Bill Dix was Majority Leader of the Iowa Senate when Kirsten Anderson was awarded $2.2 million in a sexual harassment suit. She settled for $1.75 million. When he announced the settlement he continued to insist she was fired for poor performance despite her being fired seven hours after she sent a memo detailing harassment in the office. He said he believed her allegations as well. Several Iowa politicians plus staff were revealed in testimony to have sexually harassed or been inappropriate with women in the office.
He managed to survive this coverup but was forced to resign when caught kissing a lobbyist at a restaurant.
- Jim Friedrich
- Shawn Hamerlinck
- Merlin E. Bartz
- Ed Failor Jr.
- Rick Bertrand
- Bill Anderson
- Tim Kapucian
Bill Dix kept Friedrich on staff in spite of the allegations. He arranged for an investigation, but refused to make it public. Whether incompetence, ignorance, or malice, he managed to stick his head in the sand until the scandal blew up and then put his head right back in the sand.
- Des Moines Register: Senate leader Dix needs to step down; ‘That was a sad display of leadership,’ Anderson says
- Des Moines Register: Bill Dix’s resignation doesn’t solve Senate GOP’s indifference to sexual misconduct
Cedar Rapids, Iowa · Sunday, April 08, 2018
