Monday, February 26, 2007

Women legislators ask Blunt to explain why he kept sexist agriculture secretary

The controversy surrounding Missouri Secretary of Agriculture Fred Ferrell does not appear to have any chance of subsiding any time soon.
Seven female legislators, in a letter released Sunday on the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Political Fix blog, are asking for Governor Matt Blunt to explain why he kept Ferrell in office even after reviewing a Highway Patrol report that indicated that Ferrell was sexist and guilty of at least verbal sexual harassment of female employees:

"We find it incomprehensible that you decided to reinstate a Departmental Director who refers to his secretary as a "show dog," who stated that he hires women "based on their pretty face, not what is in their minds," who wanted to arrange a "wet t-shirt contest" for his women employees, and who told male employees in the Department that "a woman could not be in a position of management above other men." It is therefore incumbent on you to come forward now and justify your action empowering this sort of predatory sexual behavior, as well as your decision to commit tens of thousands of state taxpayers' dollars in an attempt to keep those same taxpayers from learning the truth about what you knew this behavior to be."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This issue has probably produced the most "excitement" this Governor has ever had. He must be enjoying ever word of it, otherwise, this Frisky Fred would have been out the door long long ago.
Drust

Anonymous said...

Ferrell was forced to resign today.