Casino mogul Steve Wynn resigns as top GOP finance chairman
Casino mogul Steve Wynn has resigned his position as finance chair of the Republican National Committee amid allegations that he sexually harassed multiple employees at his resorts.
The resignation, first reported by Politico, refocuses the spotlight on the Republican Party as it has struggled to respond to the #MeToo movement, and reckon with President Trump’s own history of alleged unwanted sexual advances.
Wynn has been a major donor for Republicans in recent years and a rainmaker for the party. Earlier in his career, he also gave heavily to Democrats. But like Trump, he abandoned the Democratic Party in recent years and focused his efforts almost exclusively on helping Republicans.
“Today I accepted Steve Wynn’s resignation as Republican National Committee Finance Chair,” said a statement from RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel.
The announcement comes after the Wall Street Journal reported that dozens of people recounted a pattern of sexual misconduct by Wynn that spanned decades. In one case, Wynn was reported to have paid a $7.5-million settlement to a company manicurist who accused him of pressuring her to have sex with him despite her rejecting his advances.
Trump has referred to Wynn, who took over as RNC finance chairman after Trump’s election, as a “great friend.” As two of the nation’s biggest gambling titans, they competed against each other in business. Wynn sat on Trump’s inaugural committee, and his company donated more than $729,000 to the event.
On Friday night, the Wynn Resorts Board of Directors announced that it had formed a special committee to investigate allegations contained in the Wall Street Journal article. The committee will be chaired by Patricia Mulroy, a member of the board’s corporate governance and compliance committees and a former member of the Nevada Gaming Commission.
In a statement, the board said it is “deeply committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all of the company’s employees and to operating with the highest ethical standards.”
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