The reporter who was once berated by a former Biden aide argued that the ousted White House official deserves a second chance.
Politico reported this week that TJ Ducklo is "on the cusp" of joining President Biden's newly-launched reelection campaign as a senior communications official. Ducklo was forced to resign as Biden's deputy press secretary in February 2021 after he had threatened then-Politico reporter Tara Palmeri, who at the time was pursuing a story about the ethically-questionable romantic relationship he had formed with Axios reporter Alexi McCammond in 2020.
Palmeri, now a reporter for Puck, penned a piece Thursday that publicly buried the hatchet with the Biden ally.
"The truth about Ducklo, with whom I had never interacted before the incident on the night of Biden’s inauguration, is that he was a very aggressive defender of the president, which naturally rubbed some reporters the wrong way," Palmeri wrote. "Some thought he was demeaning, but nobody who approached me afterward said that he had ever crossed the line as he did with me. For what it’s worth, I never wanted Ducklo to be fired from the White House."
Palmeri reflected that her dust-up with Ducklo could have been resolved if they "sat down together and a real apology was exchanged" rather than the two-sentenced email apology she received at the time. She also revealed she felt "shunned" by the Biden White House following the ordeal, specifically claiming top Biden advisor Anita Dunn called her editor accusing the reporter of breaking an off-the-record agreement icing the reporter out in the process.
"I won’t rehash the words that were exchanged after Ducklo called me, but since he was forced to resign from his dream job, we sat down together for coffee months later and had a long talk. And he seemed to be genuinely sorry," Palmeri wrote. "He said he had learned from the experience and vowed to never talk to a reporter or person like that again. I trusted him. Everyone has bad days and they shouldn’t have to pay for them for the rest of their lives. In fact, I told anyone who privately reached out to me about hiring Ducklo that I believed he deserved another chance."
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She continued, "There are some people who deserve to be canceled, but T.J. Ducklo is not one of them… T.J. and I have spoken many times since... And I truly believe that he’s coming back in a stronger way, more aware of the impact of his power. In fact, he told me in an email: ‘It’s really important to me that I show I’m not the person who acted so horribly in our conversation. While that conversation was very unique in how inappropriate and over the line it was, I don’t have to be one of those D.C. flacks who can get combative to get their point across. You can be a passionate defender of your boss without being sharp with people. There’s a human side to all this work I better appreciate now and I hope I get the chance to make good on.’ I hope he keeps that commitment and I wish him the best."
The off-the-record clash between Palmeri and Ducklo occurred in January 2021 as she was looking into his blossoming romance with McCammond, a political reporter who had previously covered the Biden campaign.
According to Vanity Fair, Ducklo told Palmeri "I will destroy you" and vowed he'd ruin her reputation if she published a story about the two lovebirds. He had also accused her of being "jealous" of their relationship and made other "derogatory and misogynistic comments.
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The revelations of Ducklo's hostile behavior came after President Biden famously vowed to hold his staff accountable.
"If you’re ever working with me, and I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect, talk down to someone, I promise you I will fire you on the spot," Biden told his aides during a swearing-in ceremony on Inauguration Day, Jan. 20. "On the spot."
"No ifs, ands or buts – everybody, everybody is entitled to be treated with decency and dignity," the president continued. "That's been missing in a big way for the last four years."
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The White House drew ire at the time for having delayed any punishment for Ducklo. He was then put on a one-week suspension before he ultimately stepped down. But reports that Ducklo is set to return to Team Biden has also drawn criticism.
