White House Press Aide TJ Ducklo Resigns

He threatened a Politico reporter
By Josh Gardner,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 14, 2021 6:00 AM CST
White House Aide Resigns After Bullying Reporter
TJ Ducklo listens as press secretary Jen Psaki speaks during a press briefing   (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

A White House press aide has resigned after revelations he threatened a reporter who was poised to write a story about his romantic connection to another journalist. Per CNN, deputy press secretary TJ Ducklo submitted his resignation Saturday after initially being suspended for one week without pay. "We accepted the resignation of TJ Ducklo after a discussion with him this evening," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement. "This conversation occurred with the support of the White House chief of staff." Earlier, Ducklo had apologized to Tara Palmeri of Politico over what Psaki characterized as a "heated conversation about his personal life."

Palmeri subsequently wrote about possible conflicts of interest in covering the Biden administration for Axios reporter Alexi McCammond, who's dating Ducklo. Vanity Fair reported that when he found out about the upcoming article, Ducklo attacked Palmeri with "derogatory and misogynistic comments," also threatening to "destroy" her if the article ran. In his own statement on Twitter following his resignation, Ducklo wrote: "I know this was terrible. I know I can't take it back. But I also know I can learn from it and do better." President Biden was reportedly informed of Ducklo's decision late Saturday afternoon and supports the move. (More White House press corps stories.)

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