HARTFORD, Conn. _ Rep. Elizabeth Esty apologized Thursday and said she had "failed to protect" a former female staffer who was repeatedly threatened with violence by her since-fired chief of staff several years ago.
"To this survivor, and to anyone else on my team who was hurt by my failure to see what was going on in my office, I am so sorry," Esty, D-Conn., said in a written statement. "I've asked myself over and over again, how did I not see this? How could I have let down so many people?"
Esty was responding to a story published by Hearst Connecticut Media, which obtained an affidavit for a protective order filed by the former staffer, who was in a relationship with the chief of staff.
According to Hearst, the woman said in the affidavit that Tony Baker, the former chief of staff, had called her repeatedly and left messages threatening to kill her. He also punched her in the back and screamed at her.
After learning of the threats in the spring of 2016, Esty said she demanded her chief of staff attend counseling and launched an internal review.
"Unfortunately, through the review process I learned that the threat of violence was not an isolated incident, but part of a pattern of behavior that victimized many of the women on my staff," she said. "At which point, I hired a new chief of staff, made changes to senior staff, changed employment policy, and instituted mandatory harassment trainings."
A source with knowledge of the situation said that Baker had created a culture of intimidation and fear in the office especially among the women who worked there.
"He was a bad guy," the source said.
Baker had reached out to the office after he was fired, a sign he did not understand the damage he had inflicted upon the people who had been victimized, the source said.
But Hearst reported that Esty gave Baker a $5,000 severance and wrote him a favorable job recommendation that helped land him a position at Sandy Hook Promise, a grass roots gun violence prevention group. Baker left his job there this week, according to Hearst.
JR Romano, chairman of the state Republican Party, said Esty should resign.
"She wrote (Baker) a glowing recommendation and helped him get another job after he was known to be abusive," Romano said. "The Democratic Party in this state needs to join me in calling for Elizabeth Esty to resign."
The apology from Esty comes amid a flurry of sexual harassment and sexual assault allegations that have shaken both Hollywood and Washington. Esty and others have called for a major overhaul of how Congress investigates those allegations and she reiterated that belief Thursday.
"I know firsthand that we need stronger workplace protections, and to provide employees with a platform to raise concerns," she said. "But that's not enough. Those concerns must be listened to. And people in power must take action."
In November, after the House passed a resolution requiring sexual harassment training for all members and staff, Esty said: "For too long, the culture in Washington has accepted entirely unacceptable behavior. That needs to change _ period."
Romano said Esty's calls now ring hollow.
"She paid this guy off," he said. "You helped him find another job? You put other women in jeopardy? It shows a complete lack of character _ that her cries of feminism and #MeToo are bogus."
A spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee said the allegations were "extremely troubling."
"This abhorrent behavior should be punished, not rewarded with cash payouts and glowing recommendations," spokesman Chris Martin said.
