On March 8, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 13-8 to advance the nomination of Eric Garcetti as the US ambassador to India, more than 1.5 years after he was initially considered for the position. The former mayor of Los Angeles was nominated by President Joe Biden in July 2021 for this prestigious diplomatic role.
Six additional nominations were earlier put on hold by Senator Marco Rubio, including that of Richard Verma, a former US ambassador to India, just days prior to a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
The hold on Garcetti’s nomination was placed by Senator Rubio on February 25, citing his concern over “credible sexual assault accusations in his prior office." The allegations involve Garcetti’s former aide, Rick Jacobs, who has been accused of giving people unsolicited hugs, massages and lewd sex banter.
The claims were brought to light by a former bodyguard of Garcetti, Matthew Garza, who filed a sexual harassment case against Jacobs, potentially damaging Garcetti's chances for a Cabinet position before and the ambassadorial position after that.
Further claims against Jacobs surfaced in various press reports and deposition testimony, leading to more people coming forward to level similar charges against him.
Garcetti has maintained that he was not aware of any sexual misconduct by Jacobs and has testified under oath to this effect in front of the Senate. However, in May 2022, Republican Senator Charles E. Grassley in a report stated it was “extremely unlikely" that Garcetti was unaware of the aide’s alleged inappropriate behaviour.
The White House has expressed its support for Garcetti, stating that “many of the claims have already been conclusively debunked by more serious independent reports" and that President Biden backs him. Nonetheless, the sexual harassment allegations against Garcetti’s former aide did create a cloud of uncertainty over his nomination.