Republican Matt Schlapp, chairman of the political organization that hosts the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), walked away from a reporter Thursday when asked about a male campaign staffer’s sexual assault allegations against him.
A video posted to social media shows the moment the Right-wing activist and lobbyist was confronted by The Independent’s Eric Michael Garcia, who asked Schlapp to respond to the claims by the man who is reportedly suing Schlapp in a $9.4 million battery, defamation, and conspiracy lawsuit after the CPAC leader refused to admit to allegations he was “aggressively fondling” the man’s “genital area in a sustained fashion” while he was driving Schlapp to his hotel after a campaign event for Herschel Walker.
In the clip, Garcia can be heard saying to Schlapp, “What’s your response to the allegation –” but then a woman interjects, asking, “How’s your wife?”
“She’s great,” Schlapp responds.
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Seconds later, as Schlapp walks away from reporters, Garcia again asks, “Mr. Schlapp, what’s your response to the allegations against you at this moment?”
Schlapp ignores the question and continues to walk away.
But Garcia again asked Schlapp for his response. At that point, another man grabs Schlapp’s arm and pulls him away.
According to The New York Times, the lawsuit “also accuses Mr. Schlapp and his wife, Mercedes Schlapp, who served as Mr. Trump’s White House director of strategic communications, of defamation and conspiracy, claiming that they coordinated a campaign to discredit the Walker aide and his allegations.”
In a video recorded just after the alleged assault, the staffer says: “Matt Schlapp of the CPAC grabbed my junk and pummeled it at length, and I’m sitting there thinking what the hell is going on, that this person is literally doing this to me.”
Watch Schlapp’s reaction to Garcia’s question below.
Here is Matt Schlapp avoiding my question about the allegations against him. pic.twitter.com/M5bqixKMUx
— Eric Michael Garcia (@EricMGarcia) March 2, 2023
