[ad_1]
EXCLUSIVE: President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden’s inner circle and former colleagues rallied to the defense of a high aide accused of sexual harassment in statements offered to Fox News Digital.
Nearly a dozen present and former colleagues of Anthony Bernal, an assistant to the president and high aide to the primary woman, have alleged he has a long-running historical past of bullying and verbal sexual harassment, together with speculating on the penis sizes of staffers in conversations, which one particular person described as an try “to make people feel uncomfortable and have power over them.”
The nameless staffers instructed the New York Post, which first reported the allegations, that they got here ahead in hopes that Bernal could be held accountable for his actions. Some, nevertheless, remained skeptical and labeled him as “untouchable” due to his closeness to the primary woman.
The White House and the primary woman’s workplace didn’t immediately reply Fox News Digital’s inquiries about whether or not Bernal would face an inside investigation into the matter. Instead, present and previous members of Biden’s inner circle and former coworkers of Bernal offered statements to Fox News Digital defending his character in an try to counter the staffers’ prices.
Annie Tomasini, Director of Oval Office Operations, and Anthony Bernal, Advisor to the First Lady, observe U.S. President Joe Biden and first woman Jill Biden to Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on February 16, 2024 in Washington, DC. Biden is visiting East Palestine, Ohio, to mark one 12 months because the Norfolk Southern prepare derailment. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“Anthony is one of the most generous, conscientious, brilliant people working at the White House,” a White House official instructed Fox News Digital. “In the 20 years I’ve known him, I’ve never heard him to make comments like the ones alleged– in fact, he’s always been quite intentional and purposeful in making sure colleagues at every level feel valued and appreciated.”
“I’ve worked with Anthony for almost 30 years — and I’ve always seen him act with the utmost professionalism and compassion toward his team,” Biden’s former chief of workers, Ron Klain, instructed Fox News Digital.
Several different former colleagues of Bernal additionally defended him. An ex-staffer within the first woman’s workplace who labored with him for the primary two years of Biden’s administration mentioned they’ve “a lot of respect for him as a leader and a colleague.”
“He has a good heart and always keeps the people we serve at the forefront of his decisions,” they mentioned. “As one of the youngest staff in the office, he consistently asked for and valued my perspective and contributions.”
Another particular person, who mentioned they’ve labored carefully with Bernal for nearly 30 years within the authorities and the non-public sector, mentioned he routinely helps coworkers “and pushes them to exceed their own expectations to deliver extraordinary results.”
REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS RALLY AROUND GOLD STAR FATHER ARRESTED AFTER HECKLING BIDEN AT SOTU
Anthony Bernal, assistant to the President and senior advisor to the First Lady, is seen exterior Saint Edmond Roman Catholic Church ready for President Joe Biden to go away after attending Mass in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on August 12, 2023. Biden is spending the weekend at his Rehoboth Beach trip house. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP through Getty Images)
“All the while, he relentlessly exemplifies that family comes first, and the highest form of public service is to find more to give,” they added. “Anthony’s expectations are set high, but his grace is even higher. He is truly the epitome of a public servant-leader.”
A separate long-time colleague, who mentioned they’ve recognized and labored with Bernal for greater than 15 years, mentioned they’ve by no means heard him “utter an inappropriate word to anyone – ever.”
“The White House is a demanding workplace requiring the best efforts of all its employees, and Anthony’s leadership has helped me and many others maximize our abilities,” they mentioned. “He challenged me to be better than I ever thought I could be, and as a result I’m a far better person and co-worker because of that interaction.”
The New York Post reported final week that the allegations towards Bernal, who’s overtly homosexual, included him sharing his view with staffers that an individual’s thumb dimension correlates with their penis dimension. He allegedly did so within the present White House, in prior roles within the Biden marketing campaign and through Biden’s vice presidency.
“It is to make people uncomfortable and to have power over them,” one supply instructed the Post. “It is Me Too – classic Me Too.”
Additional sources instructed the Post that Bernal instructed a colleague he had a small penis throughout a disagreement. He remarked on a “staffer’s bulge in his khakis” in one other prevalence.
HUR INSISTS THAT HE ‘DID NOT EXONERATE’ BIDEN, REPEATEDLY SHUTTING DOWN DEMOCRAT CHARACTERIZATIONS
First Lady Jill Biden talks together with her senior advisor Anthony Bernal earlier than a speech on the Carondelet Palace in Quito, Ecuador on May 19, 2022. (ERIN SCHAFF/POOL/AFP through Getty Images)
“It was a lot of inappropriate remarks — talking about other people’s attractiveness and speculating about their sex lives at very weird moments,” the supply instructed the Post. “That’s actually sexual harassment.”
The sources additionally mentioned that Bernal would normally query folks’s sexuality and would try to pry into their private lives.
Following the report, a former high Biden aide, who wished to stay nameless, instructed Fox News Digital that the allegations inside the Post’s report aligned with what they skilled whereas working within the administration.
“I’m surprised it has taken this long for so many staffers to speak out,” they mentioned. “I wouldn’t be shocked if this empowered current and past staff to move forward.”
The former aide additionally believed “a dozen sources seem like enough to trigger that type of internal investigation.”
Biden, in the meantime, has mentioned he wouldn’t tolerate such actions inside his orbit.
On his first day in workplace, Biden mentioned he would not tolerate disrespectful staff in his orbit. (Associated Press)
“I am not joking when I say this: if you are ever working with me and I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect or talk down to someone, I promise you I will fire you on the spot,” Biden mentioned on his first day in workplace. “On the spot. No ifs, ands or buts.”
The White House and the primary woman’s workplace didn’t reply whether or not they imagine Bernal’s alleged actions violated Biden’s pledge.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The Bidens not directly addressed the problem by means of a press release from the president’s chief of workers, Jeff Zeints, who instructed the Post that he and the Bidens have “full confidence in Anthony’s character.”
“His many fans at the White House know him to be both gracious and tough, holding himself up to the highest standards, with a heart dedicated to public service,” Zients mentioned. “It is disappointing that he is the target of unfounded attacks from unnamed sources.”
[ad_2]
Source hyperlink