Herschel Walker’s Senate campaign is long dead, but reports of it being an unmitigated shit show are apparently still coming. On Friday, a 30-something staffer told the Daily Beast that longtime Republican operative and former Walker staffer Matt Schlapp engaged in “sustained and unwanted and unsolicited” sexual contact toward him following an October campaign event in Georgia.
According to the staffer—whose name has not been revealed at this time but has said he will come forward if Schlapp denies wrongdoing—the inappropriate behavior began on the evening of October 19. The staffer alleged that Schlapp—the chairman of the Conservative Political Action Coalition, a longtime ally of Donald Trump, and the husband of a Trump administration staffer and 2020 campaign adviser—“inappropriately and repeatedly” invaded his personal space at two different bars. While this was happening, the staffer says, Schlapp said that he wanted to talk about the man’s professional prospects; during this time, the staffer told the Daily Beast, the “power dynamic” was front of mind, given that Schlapp is seen as one of the most powerful people in national conservative politics. While not wanting to “embarrass him,” the man believed Schlapp had gotten “the hint“ that he was not interested. But apparently that was not the case—or perhaps it was and Schlapp just didn’t care. Per the the Daily Beast:
The staffer, in his late thirties, recalled that while he drove Schlapp back to the hotel, Schlapp put his hand on his leg, then reached over and “fondled” his crotch at length while he was frozen in shock, calling it “scarring” and “humiliating.” When they arrived at the hotel, the staffer said Schlapp invited him to his room. The staffer said he declined and left “as quickly as I could.”
When the staffer got home that night, he received a call from Schlapp—shortly after midnight, according to call records the staffer shared with The Daily Beast—to confirm that the staffer would still chauffeur him to an event in Macon the next day. The staffer described the call as “short and perfunctory,” but after confirming he would drive him, the staffer “broke down.” He then recorded a series of tearful video accounts detailing the evening, which he shared with The Daily Beast as well as with two people close to him, including the staffer’s wife.
In one video, according to the Daily Beast, 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.” He added, “From the bar to the Hilton Garden Inn, he has his hands on me. And I feel so fucking dirty. I feel so fucking dirty. I’m supposed to pick this motherfucker up in the morning and just pretend like nothing happened. This is what I’m dealing with. This is what I got to do.”
According to the staffer, Schlapp texted the man at 7:26 a.m. the next morning, saying, “I’m in the lobby.” The staffer said he called his supervisor and then spoke with a senior campaign official, who was “immediately horrified,” told him not to drive Schlapp, and to put in writing, to Schlapp, what had happened. After that conversation, he texted Schlapp, writing: “I did want to say I was uncomfortable with what happened last night. The campaign does have a driver who is available to get you to Macon and back to the airport.” Schlapp allegedly replied, “Pls give me a call,” and then rang the staffer three times over the next 20 minutes, according to records seen by the Daily Beast. Later, after the staffer declined to answer any of the calls, Schlapp allegedly texted and said: “If you could see it in your heart to call me at the end of day. I would appreciate it. If not I wish you luck on the campaign and hope you keep up the good work.”
According to the staffer, he never returned Schlapp’s calls and has not communicated with him since. He told the Daily Beast that he had “nothing but support” from the Walker campaign, and was given “complete autonomy” over how he wanted to respond, including pressing charges. The staffer said he declined to take legal action at the time because he was concerned about the professional blowback on his career. In a statement, Schlapp attorney Charlie Spies told the Daily Beast his client “denies any improper behavior” and called the allegations an “attack.” He added: “This appears to be now the twelfth Daily Beast piece with personal attacks on Matt Schlapp and his family. The attack is false and Mr. Schlapp denies any improper behavior. We are evaluating legal options for response.” (CPAC and Spies did not immediately respond for requests for comment from Vanity Fair.)
As the Daily Beast notes, Schlapp has defended Republicans accused of sexual misconduct in the past, including Donald Trump and alleged attempted rapist Brett Kavanaugh, both of whom have denied wrongdoing. On the flip side, he’s accused Democrats of engaging in inappropriate behavior. After unsubstantiated allegations from the ’90s regarding Joe Biden surfaced in 2019, Schlapp tweeted: “With 5 daughters I’d prefer Biden to be several doors down, not next door.” A year later, he wrote: “Thinking back on the Senate of the 1990s: was there a way for a female staffer who was a sexual assault victim to get fair treatment from an institution that was geared toward protecting senators of both parties. Biden stressing this event was 27 yrs ago is a bad strategy.”
