Former employees who worked under David Palmer at the Department of Justice have sent a letter to ranking senators, asking that they oppose President Bush’s recent re-nomination of Palmer to serve on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, McClatchy Newspapers reports. Among the authors of the letter were three ex-deputy chiefs who worked under Palmer. The letter alleged that Palmer’s “work performance was well below the high standards expected of Department of Justice attorneys” and that Palmer “undermined” the mission of employment litigation in regards to the employment rights of women and people of color. The letter’s authors also assert that Palmer defended an employer’s right to discriminate against employees based on religion, McClatchy reports.
Additionally, Marian Thompson, a co-worker of Palmer’s, told McClatchy that a veteran attorney working under and having a romantic relationship with Palmer filed a complaint against him after she was fired.
The letter was sent to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Chair Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Sen. Mike Enzi (WY), the ranking Republican on the same committee.
