TJ Ducklo and Alexi McCammond: Why Biden aide told Tara Palmeri about man who wanted to 'f**k McCammond, not you'
White House Deputy Press Secretary TJ Ducklo has resigned, following his one-week suspension without pay after he abused and threatened a woman reporter from Politico, who wanted to write about his relationship with Axios journalist Alexi McCammond. Ducklo contacted Politico reporter Tara Palmeri, intimidating her over a phone call with sexist comments and threats. According to Vanity Fair, Ducklo told Palmeri "I will destroy you", adding that he will damage her professional reputation if she pursued the story about Ducklo's and McCammond's relationship. He went on to the extent of saying that Palmeri was "jealous" of their relationship and that she was 'jealous' of McCammond because an anonymous man in the past had "wanted to f*ck" McCammond “and not you.”
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Are TJ Ducklo and Alexi McCammond dating?
An exclusive story published by People on February 8 reveals details about TJ Ducklo and Alexi McCammond's relationship. The duo started dating in November 2020 after they met during Joe Biden's presidential campaign in 2019. Ducklo was then working as Biden's press secretary while McCammond was assigned to cover the campaign by Axios.
In December 2019, Ducklo was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer and McCammond supported him throughout his treatment. She still accompanies him to his doctor visits periodically.
They were initially on good professional terms, but things soon brewed beyond work as they became close friends. 32-year-old Ducklo claimed to be 'super single' then while McCammond was in a serious relationship.
The duo realized they felt for each other and decided to start dating. "We're both really happy, and we wanted to do it the right way," Ducklo had told People.
Soon, they decided to disclose about their relationship at their respective workplaces, so that their personal connection does not hamper their professional commitments. McCammond then requested to be reassigned to a different beat than Biden's campaign.
"When my personal life had the potential to interfere with my work, I didn't think twice about sharing my happiness in November with Axios that I'd found someone in TJ who shows up for me in a way I'd only hoped for," she revealed to People.
Ducklo also revealed his relationship status to the White House, to avoid any controversies later. The couple insisted that they strictly keep their personal and professional lives separate.
The remarks made by Ducklo and McCammond about their relationship clearly indicate that the two are quite serious about each other and are in a happy place.
What had actually happened between Ducklo and Palmeri?
The entire controversy around Ducklo stemmed from January 20 onwards, when Politico journalist Tara Palmeri was assigned to cover his relationship story, for Politico's Playbook.
However, Palmeri did not contact Ducklo herself, rather she reached out to McCammond for comments about the relationship, while one of her male colleagues contacted Ducklo.
Ducklo had objections to Politico pursuing the story about his personal life, and he called the editor of the Playbook to express his objections when he was redirected to contact the journalists involved. But, instead of contacting the male journalist who had contacted him, Ducklo called up Palmeri and tried to threaten her in the manner mentioned before.
His sexist comments and abusive attitude did not become public until recently, creating a slew of controversy that led to Ducklo's suspension. The public is still demanding Ducklo be fired from his position, given that he grossly violated the professional standards strictly set by President Biden.