Former California Rep. Katie Hill compared herself to impeachment witnesses Marie Yovanovitch and Fiona Hill, claiming the trio of women had all been “smeared” by right-wing media.
Hill, 32, resigned from Congress after leaked nude photographs confirmed that she had an affair with a campaign staffer amid allegations of having another affair with a congressional staffer. Since her resignation, she has criticized “right-wing media” for their coverage of her downfall and for their treatment of women in general.
“This isn’t just happening to me, right? This is happening to girls and women across the country,” Hill said on Sunday’s Reliable Sources, later adding, “You also see it as a tactic that’s constantly used by the Right. Look at what they’re doing to the witnesses on the impeachment inquiry. Look at what they’re doing to try to silence anybody who speaks out in a way that they don’t like.”
Hill claimed that right-wing media dehumanizes women they disagree with because women are “easier targets.”
“The dehumanization is something that I think people can’t really understand unless you’ve been there. That’s exactly what the right-wing media does and what they’re doing to these witnesses,” Hill said. “Look what they’re doing to Fiona Hill and what they did to Ambassador Yovanovitch, and I think that you see it in particular with women. Because they are — that is what the Right likes to do. Right? They are easier targets.”
CNN host Brian Stelter noted that the impeachment witnesses and Hill were being covered in “very different circumstances” but agreed with her claims and questioned if it felt like an “out of body experience” to be criticized on Fox News.
She claimed she faced threats against her and her family, which is why she plans to fight back against those who criticized her as she moves forward following her resignation.
Hill left office prior to the conclusion of an ethics investigation into her conduct. She admitted having an affair with her campaign staffer but denied separate reports that she was having an affair with her legislative director, which violates House Ethics rules.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Yovanovitch and top Russian adviser Hill testified last week as part of the House’s impeachment hearings. Yovanovitch revealed that she had felt “threatened” by Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani. Her testimony was found to be compelling by many, including Fox News host Chris Wallace.
