Sexual harassment allegations made against top Biden nuclear official
When the Department of Energy announced last week that the No. 2 official of its nuclear security agency, Frank Rose, was leaving, his boss issued an internal memo calling him an “empathetic, candid, and action-oriented leader who always thought of the whole team.”
Left unsaid were the complaints about Rose’s behavior that had led to an internal investigation into allegations of sexual harassment and a hostile work environment, according to eight current and former government officials familiar with the matter, all of whom were granted anonymity to discuss personnel matters.
The investigation into Rose, the principal deputy administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, was launched earlier this year by DOE’s Office of Hearings and Appeals, according to two of the officials, one a current and the other a former NNSA employee. POLITICO also obtained an email from one of the investigators from the office, in which that person asked a former NNSA employee for an interview.
The March email, which did not mention Rose by name, said the office “has been tasked with conducting an independent fact-finding review regarding allegations of harassment or hostile work environment at the NNSA.”
According to three current and former NNSA officials, Rose made some women in the office feel uncomfortable. At least one employee warned female colleagues “to be cautious” about potential harassment when working with Rose’s office.
One incident involving Rose was recounted by three of the current or former NNSA employees. At an agencywide meeting in December with hundreds of NNSA employees in a DOE auditorium or watching virtually, Rose recounted how a female foreign government counterpart had complimented NNSA’s work to him. He responded by telling her: “I love you, will you marry me?” Some employees laughed at the remark, but it did not go over well with others who thought it was inappropriate.
Complaints from women about Rose’s behavior have also been sent to the Department of Energy’s inspector general, according to two of the eight current and former government officials.
Mark Zaid, a lawyer for Rose, said in a statement that Rose “denies he ever acted in a way that intentionally sought to make colleagues feel uncomfortable or harassed in any way and does not believe his actions would objectively be construed in such a manner. Obviously, individual perceptions can reasonably differ and the current climate sadly has often heightened sensitivities.”
He also said that Rose hasn’t been notified of specific allegations against him or been afforded due process by the investigation.
“We were generally aware of an internal inquiry into a vague accusation and offered to cooperate, but he has never been interviewed nor even offered an opportunity to defend himself,” Zaid said.
A DOE spokesperson said the department doesn’t comment on personnel matters. The department declined to discuss the current status of the Office of Hearings and Appeals investigation. A spokesperson for DOE’s IG office also declined to comment.
In last week's announcement, Jill Hruby, the administrator of NNSA and the under secretary for nuclear security at DOE, said Rose would be staying at the agency until the end of April, and he has continued traveling as part of his job, including to Space Command in Colorado earlier this week. Rose had told associates in the months prior to the announcement that he was planning on staying until the end of the Biden administration.
The NNSA, while little-known outside of Washington, is in charge of maintaining America’s nuclear weapons and powering U.S. submarines and aircraft carriers as well as safeguarding nuclear material globally. It employs more than 60,000 people in labs and sites across the country, including the Los Alamos and Sandia national labs.
Rose, 51, began serving as principal deputy administrator in August 2021 after being confirmed by the Senate. He served in the Obama administration at the State Department in offices involved in space and defense policy and has worked in the Department of Defense and on the Armed Services and intelligence committees in the House. He also had a stint in the think tank world. And some of the controversy surrounding him extends to his time there.
One allegation against Rose was that he delayed extending an intergovernmental detail of an NNSA employee who had lodged a sexual harassment complaint against him when they previously worked together at the left-leaning Brookings Institution, according to interviews with that person and three current and former colleagues of hers, all of whom were part of the eight interviewed.
A Brookings spokesperson said that it doesn’t comment on personnel matters but added in a statement: “Brookings takes allegations of misconduct very seriously. Harassment, including sexual harassment, is clearly prohibited by Brookings’ policies.” Zaid said Rose was never made aware of complaints filed against him at Brookings.
Lara Seligman and Erin Banco contributed to this report.
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