Paris Dennard, a Donald Trump supporter who has been a high-profile commentator on CNN, was suspended by the network following a Wednesday report that alleged he sexually harassed women, including at least one who worked for him.
The Washington Post reported that Dennard was fired from his job as events director at Arizona State University’s (ASU) McCain Institute for International Leadership in 2015 after he allegedly made sexual remarks and gestures to women.
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The source for the Post’s report was a 13-page university report that detailed a number of incidents with two women that took place between 2013 and 2014.
Dennard allegedly told a recent graduate that he wanted to sleep with her, and that he “pretended to unzip his pants in her presence, tried to get her to sit on his lap, and made masturbatory gestures.”
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Another woman alleged that she saw Dennard looking at her breasts, and that one time, he said, “don’t worry, I’ve already seen it” as she fixed her shirt.
Dennard didn’t challenge the allegations, but said he carried out those actions in a joking manner. An internal investigation concluded that he had committed “serious misconduct.”
He was out of his position in 2015.
Responding to the Post, Dennard said he didn’t see the entirety of the report and that he believed it was “sealed and proprietary.”
“I cannot comment on items I have never seen regarding allegations I still believe to be false,” he said.
A CNN spokesperson issued a statement saying, “we are aware of reports of accusations against Paris Dennard. We are suspending Paris, effective immediately, while we look into the allegations.”
Prior to Wednesday, Dennard had built up a strong profile as a pro-Trump commentator.
He defended the president after he slammed NFL players for taking a knee during the national anthem, challenging the idea that he was fueling racial tension, The Philadelphia Tribune reported.
More recently, Dennard became involved in a heated exchange on CNN with Phil Mudd, an ex-CIA and FBI official who took issue with the commentator suggesting that individuals with security clearances were using their access to make money.
“A lot of these people that have these security clearances, and this is the secret in the swampy Washington, D.C., and they have them, and they keep them because it’s profitable for them after they leave government, because if you have a security clearance, especially high-level security clearances, your contracts and your consulting gigs pay you a lot more money because of the access that you have,” Dennard said.
Mudd responded angrily, saying, “I have no contracts with the U.S. government that pay money. Zero. When I’m asked to offer advice to the U.S. government, I get paid zero, that’s it.”
He later said, “Get out! 25 years in the service and this is the s*** I get? Get out.”
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