GOP Rep. says she wouldn’t feel comfortable sending her daughter on Capitol Hill, and she blames it on her colleagues: ‘Culture of creepiness’

Rep. Kat Cammack recently stated that Congress maintains “a culture of creepiness” regarding how members interact with and solicit staffers. This assessment came to light on Wednesday when the Florida Republican spoke about the current environment within the halls of the Capitol.

Cammack told MeidasTouch reporter Pablo Manríquez that she “wouldn’t feel comfortable” sending her “daughter to work here” in the current congressional environment. This perspective highlights a serious issue regarding the professional atmosphere that has developed among lawmakers.

The conversation gained momentum after Rep. Jeff Crank introduced a resolution that would require lawmakers to confidentially disclose relationships with staffers working in other offices or committees to the House Ethics Committee. Cammack voiced her support for this move, arguing that the focus of members should remain on their legislative duties. “We would be better off if members were more focused on their work than enhancing their love life,” she said.

Cammack sees the current state of affairs as a significant barrier to maintaining a healthy and safe workplace

She noted, “People don’t recognize that even if it’s another staffer in another office, you still have tremendous influence over that congressional staffer’s career.” This power dynamic is exactly why these types of oversight measures are necessary to ensure that professional boundaries are respected.

This is not the first time the House has looked into these sensitive matters. Back in June, the body adopted a resolution led by Rep. Thomas Massie that aimed to increase transparency regarding sexual harassment violations. That resolution called for the Ethics Committee and the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights to create a single consolidated list of members who were the subject of sexual harassment investigations that resulted in monetary settlements.

However, the situation hit a snag in July when the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights reported that it had not received any notifications about such settlements. They pointed to the Congressional Accountability Act of 2018 as the reason for this lack of data.

The urgency of this topic is underscored by past events that have shaken the institution. Former Reps. Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales were both linked to resignations following allegations of sexual assault or harassment from former staffers. While Swalwell denied any wrongdoing after facing accusations of sexual assault, Gonzales admitted to an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide.

Cammack did not hold back when describing the severity of the situation. She emphasized that sexual misconduct in Congress is “a really big effing problem.” This aligns with the data released by the House Ethics Committee in April.

That report revealed that the committee had conducted 20 sexual misconduct investigations into lawmakers since 2017, with five of those cases remaining confidential.