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Home » AIM Column » Media Pundit Named in Jesse Jackson Lawsuit

Media Pundit Named in Jesse Jackson Lawsuit

Cliff Kincaid  —   May 16, 2012
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Tamara Holder, a Fox News contributor, is accused of having an affair with Jesse Jackson, Sr. in a lawsuit that alleges the illegal use of a gay Jackson employee to facilitate the relationship.

The accuser, Tommy R. Bennett, was Jackson’s personal travel assistant and ran the legal clinic at Jackson’s organization, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. He says he was eventually fired for protesting his treatment by Jackson and other PUSH employees and is seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages.

Holder has not responded to repeated requests for comment from Accuracy in Media, but Jackson’s press representative, Lauren Love, says the allegations are false and will be proven so.

Bennett attorney Thomas V. Leverso says that Jackson and PUSH have been stonewalling a legal response for many months but that investigations and the case are moving forward. Leverso tells Accuracy in Media that witnesses have come forward to verify the allegations against Jackson.

Jackson, a minister and Democratic politician who served as an aide to Martin Luther King, Jr., suffered a major embarrassment in 2010 when he admitted to an extramarital affair that produced an illegitimate child.

Bennett worked for Jackson for more than two years and was known as “Aruba Tommy” on local Chicago radio station WVON. The lawsuit alleges that Bennett was subjected to “humiliating tasks” because he was a homosexual, such as “escorting women to his [Jackson’s] hotel room” and then being ordered to clean up after Jackson had sexual intercourse with them.

One of those women, the suit claims, was Tamara Holder, a pundit and criminal defense attorney who claims she “single-handedly” founded what she calls “a pro bono legal clinic at Rev. Jesse L. Jackson’s Rainbow PUSH Coalition.” A self-described Democrat, she appears regularly on Fox News to defend the Obama Administration and other prominent Democrats. “Because of the Democratic Party’s deep Chicago roots, Tamara has worked closely with some of the City’s most prominent leaders,” her website says.

Another Holder website says that, in addition to being “a legal and political contributor for Fox News Channel,” she “previously wrote for The Huffington Post and now writes for The Daily Caller.” The latter identifies her as “one of the nation’s rising attorneys and legal analytical stars.”

On one occasion, “Mr. Bennett was instructed by Rev. Jackson to escort Ms. Holder to Rev. Jackson’s hotel room at the Hilton at Chicago O’Hare airport,” the suit says.

The lawsuit, filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, says Bennett was director of the clinic but that when he objected to Holder taking a majority of the cases and charging too much to poor clients, he was replaced. He says Jackson then gave control of the clinic to Holder.

The allegations are the subject of several legal actions and complaints, including one by Bennett to the Chicago Commission on Human Relations, which is still under investigation, and another to the Illinois Department of Human Rights, which was not acted upon, prompting the lawsuit.

Bennett’s original complaint consisted of seven charges, including that Jackson exhibited a “bigoted attitude” toward homosexuals and ordered him to perform “improper job duties.” This was followed by a “supplemental statement of facts” from his attorney that runs eight pages in length.

This document declares, “It was well known that Ms. Holder was a mistress of Rev. Jackson,” and states that the Jackson family was informed of this because of a letter from another Jackson mistress.

It refers to Jackson visiting Holder’s apartment, while Bennett waited in a car outside, and “several occasions” during which Bennett “was instructed by Rev. Jackson to escort Ms. Holder to Rev. Jackson’s hotel room at the Hilton at Chicago O’Hare airport.”

Lauren Love, who runs the Rainbow PUSH Coalition press department, provided a statement to AIM that said:

“The Rainbow PUSH Coalition unequivocally denies Tommy Bennett’s false claims of harassment, retaliation and discrimination. The Rainbow PUSH Coalition and Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. unequivocally denies Tommy Bennett’s false claims of harassment, retaliation and discrimination. We are fully cooperating with the Chicago Commission on Human Relations and expect to be fully exonerated.

“The organization does not condone or tolerate discrimination in any form. Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. and the Rainbow PUSH Coalition stands on their record of advocating for equality and human rights for all people—from standing up to affirm the humanity of persons with HIV-AIDS and advocating for HIV-AIDS education and research, to supporting marriage equality and the abolition of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy of the U.S. Military.

“His inflammatory allegations are an attempt to malign Rev. Jackson and the organization, and are hurtful and harmful to the progressive community.

“Rainbow PUSH and Rev. Jackson will have no further comment while the matter is pending before the Commission.”

The Bennett allegations have been covered by some gay media and one of the supermarket tabloids. The National Enquirer, which broke the story of the Jackson mistress that produced the illegitimate child, wrote about the Bennett charges in a story headlined, “Jesse Jackson Gay Sex Shocker Legal War.”

