The 22nd candidate for president threw his hat into the ring Tuesday and was already drawing flak — over his ties to a former Mayor de Blasio aide accused of sexual harassment.
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock announced his Democratic presidential bid, then was swiftly hit by the Republican National Committee over the New York City Hall debacle involving ex-former senior mayoral adviser Kevin O’Brien.
O’Brien worked under Bullock in the Montana Governor’s Association before he was fired in 2015 amid allegations of workplace sex harassment.
O’Brien was then hired a month later by the de Blasio administration. He was booted several years later when it surfaced that he had previously been accused of harassment. A de Blasio rep griped at the time that the mayor was not made aware of previous complaints when his administration hired O’Brien.
The RNC detailed the issue in an e-mail.
In a video uploaded to YouTube as part of his campaign, Bullock warns against a government dominated by dark money spending, singling out 2010’s landmark Citizens United Supreme Court ruling which allowed outside groups to contribute unlimited amounts to political contenders.
“We need to defeat Donald Trump in 2020 and defeat the corrupt system that lets campaign money drown out the people’s voice, so we can finally make good on the promise of a fair shot for everyone,” the governor candidate says.
The governor touts his support for expanding Medicaid and education spending and points to his popularity in a state President Trump won by 20 percent in 2016.
After serving as Montana’s attorney general for one term, Bullock launched a successful gubernatorial bid in 2012. The RNC also criticized his destroying of legal documents as AG.
A rep for de Blasio did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
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