A former state staffer for Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C) called the lawmaker a “bad person” and a “habitual liar” in a leaked recording on Monday.
Lisa Wiggins a former caseworker in Cawthorn’s office, indicated she had filed an employment-related lawsuit against the lawmaker accusing him of improperly firing her after denying her family and medical leave, according to Smoky Mountain News.
Wiggins told David Wheeler, the co-founder of the ‘Fire Madison Cawthorn PAC’ that Cawthorn violated the Family and Medical Leave Act when she was denied leave when her husband had a heart attack and her uncle died within the same week.
“What he’s done to me was illegal, morally wrong, you name it, it’s been done,” Wiggins said.
On the call, Wiggins said Cawthorn does not care about his constituents as evidenced by him closing all of his district offices except one. Instead of informing his constituents of the change, Wiggins said Cawthorn allegedly uses call-forwarding to send all calls to his Hendersonville office.
“I know that because I drove and closed them all,” she said. “He didn’t have enough caseworkers to man them. He didn’t care, he doesn’t care about his constituents. He does not care.”
She also described the Hendersonville office as having “more liquor bottles than they do water bottles. There’s always all kind of animals in there. Kittens, puppies, you know. There’s a litter box in there, for heaven’s sake. I’m not against animals, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not professional.”
“As far as the candidate himself, I mean, he’s just a bad person. He’s a habitual liar and he’s going to say and do anything he can to your face but behind your back he’s completely opposite,” Wiggins said of Cawthorn. “We all want the ultimate goal of him not ever serving again.”
Wiggins reportedly works for one of Cawthorn’s primary opponents, retired Army Colonel Rod Honeycutt.
Wheeler said that the call took place last week on April 12. He reportedly assured Wiggins that Cawthorn would not have any idea they talked.
Wheeler told The Hill that he recorded the conversation for his notes but “realized I had a bombshell on my hands,” and believed “it was in the public’s interest to hear this story.”
North Carolina has a “one-party consent” state wiretapping law, allowing just one person who is party to a conversation to record it without the knowledge of the other party, The Hill reports.
Cawthorn’s spokesman Luke Ball, denied the allegations in a statement saying: “These accusations are verifiably false. The individual spreading these disgusting allegations is currently working for a primary opponent of Congressman Cawthorn. We believe these comments potentially amount to defamation of character, and are exploring options to ensure the Congressman’s name emerges from these slanderous remarks unscathed.”
