Politics & Government

Congressman Jackson Fires Staff Member During Leave of Absence

An email from Jackson's chief of staff revealed the Congressman spent a brief amount of time working in October.

Jesse Jackson Jr. took a break from his leave of absence to do some work in October, an email from his chief of staff reveals.

Chief of Staff Rick Bryant said Jackson returned to work for a time near the end of last month, Eurweb reports. Bryant sent an e-mail to staff member Oct. 24, stating, “As you may know, Congressman Jackson has been out of the public eye and away from Washington since the summer. Recently, however, he has had a small window of opportunity to look at a number of issues concerning this office.”

Bryant went on to state to Jackson’s director of community outreach, Change Hamilton-Hayyim, that she would be terminated for helping an independent candidate running against him. 

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“This is the congressman’s final decision,” Bryant said in the email.

Read more in the full Eurweb report.

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Jackson is currently the subject of a federal investigation into his campaign spending. Several media outlets have reported that Jackson is in plea deal talks that could include jail time and resignation from the congressional seat he has held for nearly 18 years. 

Jackson has been in and out of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN for several months after being diagnosed with Bipolar II disorder.

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