A report suggests that the White House had sidelined Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer months prior to her resignation.
White House official Steven Cheung confirmed on Monday that Chavez-DeRemer would be leaving her role as Secretary of Labor, which came months after she came under investigation due to alleged impropriety.
“Her tenure has been plagued by multiple scandals, an investigation into allegations that the secretary was engaged in an extramarital affair with a member of her security team and accusations of inappropriate behavior, like drinking on the job,” NOTUS reported.
“Multiple people have resigned from the agency amid the ongoing internal investigation,” it added.
According to Bloomberg Law, the resignation came after Chavez-DeRemer’s presence within the administration had dwindled over the past few months. Last week, for instance, when President Donald Trump held a meeting with top labor leaders, including Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, as well as building trades union leaders Sean McGarvey and Gary LaBarbera, Chavez-DeRemer was noticeably absent.
“Chavez-DeRemer’s name didn’t come up in talks with the president, O’Brien told Bloomberg Law on Monday. Once one of her loudest supporters, he didn’t exert himself to defend the former Oregon congresswoman,” noted the outlet.
“An inspector general probe into a growing list of alleged offenses — travel fraud, mistreatment of staff, an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate — left her sidelined in recent months, according to 11 current and former officials, corporate advisers, lobbyists, and policymakers who were not authorized to speak publicly,” it added.
Leading up to her resignation, Chavez-DeRemer’s presence at the Department of Labor sharply diminished, with her schedule largely going unfilled as the business community began to view her as toxic, sources confirmed to Bloomberg. With the inspector general investigation looming large over the department, staff had been filing for the exits in a mass exodus. The scandals only worsened.
“Her advance director said she was wrongfully terminated after an internal defamation campaign. And in February, her husband, Shawn DeRemer, was banned from the DOL’s Frances Perkins headquarters over allegations that he inappropriately touched staffers,” continued Bloomberg.
Chavez-DeRemer’s fate was all but sealed when the New York Times published on April 15 leaked texts from her husband and father that appeared to show lewd messages toward female staffers.
“Hearing u/r in town. Wishing you would let me know. I could have made some excuses to get out and show u around. Please keep this private,” her father, Richard Chavez, wrote in one message.
For her part, Chavez-DeRemer strongly denied the allegations in a statement on Monday.
“The allegations against me, my family, and my team have been peddled by high–ranked deep state actors who have been coordinating with the one-sided news media and continue to undermine President Trump’s mission.”