was relying heavily for social media and communications work on a 25-year-old contractor with little experience who has misrepresented his own background.

Regina Bratton, the former employee who complained to the EEOC and plans to sue, is a Black woman who complained to the Schlapps that one of her subordinates, a white man, had told her he didn’t like “working for or with women” and that CPAC was “not an affirmative action employer.” He was apparently not disciplined, but Bratton alleges she was fired in retaliation for complaining.

Matt Schlapp may have identified with that man, though, since the Post reports that years ago, Schlapp was the subject of an investigation into an alleged anti-gay remark he made while working as a lobbyist at Koch Industries. Schlapp left his job after that investigation, which, two people told the Post, included allegations that he retaliated against people he thought had reported his comment. So offensive remarks and retaliation appear to be kind of his thing.

Schlapp is waging a war against the Walker staffer, who is anonymously suing Schlapp for $9.4 million for battery and defamation. The defamation included Mercedes Schlapp describing her husband’s accuser as a “troubled individual” who had been “fired from multiple jobs,” while a Republican fundraiser has described the accuser as a “scam artist.”

While he waited until after the Georgia runoff to come forward with his story, the staffer told nine people about the groping at the time, including six family members and friends and three officials on the Walker Senate campaign. He also showed reporters a text from himself to Schlapp, saying “I did want to say I was uncomfortable with what happened last night,” to which Schlapp responded not with surprise but a text asking the staffer to call him, three attempted phone calls, and another text reading “If you could see it in your heart to call me at end of day. I would appreciate it.”

Although top Republicans have defended Schlapp from that allegation, for some reason or other, CPAC ticket sales aren’t doing so well, the Post reports. Maybe it’s competition from other Republican events. Maybe CPAC raised its ticket prices too high to be sustainable, forcing it now to offer discounts and giveaways. Or maybe, quietly, Schlapp’s power is receding. Whatever the case, working at CPAC does not currently sound like a good long-term bet for any Republican staffer. Particularly those who don’t want Schlapp to grab their junk and pummel it at length. Because you know if he did that brazenly—and the accuser has enough documentation to be convincing—it’s likely he’s done it many other times.

Kendra wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 9:16 pm

Many call him the “Donald Trump” of South America. Here at #CPAC, we call him a friend. Join
@jairbolsonaro
March 1-4 in Washington DC

While Guilfoyle interviews Sarah Palin in the background, Junior hypes his interview with “All-American Badass” Jim Jordan at CPAC.

Ashli Babbitt’s mother gets a standing ovation at CPAC.

my CPAC day 2 thread begins here

Ben-Prime wrote: ↑Thu Mar 02, 2023 12:48 am

Kendra wrote: ↑Wed Mar 01, 2023 9:16 pm

Many call him the “Donald Trump” of South America. Here at #CPAC, we call him a friend. Join
@jairbolsonaro
March 1-4 in Washington DC

Me: ....

Still Me, after a moment's recovery: CPAC, I don't think that's the compliment you think it is.

Gregg wrote: ↑Fri Mar 03, 2023 5:51 pm It could be that it seems like they have Nazipalooza every other week anymore.

Steve Bannon’s daughter announces at CPAC that they now have Bannon fan merch for sale.

Nick Fuentes, the antisemitic white nationalist provocateur who dined with former President Donald Trump last year, was "removed" from the premises of the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland, the chair of the group that stages the event said Friday.

“We removed Nick Fuentes from his attempt to attend our conference. His hateful racist rhetoric and actions are not consistent with the mission of CPAC," Matt Schlapp said in a statement posted on Instagram.

“We are pleased that our conference welcomes a wide array of conservative perspectives from people of different backgrounds, but we are concerned about the rise in antisemitic rhetoric (or Jew hatred) in our country and around the globe, whether it be in the corridors of power and academia or through the online rantings of bigots like Fuentes,” Schlapp said.

Fuentes responded to the statement in a post on the social media site Telegram, where he appeared to mock Schlapp's legal troubles, saying, "Ah yes we all know CPAC is reserved for sexual gropers."

Guilfoyle is now at CPAC selling gold and silver. She says to stop doing business with woke companies that hate you, and to go to ‘KimsMetals’ to invest for your retirement.

Kendra wrote: ↑Fri Mar 03, 2023 8:44 pm https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/stat ... 8234020874

Guilfoyle is now at CPAC selling gold and silver. She says to stop doing business with woke companies that hate you, and to go to ‘KimsMetals’ to invest for your retirement.

Volkonski wrote: ↑Fri Mar 03, 2023 3:54 pm Ron Filipkowski
@ronfilipkowski@bird.makeup
From the big names skipping it to the ghost-town venue, this year’s CPAC is an unmitigated disaster. Turns out MAGA-cult kryptonite is an event organizer who grabs a dude’s junk.

Donald Trump Jr. Sinks To Another Sickening New Low At CPAC

Lee Moran
Sat, March 4, 2023 at 9:35 AM GMT+1

Donald Trump Jr. repeated his cruel line of attack on Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) during his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland on Friday.

The eldest son of former President Donald Trump again described Fetterman as a “vegetable,” echoing an ugly comment he made to far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) during a February episode of his podcast.

Following a stroke last year, Fetterman has an auditory processing disorder. He is currently in hospital receiving treatment for clinical depression.

To the CPAC audience, Trump Jr. dismissed accusations that he was being ableist ― then sank even further when he suggested:

“I’d love for John Fetterman to have like good gainful employment. Maybe he could be like a bag guy at like a grocery store or … but like, is it unreasonable for me to expect, as a citizen of the United States of America, to have a United States senator have basic cognitive function?”

Someone in the auditorium shouted: “Look at the president.”

“Well, you make a solid point, sir,” the Trump scion responded. “Why should a United States senator be held to a different standard than the president of the United States himself? So we have to fix all of that. Right?”




https://www.yahoo.com/news/donald-trump ... 00037.html