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A House GOP lawmaker is accused of sexually harassing two “young female staffers” in his office in an explosive report that details lavish gifts, trips, and even reciting a poem for one of the aides in an incident that made others in his office uncomfortable.
The House Ethics Committee is recommending a censure for Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., after an extensive probe found that he violated the House of Representatives’ code of conduct with repeated incidents targeting the two staffers.
“Specifically, the Committee found that Representative Edwards engaged in persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct towards two young female staffers. While Representative Edwards denied that any of his conduct was intended as a sexual or romantic advance, his pattern of behavior would lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such, including providing the young women with lavish and recurrent gifts, making comments regarding their appearance and dress, inviting them to intimate dinners and vacations, sending notes regarding his effusive affection, and inviting them to other activities as a way to spend time together,” the report said.
The committee also said Edwards sought to cooperate with the panel, but that some messages deemed relevant to the probe were “omitted and/or seemingly deleted from his phone.”
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“An example of Representative Edwards’ unprofessional conduct was commenting on the two women’s appearance in the congressional office, telling them when they looked ‘pretty’ or ‘breathtaking,’ and even remarking on one staffer’s weight,” the report said.
Edwards told the committee he only commented on staffers’ clothing and said “it’s almost an insult if you don’t make some comment about [one another’s clothing],” according to the report.
While sexual harassment allegations are detailed regarding both staffers, the report goes into significant detail about Edwards’ alleged entreaties to the aide referred to as “Staffer 2.”
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That includes that Edwards “wrote poems for Staffer 2, including one that he read at her going away party in the congressional office accompanied by a slideshow, during which he cried.”
“Several staffers present testified that they felt uncomfortable, and Representative Edwards acknowledged in his own testimony that he could tell the staff felt uncomfortable,” the report said.
Edwards also “arranged for a singer to go to Staffer 2’s birthday party to sing Ed Sheeran’s Hills of Aberfeldy and say that it was ‘from a special someone,’” according to the findings.
That staffer confided in a friend after the ordeal that it left her “scared lowkey,” the report said.
The congressman also went to her home “to perform chores like yard work, pick her up and drop her off for events and activities with his driver.”
He also missed House votes to help Staffer 2 decorate her Christmas tree, according to the report.
The findings also state he “Took Staffer 2 to the casino, bought her drinks and paid for her to gamble. Staffer 2 texted Representative Edwards after one such outing to thank him for a fun night.”
He printed that text message on paper and drew a heart next to it, the report said, and handwrote, “Perhaps my proudest personal moment!”
Edwards is also accused of booking and paying for spa treatments for that staffer and sending both staffers “personal texts late in the evening.”
Later, when “Staffer 2” told Edwards that she received another job offer, Edwards told her he cried and then proceeded to “repeatedly” ask her to dinner for the next several days, the report said.
She told the congressman that it was not “a great idea” after a friend asked her about rumors of an affair between Edwards and a staffer, to which the report said Edwards responded, “It’s disappointing to feel something that used to be easy has gotten complicated. Whether we were talking about cat poop, crime plots, or thoughts more meaningful—I’ve always valued the time we shared, and the money we won 🙂 and I thought you might too. I didn’t expect outside chatter to change that. Still, I understand. You get to set the boundaries, and I get to respect them. If you ever feel easy again, I hope you’ll give me the signal.”
Edwards told the committee that he “suppose[d]” his response could seem intended to make someone feel guilty, but that was not his intent.
“That was my way of saying – I ain’t asking again because part of harassment is, when an interaction is not wanted and repetitive, and I was just trying to set the groundwork for ‘I’m going [] to respect that,” he apparently told the committee.
Edwards also said the text showed he allowed those staffers to set boundaries on what they were comfortable with, but the committee noted it “received evidence that Staffer 1 and Staffer 2 did not always feel free to reject Representative Edwards’ attentions without fear of professional consequences.”
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With “Staffer 1,” Edwards is also accused of leaving an event early and telling her it was because she “brought a date,” but he told the committee “that he told Staffer 1 that he did not want to be ‘in the way or something to that effect.’”
The House Ethics Committee is chaired by Edwards’ fellow Republican Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., but acts on a bipartisan basis to investigate lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
The explosive report comes after a string of high-profile sexual harassment allegations against House members including now-former Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Tony Gonzalez, R-Texas, both of whom have since resigned amid the blowback.
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