Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson pauses Daily Beast podcast appearances amid scandal
Anti-Trump group under fire over suspected Weaver harassment cover-up
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson's appearances on his Daily Beast podcast "The New Abnormal" will "pause" as the anti-Trump organization grapples with multiple investigations into the John Weaver sexual harassment scandal.
Wilson's co-host, left-wing pundit Molly Jong-Fast, made the announcement at the top of the show on Tuesday. Jong-Fast was an unpaid adviser to the Lincoln Project and said she had resigned from that post as well, in yet another departure from the embattled political action committee.
The outfit said Monday night that it hired the law firm of Paul Hastings to investigate the scandal after several members, including co-founders Jennifer Horn and Steve Schmidt, resigned amid the fallout. Several of the firm's lawyers are Lincoln Project donors.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}SECOND MINOR ACCUSES LINCOLN PROJECT CO-FOUNDER OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT, AUTHOR SAYS
"We mutually agreed with Rick to pause his podcast appearances until at least the internal investigation is resolved," Jong-Fast said.
The announcement comes after a report by The 19th that several co-founders had knowledge of accusations against Weaver as early as last March, despite their claims to the contrary. It includes an on-the-record confirmation from former executive director Sarah Lenti, although Wilson is not named.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Reporters from the Daily Beast and others have not uncovered any direct evidence so far that our podcast host Rick Wilson was aware of such actions," Jong-Fast added, saying she's only had good experiences working with Wilson.
Wilson and The Daily Beast did not respond to a request for comment.
LINCOLN PROJECT FOUNDERS ALLEGEDLY KNEW ABOUT CLAIMS AGAINST WEAVER AS EARLY AS MARCH 2020: REPORT
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A man who said he was harassed by Weaver and offered a job with the Lincoln Project last year told Fox News he was not surprised to see Lenti's admission. According to him, Weaver abruptly stopped contacting him last year while he was desperate for a job, and he reached out to Lenti about Weaver's job offer. He said she responded that he must be one of "Weaver's guys" whom he had sent direct messages.
In spite of several stories about the group's shady financial practices and prior knowledge of Weaver's predatory conduct swirling at the time, Wilson appeared on the podcast on Thursday to discuss Trump's impeachment trial.
Wilson raised nearly $65,000 for a film called "Everything Trump Touches Dies" that has yet to be released. Wilson raised $64,766 from around 1,400 donors for the film – based on his book under the same title – on the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe, though donations have since been paused for the project.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News reported earlier this month on Wilson's admission on the same podcast that he knew about a New York Post investigation into Weaver last summer. He denounced Weaver as a predator and liar after the New York Times reported one of Weaver's harassment victims was a 14-year-old.
The Lincoln Project has vowed to continue operations in spite of the torrent of brutal headlines, ranging from accusing its leaders of lying about when they knew about Weaver's conduct to shady accounting practices to publishing the private Twitter messages of Horn after she resigned.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The anti-Trump PAC was founded by eight former or current Republicans disgusted with the Trump administration, but only two remain, including Wilson. Co-founder and former MSNBC contributor Steve Schmidt resigned on Friday from the group, which raised nearly $90 million in 2020 and attracted favorable media attention for its vitriolic anti-Trump messaging but didn't deliver much return on investment.
Fox News' Ronn Blitzer contributed to this report.