The Democratic governor of California is under fire for his handling of a participant in the Wounded Warrior program.
Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) is under fire for how her office handled a former worker and veteran who contracted and later tested positive for COVID-19 in July.
On Thursday, the Twitter account Dear White Staffers revealed screenshots of text exchanges between Porter and Sasha Georgiades, a former fellow in the Wounded Warrior program.
The article claims that the staff member who published the texts with the public did so “with consent” and that they reveal a dialogue between Porter and Georgiades about COVID-19 protocols at the office.
Georgiades worked as Porter’s assistant for two years until leaving in August.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Porter’s office insisted Georgiades wasn’t let go because of her COVID-19 infection.
“This ex-worker did not get fired. She had been a fellow in our office for a few months before her July COVID protocol breach, and we had both agreed on her departure for August of 2022, “a representative from Porter stated in an email.
The representative explained that Congresswoman Porter had told the fellow that she might complete the final three weeks of her fellowship while working from home. After learning about the risk of contracting COVIDs, Representative Porter began taking tests twice a day, and she only went to public events if the results returned negative.
On Thursday, Georgiades said she “was not dismissed because [Porter] could not” to Fox News Digital.
For the program to have fired me, “I was a wounded warrior fellow,” as Georgiades put it. “I was demoted to working from home and prohibited from the workplace,” he said.
‘I believe if there hadn’t been the protection of the wounded warrior program, she would have,’ the Navy veteran said.
According to Georgiades, what she went through “isn’t unusual” at Porter’s office.
“She has made numerous workers weep, and people are often so anxious even to staff her because if anything goes wrong, she blows out on whoever is present,” Georgiades added. She’s free to have whatever kind of conversation she wants with the employees.
She said, “On one occasion, we had an office hike, and she left her kids with the workers in the rear while she wandered off with the head of staff.” “There is no consideration for us, our sentiments, or the difficulties we face. Everything revolves around her and her desires. Despite my repeated efforts, she always voted against the legislation I was trying to introduce in support of our military’s veterans and active service personnel.”
The ex-Porter aide said, “shortly after I arrived there, with another worker,” that the congresswoman’s office “overburdens the person with work such that it gets to the point that they can’t handle it all or they are dismissed for not keeping up.”
Georgiades claimed the employee was a staff assistant, the lowest-paid position in a congressional office, and added, “He was depressed and offended.”
According to Georgiades’ comments in the libertarian magazine Reason, the “office policy on testing” entails delaying getting a COVID test after experiencing symptoms.
She claimed in the interview, “At the moment, I felt good but sore like it had worked out too hard.” It wasn’t easy to tell the difference until the following day, but as soon as I felt unwell, I took a test, called in sick to work, and informed the district director.
According to Georgiades’s account to Reason, the lawmaker was unreachable when she left office.
She claimed that following this incident, she never heard from Porter again.
The leaked messages indicate that on July 8, Porter inquired as to why Georgiades had “not followed office policy on testing for COVID-19,” using the phrase “very disappointing.”
“I apologize endlessly. I agree; I might have done better. “Georgiades got back to us the very same day. I wasn’t necessarily okay, even if I felt well at the time.
On July 9, Porter wrote to Sasha, “I cannot let you back in the workplace given your refusal to follow office regulations.” “Cody will be in touch to arrange shipping or delivery of your things and to detail your remote work schedule and tasks for your last weeks.”
“The meaning is clear to me. I appreciate the previous two years and everything I’ve learned from you, “Georgiades said. I’m sorry I let you down in such a sloppy fashion; I know it’s no excuse, but I’d just found out that a Navy buddy of mine had been slain, and my emotions were all over the place.
She explained that this was “not an excuse but the rationale for the lack of foresight.” I value the help I’ve received from this department.
Porter wrote to Georgiades, “To be fair, you gave me Covid. Twenty-five months of you breaking the rules resulted in me being sick.”
The California lawmaker said, “my children have nobody to care for them.” Georgiades informed Reason that the lawmaker was scheduled to be in the nation’s capital.
Several embarrassing text conversations from Porter’s past have surfaced, including one in which she criticized the mayor of Irvine, California, Farrah Khan after Khan had blamed the Irvine police force in the wake of the violence that followed Porter’s town hall last year.
Porter attacked Khan in the messages, claiming that she would not contact the mayor following the arrest of Julian Willis for allegedly punching a pro-Trump demonstrator, causing the protester to sustain a bloody nose.
“A lesson in professionalism can come from you. Now let’s watch what develops. “Despite donning a Batgirl costume for Halloween to the House of Representatives on the same day that Democrats voted for a resolution setting primary grounds for the impeachment probe against then-President Donald Trump, Porter said this in the texts. On Twitter, Republicans, including the National Republican Congressional Committee, poked fun at the outfit.