Ryan: House Will Adopt Mandatory ‘Anti-Harassment’ Training

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., meets reporters as the White House and congressional Republicans are finalizing a tax plan, at Republican National Committee Headquarters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017. Ryan began his remarks by promising help for devastated Puerto Rico, calling it a "humanitarian crisis." (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
In this Sept. 26, 2017 photo, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., speaks at Republican National Committee Headquarters on Capitol Hill in Washington. Republicans are focused on cutting taxes instead of deficits ... In this Sept. 26, 2017 photo, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., speaks at Republican National Committee Headquarters on Capitol Hill in Washington. Republicans are focused on cutting taxes instead of deficits as they look to power a $4.1 billion budget plan through the House on Thursday. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) MORE LESS
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House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) on Tuesday announced that the House will adopt “mandatory anti-harassment and anti-discrimination training” for lawmakers and staff after a hearing earlier Tuesday on a bill that would make such training mandatory.

“Going forward, the House will adopt a policy of mandatory anti-harassment and anti-discrimination training for all Members and staff,” Ryan said in a statement.

He said Tuesday’s hearing “was another important step in our efforts to combat sexual harassment and ensure a safe workplace” and said that “harassment in any form has no place in this institution.”

“I want to especially thank my colleagues who shared their stories,” Ryan said. “We will continue our review to make sure the right policies and resources are in place to prevent and report harassment.”

During a hearing by the House Administration Committee on Tuesday, Reps. Jackie Speier (D-CA) and Barbara Comstock (R-VA), both women, said several men who are current members of Congress have been accused of sexual misconduct.

Comstock said she heard a story from a trusted source about a male lawmaker who answered the door wearing only a towel to a female staffer delivering documents to his home. The lawmaker then invited the staffer inside and exposed himself to her, according to Comstock.

Speier said she heard allegations this year of interns getting propositioned for sex and “victims having their private parts grabbed on the House floor,” and will introduce a bill later this week to reform the current process for reporting sexual harassment on Capitol Hill.

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Notable Replies

  1. Welcome to corporate requirements from 1995…

  2. Ryan is speaking for the House, but the prospect that the voters of Alabama may elect Roy Moore to the Senate and he would then be required to take the Senate’s adopted mandatory anti-harassment and anti-discrimination training is more than I can deal with. Good God!

  3. Avatar for johnrm johnrm says:

    Yeah right after he changes the dress code so that woman cant wear shoulder less dresses…dick

  4. Avatar for paulw paulw says:

    He is trying to get out in front of this so that he and his pals can determine the content of that training and what gets done with the notes from it. And to forestall changes in the ridiculous way that the house and senate deal with complaints. (Maybe I am a cynic, but I foresee “This is exactly how far you can go without having a complaint upheld.”)

  5. Paul Ryan doesn’t support equal pay for women, he’s anti-choice, and he has voted against child care, food stamps, energy and housing assistance, access to contraception, and Medicaid.

    That’s harassment.

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