President Barack Obama and daughters Sasha and Malia look in on Mac, one of two turkeys spared this year from the Thanksgiving dinner table by presidential pardon, in the East Room of the White House prior to the annual National Thanksgiving Turkey pardon ceremony, Nov. 26, 2014. (Photo: Pete Souza)
WASHINGTON – Republican congressional aide Elizabeth Lauten resigned Monday morning after making controversial comments about President Obama’s teenage daughters, PPD confirmed Monday.
Lauten, who has been around Capitol Hill for nearly a decade, was the communications director for Rep. Stephen Fincher of Tennessee. She wrote a post on Facebook about their more-than casual demeanor during last week’s annual White House turkey pardon. She wrote that Sasha, 13, and Malia, 16, should “try showing a little class.”
“Rise to the occasion. Dress like you deserve respect, not a spot at the bar,” Lauten wrote. “And certainly don’t make faces during televised, public events.”
“When I first posted on Facebook, I reacted to an article and I quickly judged the two young ladies in a way that I would never have wanted to be judged myself as a teenager,” Lauten wrote. “After many hours of prayer, talking to my parents, and re-reading my words online I can more clearly see just how hurtful my words were.”
Lauten was certainly not the first and only person to make comment regarding their behavior and appearance, but Lauten was single-out and accused of crossing the line.
Further, Lauten caught additional criticism after her she failed to direct her first apology to Sasha and Malia.
In a second, tweaked version released on Monday, she wrote that she wanted to apologize to the teenagers and the entire Obama family.
Cowboy Jack / December 1, 2014
Remarkable. Unbelievable that it took a ‘communications expert’ hours of prayer and consultation with her family before realizing that bullying two teenagers was the wrong thing to do.
As we look across the nation at the pandemic of teen on teen bullying through twitter, facebook, et al, it is astonishing that a so called responsible, intelligent adult did not have enough self control to resist judging two innocent children for being children.
This incident should be a mandatory first entry on her resume as she seeks her next job.
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