Donald Trump’s chief of staff waged a sexist attack on Massachusetts Democratic senator and potential 2020 presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren last year, according to emails revealed by BuzzFeed News.
In an email conversation from 2017 between John Kelly (then serving as the DHS secretary) and Kevin Carroll (then a senior counselor at DHS), the two men exchanged misogynist comments about Warren.
According to BuzzFeed, Kelly was angry about a phone conversation he had with the Democratic lawmaker over Trump’s Muslim ban.
“Absolutely most insulting conversation I have ever had with anyone,” Trump’s current chief of staff wrote to Carroll on Feb. 8, 2017. “What an impolite arrogant woman. She immediately began insulting our people accusing them of not following the court order, insulting and abusive behavior towards those covered by the pause, blah blah blah.”
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A screengrab of the insults email via BuzzFeed News:
More from the BuzzFeed report:
A congressional source familiar with Warren’s phone call with Kelly told BuzzFeed News that the senator’s staff had tried to obtain information from the Department of Homeland Security about her constituents, some of whom held visas, who were detained at Logan beginning on Jan. 29, 2017. But the staffers were unsuccessful. Warren then reached out to Kelly, who didn’t respond to her for a week. When Kelly finally called Warren, she told him she had been trying to reach him, which Kelly denied.
Carroll, not to be outdone in the discussion with his then-boss, shot back by saying he wishes Warren could be silenced.
“Too bad Senate Majority Leader McConnell couldn’t order her to be quiet again! Warren is running for president so early, trying too hard, and chasing bad pitches,†Carroll wrote, referring to the incident in early 2017 when McConnell used an arcane Senate rule to quiet Warren.
A screengrab of Carroll’s email via BuzzFeed News:
This sexism flows directly from the top
While the email exchange is between John Kelly and Kevin Carroll, the underlying misogyny flows directly from the president himself.
Just last night during one of his stream-of-consciousness ramblings at a rally in Pennsylvania, Trump complained about how the ‘Me Too’ movement is making it harder to be blatantly sexist.
During Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing, the president didn’t just defend a man credibly accused of sexual abuse, but he openly mocked the woman – Dr. Christine Blasey Ford – who bravely stepped forward to tell her story.
Ultimately, Donald Trump is a man who has stepped on women his entire life, whether it’s fellow celebrities, journalists or even his own wives. His administration is only following the example he has repeatedly set.
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Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
