Freedom Watch chief Larry Klayman said Thursday that Bill Shine, whom President Donald Trump named as White House deputy chief of staff, was "far worse" than Scott Pruitt, who resigned as EPA administrator after a scandal-plagued tenure.
"What Shine is alleged to have done is far worse than anything Pruitt did," Klayman, who also established Judicial Watch, told conservative talk-show host Michael Savage in an interview. "It's not too late for the president to do the right thing.
"He doesn't need this aggravation at the time he is appointing a Supreme Court justice, and dealing with Iran, North Korea, and illegal immigration, and all the other issues.
"I really care about the president," Klayman said. "I want him to do the right thing.”
The White House said Thursday that Trump had named Shine, who was ousted from Fox News as Co-President in May 2017, as deputy chief of staff for communications, a post that had been vacant since February.
Klayman on Tuesday called on the Manhattan District Attorney and the U.S. Attorney's Office in New York to investigate potential crimes related to allegations made against Shine.
Shine was forced out of Fox as the cable network reeled from a growing sexual-harassment scandal that centered around Fox News' late CEO Roger Ailes.
In July 2016, after allegations Ailes required employees at Fox to engage in sex acts with him to keep their job or gain promotions, the network fired him.
Shine had served as Ailes' long-time top executive and oversaw the network's alleged efforts to cover up the harassment complaints.
One former employee has alleged was part of an effort where she was involuntarily detailed in a New York hotel room. Fox later paid the employee $3.1 million in a confidential settlement that included a requirement she never contact the FBI.
Shine has been named in at least three civil lawsuits involving the network and sexual harassment.
He has also been a key figure in a Southern District of New York federal investigation that started in 2017.
According to published reports, the probe had been looking at possible illegal activities by the network's executives that include financial irregularities, harassment of network critics and the possible hacking of cellphone and other personal data.
"They rushed to do that," Klayman told Savage of the Shine appointment. "It needs to be investigated by the authorities."
Klayman said he admired President Trump — "I think he's doing a great job" — adding that having Shine in the West Wing was "like having the ghost of Roger Ailes in the White House.
"I think this president has the potential to be an ever greater president than Ronald Reagan," Klayman told Savage. "He says it straight-up."
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