Amy Klobuchar allegedly mistreated staffers, sees difficulty getting team for 2020 run





Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar is facing staff problems in her likely 2020 presidential run as top campaign aides withdraw their names from consideration amid her alleged mistreatment of the staff.

See also:  Amy Klobuchar apparently ate salad with a comb and then made her staffer clean it
The New York Times published a story Friday detailing the harsh, occasionally demeaning manner in which 2020 presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar has treated her staff. There are a lot of disturbing details in the report, including accounts of Klobuchar throwing items "in the direction of aides" and making employees wash her dishes, which is probably unethical and definitely shitty.

The weirdest story, though, is about a comb. In 2008, an aide allegedly forgot to bring a fork for Klobuchar's salad aboard a short flight to South Carolina. According to the Times, Klobuchar "berated" the staffer for his mistake, then proceeded to eat the salad with a comb.

Yes, a comb. For hair!

From the Times:
What happened next was typical: Ms. Klobuchar berated her aide instantly for the slip-up. What happened after that was not: She pulled a comb from her bag and began eating the salad with it, according to four people familiar with the episode.
Then she handed the comb to her staff member with a directive: Clean it.
It's natural for a tangle of questions to arise after reading news like this. Here are a few we're considering: What kind of comb did Klobuchar use to eat the salad? (A tail comb is likely because of its pointed end, but we do not know for sure.) We know she told the staffer to clean the comb after she was done eating, but did she clean the comb before she used it? What kind of salad was involved here? Was she able to spear a cherry tomato with that thing?




Reports of Klobuchar mistreating staff started to circulate earlier this month, when HuffPost and BuzzFeed News published interviews with former staffers about her conduct. Klobuchar responded to those stories as she announced her presidential bid on February 10.

"Yes, I can be tough, and yes I can push people,” she said. “I have high expectations for myself, I have high expectations for the people that work for me, but I have high expectations for this country.”

To be clear, the comb anecdote is not the most important part of the reports on Klobuchar's behavior. Her treatment of employees, particularly her parental leave policy — which technically required employees to pay back their leave compensation if they didn't stay on staff long enough afterward — is genuine cause for concern.

It's not just an issue for 2020, either. These incidents should be interpreted, as Libby Watson wrote for Splinter last week, as "a story of a shitty boss and workers who deserve better" — the viral stories and the less Tweet-able allegations both.

And for the love of god, clean your comb fork before you use it.
 During an interview with Fox News' Bret Baier last week, though, Klobuchar said she spoke with Reid, and “he doesn’t remember that and I don’t remember that either.”



But according to a Buzzfeed News report, numerous staffers said Klobuchar routinely sent late-night emails and berated subordinates over minor details and missteps. The report also said, "one aide was accidentally hit with a flying binder, according to someone who saw it happen, though the staffer said the senator did not intend to hit anyone with the binder when she threw it."

When asked about the report that she threw a binder, she did not flat-out deny it.

"I don't know, it's all anonymous. I will say that I'm proud of our staff," Klobuchar told Fox News last week. "And yes, I can be a tough boss, and push people -- that's obvious. But that's because I have high expectations of myself, I have high expectations of those who work for me, and I have a high expectation for our country. My chief of staff has worked for me for six years, my state director for seven years, my campaign manager for 14 years."

Asked specifically whether she had thrown a binder at someone, Klobuchar responded: "If you look at that story, I think you'll see it said something about me throwing a binder down -- not at somebody," Klobuchar said. "I just know that I should be judged, and I will take responsibility for, everything that happens on this campaign."

Some critics have charged that the criticism over Klobuchar's behavior is sexist, suggesting male managers often are not challenged for a tough management style.

A campaign spokeswoman told the Times: “The senator has repeatedly acknowledged that she can be tough and push people hard. But these anonymous stories — some of which are just plain ridiculous — do not overshadow the countless experiences of people on the senator’s team who she has been so proud to work with.”

Klobuchar announced earlier this month that she would join the crowded field of Democratic candidates lining up to take on President Trump in 2020.




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