1:18
- ABC News
- November 30, 2018
Zinke attacks top Dem who called for his ouster
The Democrat has pledged to investigate Zinke in the new Congress.
1:18
Grijalva shot back at Zinke, saying he is turning to personal attacks instead of responding to \"credible and serious\" allegations.
The allegations against Secretary Zinke are credible and serious. Instead of addressing the substantive issues raised in this morning’s op-ed, he's resorting to personal attacks. https://t.co/QRiVPAjxPv
— Raul M. Grijalva (@RepRaulGrijalva) November 30, 2018
He also issued a statement in response to the tweet, saying \"The American people know who I’m here to serve, and they know in whose interests I’m acting. They don’t know the same about Secretary Zinke.”
Several other House Democrats agreed, saying that Zinke's comments are out of line and do not address the ethical concerns in Grijalva's op-ed.
Personal attacks using official resources are unbecoming of a Cabinet member. Mean-spirited comments like @SecretaryZinke's are always wrong — and even more so when our country faces so many pressing challenges.
— Rep. Betty McCollum (@BettyMcCollum04) November 30, 2018
It would be nice if @SecretaryZinke had the same commitment to preserving #PublicLands as he did to abusing the power of his office for personal gain.
— Rep. Jimmy Gomez (@RepJimmyGomez) November 30, 2018
It would also be nice to have someone leading @Interior who had a shred of moral integrity.
Trump really knows how to pick em. https://t.co/fs3PbBiDba
.@NRDems leader @RepRaulGrijalva said Zinke
— Rep. Don Beyer (@RepDonBeyer) November 30, 2018
- abused the public trust
- damaged the Interior Department
- is the target of an investigation just referred to the Justice Department, one of 17 probes of Zinke/Interior
Zinke responded with personal insults. He didn't deny a thing. https://t.co/bveJ7584CY
The Republican leadership of the committee declined to comment to ABC News on the matter.
Zinke's tweet references reports that Grijalva gave a $48,000 settlement to a staffer that threatened to sue in 2015, saying he created a hostile work environment and was drunk at work.
Grijalva has previously said the allegations are not true and that the staffer only complained after she was fired. Details about the settlement are not publicly available and the congressman has said he wants to be released from a non-disclosure agreement to provide more information.
“Rep. Grijalva does not work while drunk and does not create a hostile workplace environment,” Adam Sarvana, Grijalva's spokesman, told ABC News in a written statement.
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/Politics/raul-grijalva-ap-jc-180410_hpMain_4x3t_384.jpg\")
In 1985, Grijalva also admitted his drinking had gone beyond social drinking after he was arrested for driving under the influence while serving on the Tuscon school board, according to an article in the Arizona Republic. He spent 12 days in an alcohol-abuse program but has said more recently that he \"beat the demons\" he was dealing with at the time.
\"It was a period of my life in which other things were affecting me and affecting me personally and once you wrestle the demons, and you beat 'em, you beat 'em. And I feel very comfortable that that demon's beat,\" he told Tuscon-based NBC affiliate KVOA earlier this year.
The Interior Department declined to comment further on Zinke's tweet, other than to say it speaks for itself.
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