State Department, Clinton Accused of Age Bias in Suit

[TheSarge]

Sept. 18 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. State Department denied a promotion to a foreign service officer because she would have turned 65 during her term, according to a lawsuit filed today in Washington that named Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as a defendant.

Elizabeth Colton, a former journalist and chairwoman of the mass communications department at Shenandoah University, was offered a two-year posting as chief of the political-economic section at the U.S. Embassy in Algiers. The offer was withdrawn when human resources officials at the State Department realized Colton would turn 65 when she was 16 months into her term, according to the complaint.

“Imagine if someone told Hillary Clinton she couldn’t be Secretary of State because she would turn 65 before her term is up,” Thomas R. Bundy III, a lawyer with Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP, said today in a statement. “The mandatory retirement age itself is unconstitutional, lacking any rational basis, and is based on outdated stereotypes and misinformation.”

Colton served since 2000 as a foreign service officer in Islamabad, Baghdad, Khartoum, Riyadh and Karachi, Bundy said.

Before joining the foreign service, she was Jesse Jackson’s press secretary during his 1988 presidential campaign and a reporter for Newsweek, ABC News, NBC News and National Public Radio, the lawyer said.

Darby Halladay, a spokesman at the State Department, declined to comment on the suit.

The case is Elizabeth Overton Colton v. Hillary Rodham Clinton, 1:09-cv-01772. U.S. District Court, District of Columbia (Washington).

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=atIrwwiKNp_A

[franksolich]

Oh wow.

Algiers.

That woman must like danger.

[thundley4]

Is this because there is mandatory retirement at 65 for this post/job?   I think this administration needs to keep all the seasoned professionals that they can.  We've seen what happens when 0Bama and his clowns handle foreign affairs.

[WMD Owl]

There may be an age restriction on overseas postings, but not on jobs in the US.

[TheSarge]

There may be an age restriction on overseas postings, but not on jobs in the US.

Knowing what America does about how petty and spiteful the Clinton's are...there's more to this story than we know.

Her Thighness probably found out that this woman voted for Obama.

[Lacarnut]

This is a clear case of age discrimination. However, the courts will find some backdoor way of ruling that a government official can not be sued or that it was brought in the wrong venue.

[Chris_]

Knowing what America does about how petty and spiteful the Clinton's are...there's more to this story than we know.

Her Thighness probably found out that this woman voted for Obama.

Or better yet she voted for Mc Lame

[unbiased]

The story said the lady was a former press secretary for Jesse Jackson, so I don't care why they didn't hire her, as long as they didn't.

[DumbAss Tanker]

EEOC cases always name the head of the Agency in the caption of the case, it has nothing to do with whether the particular official had any personal role in whatever action the Complainant is whining about.