A 71-year-old Democratic congresswoman stunned fellow lawmakers Wednesday when she called cleavage-revealing clothing that some members and staffers wear an ”invitation” to sexual misconduct.
Ohio Rep. Marcy Kaptur made the clueless comment during a private Democratic Caucus meeting to discuss sexual harassment issues, sources who were there told Politico.
“I saw a member yesterday with her cleavage so deep it was down to the floor,” Kaptur said, according to the website. “And what I’ve seen … it’s really an invitation.”
Kaptur said Beltway women need a stricter dress code.
“Maybe I’ll get booed for saying this, but many companies and the military [have] a dress code,” she said.
“I have been appalled at some of the dress of … members and staff. Men have to wear ties and suits.”
Others in the room looked on in disbelief, their jaws dropping, the sources said.
In a statement later Wednesday, Kaptur told Politico she didn’t mean to say that women were to blame for harassment they experience.
“When I was first elected to Congress my office and I became a refuge for female staffers who had been mistreated by their bosses. Some of them in tears many days. It is something I carry with me to this day and something I brought up during our Caucus meeting,” she said.
“Under no circumstances is it the victim’s fault if they are harassed in any way. I shared the stories from my time here in the context of the ‘Me Too’ legislation and how we can elevate the decorum and the dress code to protect women from what is a pervasive problem here and in society at large.”
Kaptur’s comment came as Congress continued to deal with sexual harassment allegations against male members.
Three — Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) — resigned last week over sexual misconduct allegations.