White House science adviser was ‘bullying’ over a dozen staffers, investigation finds
This article features Government Accountability Project’s whistleblower client, Rachel Wallace, and was originally published here.
An internal investigation conducted by the White House found “credible evidence” that a member of President Joe Biden’s team frequently demeaned administration officials.
Recordings obtained by Politico of an internal White House briefing on the investigation’s findings in January outlined multiple “disrespectful interactions” between Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Eric Lander and his staff, directly accusing Lander of “bullying” former OSTP General Counsel Rachel Wallace. In total, 14 current and former OSTP staffers complained about Lander’s behavior.
Although both men and women claimed to have been the target of his outbursts, the briefing characterized Lander’s behavior toward female staffers as particularly “demeaning or abrasive.”
An internal investigation conducted by the White House found “credible evidence” that a member of President Joe Biden’s team frequently demeaned administration officials.
Recordings obtained by Politico of an internal White House briefing on the investigation’s findings in January outlined multiple “disrespectful interactions” between Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Eric Lander and his staff, directly accusing Lander of “bullying” former OSTP General Counsel Rachel Wallace. In total, 14 current and former OSTP staffers complained about Lander’s behavior.
Although both men and women claimed to have been the target of his outbursts, the briefing characterized Lander’s behavior toward female staffers as particularly “demeaning or abrasive.”
Lander apologized for his behavior in an all-staff email Friday afternoon.
“I am deeply sorry for my conduct. I especially want to apologize to those of you who I treated poorly or were present at the time,” the email reads. “It’s my responsibility to set a respectful tone for our community. It’s clear that I have not lived up to this responsibility. I have spoken to colleagues within OSTP in a disrespectful or demeaning way.”
Still, Wallace and other OSTP staff say Lander should have faced starker consequences for his action, which, according to Politico, “required Lander to hold more collaborative meetings with subordinates” and scheduled 30- and 45-day assessments to see if Lander’s behavior improves.
Wallace claims Lander often “retaliated against staff for speaking out and asking questions by calling them names, disparaging them, embarrassing them in front of their peers, laughing at them, shunning them, taking away their duties, and replacing them or driving them out of the agency.”
“Numerous women have been left in tears, traumatized, and feeling vulnerable and isolated,” she added. “Lander’s apology was not only disingenuous. It compounded the deep hurt and damage he has caused by ignoring these other acts of aggression, harassment and retaliation.”
Wallace was demoted by Lander from general to deputy counsel in 2021, although it’s worth noting the White House investigation did not conclude the demotion was “procedurally improper.”
Biden pledged shortly after entering office he would not tolerate violations of workplace policy. Former White House deputy press secretary T.J. Ducklo resigned shortly after Biden’s pledge after reports of an altercation in which he verbally berated a member of the press.
White House officials confirmed senior leadership met with Lander to “discuss the seriousness of the matter and the president’s expectation that all staff interactions be conducted with respect” but declined to comment any further.
An OSTP spokesperson told Politico that “corrective action was taken consistent” with the findings of the investigation and that the office will “let Eric’s apology to our team speak for itself.”
An internal investigation conducted by the White House found “credible evidence” that a member of President Joe Biden’s team frequently demeaned administration officials.
Recordings obtained by Politico of an internal White House briefing on the investigation’s findings in January outlined multiple “disrespectful interactions” between Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Eric Lander and his staff, directly accusing Lander of “bullying” former OSTP General Counsel Rachel Wallace. In total, 14 current and former OSTP staffers complained about Lander’s behavior.
Although both men and women claimed to have been the target of his outbursts, the briefing characterized Lander’s behavior toward female staffers as particularly “demeaning or abrasive.”
Lander apologized for his behavior in an all-staff email Friday afternoon.
“I am deeply sorry for my conduct. I especially want to apologize to those of you who I treated poorly or were present at the time,” the email reads. “It’s my responsibility to set a respectful tone for our community. It’s clear that I have not lived up to this responsibility. I have spoken to colleagues within OSTP in a disrespectful or demeaning way.”
Still, Wallace and other OSTP staff say Lander should have faced starker consequences for his action, which, according to Politico, “required Lander to hold more collaborative meetings with subordinates” and scheduled 30- and 45-day assessments to see if Lander’s behavior improves.
Wallace claims Lander often “retaliated against staff for speaking out and asking questions by calling them names, disparaging them, embarrassing them in front of their peers, laughing at them, shunning them, taking away their duties, and replacing them or driving them out of the agency.”
“Numerous women have been left in tears, traumatized, and feeling vulnerable and isolated,” she added. “Lander’s apology was not only disingenuous. It compounded the deep hurt and damage he has caused by ignoring these other acts of aggression, harassment and retaliation.”
Wallace was demoted by Lander from general to deputy counsel in 2021, although it’s worth noting the White House investigation did not conclude the demotion was “procedurally improper.”
Biden pledged shortly after entering office he would not tolerate violations of workplace policy. Former White House deputy press secretary T.J. Ducklo resigned shortly after Biden’s pledge after reports of an altercation in which he verbally berated a member of the press.
White House officials confirmed senior leadership met with Lander to “discuss the seriousness of the matter and the president’s expectation that all staff interactions be conducted with respect” but declined to comment any further.
An OSTP spokesperson told Politico that “corrective action was taken consistent” with the findings of the investigation and that the office will “let Eric’s apology to our team speak for itself.”
Lander has been a longtime Biden adviser and previously served on the board of the Biden Cancer Initiative. The president specifically praised Lander’s work during the relaunch ceremony for the Biden administration’s “Cancer Moonshot.”
He is scheduled to appear Tuesday before the House Committee on Health and Human Services biomedical research subcommittee on an unrelated matter.