Politics'Scandal' mitch mcconnell senateMitch McConnell

Mitch McConnell's Role In Senate Sexual-Harassment Probe Comes Under Scrutiny

Mitch McConnell's Role In Senate Sexual-Harassment Probe Comes Under Scrutiny
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Staff Reporter, The Huffington Post

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WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 08: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) speaks with reporters following the weekly policy luncheon for Senate Democrats April 8, 2014 in Washington, DC. Senate Democrats and Republicans are currently discussing legislation proposed by each side to alleviate a gap in wages between men and women. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Facing his toughest reelection battle in years against a well-known and well-financed female opponent, Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) recently boasted that he led the Senate in ousting a GOP colleague accused of sexual harassment in 1995. But news reports from that time show that late in the investigation, McConnell tried to stall the probe against his fellow Republican, Sen. Bob Packwood (R-Ore.) He derided efforts by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) to hold public hearings on Packwood as "frolic and detour"—after the Senate ethics committee had substantiated nearly two-dozen claims of sexual harassment leveled against Packwood by female lobbyists and former staffers.

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