“Pro-Woman” Law Firm Hires Cheater, Misogynist, and Alleged Abuser Doug Emhoff

Progressive white shoe law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher prides itself on its support for women.

Their Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion webpage contains a tab titled "Women at Willkie" touting the role women play at the firm. Willkie Farr & Gallagher established the Women's Professional Development Committee to aid their female employees in advancing their careers. They (strangely) brag about less than a third each of the partners, members of the Executive Committee, and Leaders of the Practice Groups, Office, or Firmwide Committee Chairs being women—despite women making up roughly half the population.

Of course, it wouldn't be a progressive law firm without kowtowing to the abortion industry and equating that with supporting women. Shortly before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, the practice entered into the Legal Alliance for Reproductive Rights, a coalition of law firms providing pro bono criminal and civil defense for "pregnant individuals," medical providers, and women seeking abortions in California and states that limited the practice.

Enter a "Gentleman"

With its heavy emphasis on supporting women, Willkie Farr & Gallagher recently made an odd hire: Doug Emhoff, husband to Kamala Harris and former Second Gentleman of the United States. The urge to hire the husband of a Vice President, failed presidential candidate, and potential future failed presidential candidate for the purposes of prestige and power is unsurprising. But numerous reports suggest Emhoff is anything but an ally to the women the firm supposedly embraces.

Emhoff's first marriage ended in divorce after he betrayed his wife and conducted an affair with his children's nanny, conceiving a child with her that reportedly ended in a miscarriage. Furthermore, the unbalanced power dynamic between Emhoff and the nanny under his employ raises questions about sexual misconduct.

As managing director in law firm Venable's Los Angeles office, Emhoff's conduct was misogynistic. He bragged about putting a female partner "in her place," withheld perks from female employees who failed to flirt with him, and held a men-only cocktail event at the office. A 2019 sex discrimination lawsuit against Venable didn't name Emhoff as a party, but the complaint highlighted behavior from Emhoff to support the plaintiff's claims.

In 2012, Emhoff and his then-girlfriend attended an event in France. Known only as Jane, the girlfriend disclosed Emhoff slapped her face at that event, and with enough force to spin her around. Publicly revealed during Harris' 2024 presidential run, a campaign spokesman forcefully denied the allegations: "any suggestion that he would or has ever hit a woman is false." Jane's account of events—as well as post-election sniping—suggest the campaign lied.

That same night she was slapped—and in front of Emhoff—Jane phoned a friend to describe Emhoff's behavior. She described Emhoff's slap to another friend as Kamala Harris in 2018 besieged Brett Kavanaugh with questions over a sexual assault the Supreme Court nominee allegedly commit. Notably, the accusations against Kavanaugh were remarkably weaker than those against Emhoff.

Tale as Old as Time

Famed feminist Gloria Steinem defended Bill Clinton instead of the women he harassed because he vowed to protect abortion rights.

Sen. Ted Kennedy killed a woman while driving drunk, did his damnedest to mitigate the fallout to preserve his political career, and went on to serve nearly 50 years as the Senate's “Liberal Lion.”

Democrats were happy to accept money from disgraced mega-donor Harvey Weinstein for years despite his repulsive behavior towards women being an open secret years before his downfall.

Willkie Farr & Gallagher's hiring Emhoff reflects a pattern in Democrat and progressive circles of coddling women's abusers to retain power, despite proclaiming themselves as society's defender of women.

(READ MORE: Why Did Biden Treat His Political Opponents Like Prisoners of War?)