Transcripts

SPEAKER: In addition to the harassment allegations against State Senator Dan Schoen, a DFL legislator is now accusing another lawmaker of making crude comments about her sexuality, and sending her a text about her body. DFL Representative Erin Maye Quade says the sender was Republican representative Tony Cornish of Vernon Center. Our reporter Brian Bakst talked to Erin Maye Quade and she described what happened.

ERIN QUADE: I received some text messages while I was on the floor from a member who was staring at me, and told me that they got busted for staring at me on the floor, but that it was my own fault for looking too damn good, and that they should be more gentlemanly should they ever run for governor. And which I said, you could always start being more gentlemanly now. But I did bring that to my leader who then had a meeting with Speaker Daudt, and not only detailed the incident, but told Speaker Daudt who this person was and then followed up with asks for sexual harassment training.

BRIAN BAKST: What did you think or hope would be done once you put this to the attention of the top people in the house?

ERIN QUADE: I mean, first that it would be handled very seriously, and very swift action would be taken, one, to have training for all members. Folks have been here in the legislature longer than I've been alive. I don't know how long sexual harassment training has been part of freshman onboarding, but it should be something that we get every year and it's mandatory.

And then the second would be a really serious conversation with this person about changing their behavior, because I'm not the first person who has a story about this legislator, and I know that it's not unknown to leadership. And so maybe doing something different than whatever they may have done in the past because it's not stopping.

BRIAN BAKST: Representative Erin Maye Quade speaking with our Brian Bakst. In response to questions today, Tony Cornish said he was surprised by Erin Maye Quade's complaint. He issued a written statement saying, quote, "Over the last year, I have maintained a friendly and professional relationship with Representative Maye Quade As with many members, we have exchanged texts, emails, and phone calls. It came to my attention today that I offended representative Maye Quade on one of the text messages. This was a poor attempt at humor with a colleague, and I sincerely apologize." Unquote.

Representative Cornish declined an interview request. Republican House Speaker Kurt Daudt says, he was approached by DFL Minority Leader Melissa Hortman, but only with general concerns about working conditions in the House. He says he was not made aware of specific complaints and names of those responsible, despite repeated requests for information. Yesterday, Daudt told MPR News that he had not received a specific complaint of sexual harassment since he has been speaker, and he stood by that statement today. Representative Maye Quade says the fact that doubt has not acted is one reason she is coming forward now.

ERIN QUADE: I want it to stop. I want to come here and do the work, and I want it to stop. And I think one of the things with the Roger Ailes, and Bill O'Reilly, and Bill Cosby, and Harvey Weinstein, is that these are such, I mean, outrageous physical things that have happened that the medium level harassers feel like, I'm not that bad. It's not that bad what I did, and I don't want folks to think that what they did is fine because they didn't do it as badly as those other guys.

BRIAN BAKST: DFL state representative Erin Maye Quade of Apple Valley, who says she complained earlier this year about the behavior of Republican representative Tony Cornish of Vernon Center.