A Fox News media analyst Lauren Ashburn said on Sunday agreed with MSNBC host Rachel Maddow that a report commissioned by Chris Christie's (R) office had used "slut shaming" to exonerate the New Jersey governor.
Following the release of the report that cleared Christie of any wrongdoing for the partial closure of the George Washington Bridge, Maddow had pointed out that the internal investigation had used sexist language to place much of the blame on former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly.
At one point, the report suggests that Kelly may have ordered the bridge lanes closed because she had been dumped by her rumored boyfriend, Bill Stepien, who was Christie's former campaign manager.
"What they’ve printed throughout the report is gossip about what they heard about their relationship and how it was goin," Maddow explained. "They just gratuitously bring that up as they blame the whole thing on her. In real life, this is called slut-shaming."
On Sunday, Fox News host Howard Kurtz asked Ashburn if she agreed with Maddow.
"That's tough," she replied. "I'm not often agreeing with Rachel Maddow, but she's right in this instance."
"You're saying that she's being described as unbalanced, emotional," Kurtz noted.
"Of course," Ashburn declared. "It's gratuitous, and they're talking about her relationship, not about whether or not she can handle how she does her job. You know, I've had this. A lot of people go to attack your personal life and tell lies."