The Courthouse News Service has run a lengthy account of the “lurid” allegations, while the Chicago Sun-Times published a small story which made no mention of Tamara Holder being named in it. Holder says the Chicago Sun-Times once recognized her as one of “50 People Who Make Chicago a Better Place.”

In addition to the alleged relationship with Holder, Jackson is accused of demanding sexual favors from Bennett, such as being told to apply a cream on Jackson’s inner thigh to treat a rash. Bennett says he refused, Jackson became angry, and called Bennett a “little mother——.”

“My termination was discriminatory and retaliatory,” says Bennett’s complaint. He was told he was fired because of a “drastic economic downturn” when in fact another individual was hired to replace him.


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About the author
Cliff Kincaid
Cliff Kincaid is the Director of the AIM Center for Investigative Journalism and can be contacted at cliff.kincaid@aim.org. View the complete archives from Cliff Kincaid.
  • http://www.larry-kelly.com/ Larry Kelly

    Why can’t this guy stay out the bushes?

  • Skunkwerks

    Geez Tamara and here I thought you were a liberal that didn’t lie.. Perhaps she should be on MSNBC.. she could do Sharpton…his show people cmon.. Tamara would never cheat with a man of the cloth.. ooops..

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002166668687 Ali Goria

    Hahaha Tamara Holder overcharging poor people.

  • Filippo Goodman

    The lawsuit alleges that Bennett was subjected to “humiliating tasks” because he was a homosexual, such as “escorting women to his [Jackson’s] hotel room” and then being ordered to clean up after Jackson had sexual intercourse with them.

    —this sounds made up. Its too ridiculous.

  • Filippo Goodman

    trailer park humor

  • anti-obama-order

    Tamara is a useless harlot that i hope no man knocks up because the fact that she is a lawyer in Chicago, she would wait the 24 weeks to shove a close hanger up her fish lips and kill a child. All while referring to the baby as (it) andshe can die tommorrow that would make my day. Suck it bitch..

  • Chrisput

    Tamara, are you still JESSA’s little whore?

  • Buffalobob

    Jessie, have one of your flacks call Jimmy Swagger for talking points.

  • Carlos Restrepo

    We need National Geographic photographers, to take photos of this two PARASITES!!!

  • armyvet706

    I love it!!

  • bhhntr

    Some lady told Tamara she was ridiculous last night on Hannity. I have been searching that video. I was rolling in the floor laughing at the expression on Tamara’s face as this black lady smacked her down. LOL

  • dereid49

    Jacksan is accused of demanding sexual favors?
    a recent NSA note turned up…Obamo, ‘Come see me Jesse I’ll be @ the Hilton in IL. next week, oh, and bring your Holder and I’ll bring my Holder. We can match wits and get the Lowdown on things coming up. Waiting for your reply as usually.

  • Azsteve53

    What a crew of losers, and the low information lemmings love them

  • dmagliochette

    I have listened to her alot on Fox Fox and really can not believe she is a contributor because not only does she not have anything worthwhile to say, but it is blatently clear she has slot of reverse racism in her comments. I decided to do a little research on her and quickly figured her out. She not only is not worthy of being a Fox contributor, but is a disgrace to her race. As far as Jacksonn, he has always been a piece of shit and hides behind the cloth and title, as does Sharpton.

  • Willy Rho

    I once liked Tamara Holder. And I thought she was embarrassed by some of the really left wing-nuts. But, I guess she was ready do sell her soul like all Liberals eventually do.

  • Willy Rho

    Too many 6’s.

  • Enubus

    I kept emailing Hannity to take the bitch off the air, but for some reason he won’t!

  • copper

    I live in Illinois. It doesn’t take much to be a lawyer here.

  • pinnie

    NO JUSTICE…. NO PIECE OF ASS!

  • Steve Tanton

    S’why I don’t watch Fox – mostly conservative, but media whores none the less.

  • erickcartman

    Jackson probably sexted her and she couldn’t resist.

  • Willy Rho

    Only the Fox Liberal Media Whores are the Whores, like all Liberals, they are whores..

  • ranchlady

    I only recently researched Tamara’s background because I see her so often on Fox News. Not impressed! I have never been a fan because she just smirks too much; seems to always have a smirk on her face.

  • tiredofthepandering

    id skull fuque her

  • paganpink

    Well- they’re not “real” ministers or ordained or anything. They’re more like tail chasing race baiters that claim to be ministers when they do their race pimping.

  • PissedoffinAZ

    Wow, so you’re a private dick? Or just a dick?

  • PissedoffinAZ

    Now aren’t we the typical Conservative racist n-word slinging prick.

  • PissedoffinAZ

    The only people of being FAUX contributors are racist, science-denying, hate mongers.

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