The New York Times identifies the senator who called Kirsten Gillibrand 'chubby'

Last month, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) made headlines when she revealed in her new book (via People) that she had faced numerous instances of sexual harassment at the hands of her male counterparts. Among tales of disparaging remarks in the gym and offhanded insults in the House chamber, Gillibrand said that one older member of Congress grabbed her midsection and told her not to "lose too much weight now. I like my girls chubby." (Gillibrand had been working to slim down after the birth of her second son, Henry, in 2008.)

Gillibrand, for her part, declined to name any of the male congressmen involved — but that didn't stop The New York Times from doing a little investigating. On Monday morning, the Times revealed that people "with knowledge of the incident" pointed the finger for the "chubby" comment at the late Sen. Daniel Inouye, the revered Hawaii Democrat who served in the Senate for 39 years before dying of respiratory complications in 2012 at age 88.

As the Times notes, Inouye had been accused of sexual misconduct in the past, including a string of accusations in the early 1990s. A spokesman for Gillibrand would neither confirm nor deny that Inouye had uttered the offensive comment.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up