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"LET ME BE CLEAR": Sean Hannity's stern response to sexual harassment allegation
In a statement, Fox News host Sean Hannity says charges by Debbie Schlussel "are 100% false and a complete fabrication. This individual is a serial harasser who has been lying about me for well over a decade." (Image source: YouTube screen cap)

"LET ME BE CLEAR": Sean Hannity's stern response to sexual harassment allegation

Fox News star and syndicated radio host Sean Hannity has issued a strong denial following a sexual harassment allegation made by attorney/blogger Debbie Schlussel, a former guest on Hannity's television show.

Schlussel leveled the charges against Hannity Friday during an interview with Pat Campbell, an Oklahoma radio talk show host.

The radio segment started with Campbell asking Schlussel if she experienced or witnessed any inappropriate behavior during her time at Fox News. "Only by Sean Hannity, not by Bill O'Reilly," Schlussel replied.

Campbell jumped on that statement and asked Schlussel to explain. The lawyer proceeded to launch into a rambling, nearly eight-minute monologue with a laundry list of charges against Hannity, Fox News executive Bill Shine, Hannity's replacement hosts and several women working at Fox News who Schlussel called "fixers for Roger Ailes."

At the core of Schlussel's charges is her claim  that Hannity attempted to get her to come to his hotel room before and after his appearance in Detroit. Schlussel alleges her refusal to accept Hannity's invitation doomed her from future appearances on the popular program.

TheBlaze reached out to Hannity for comment and received the following statement.

"LET ME BE CLEAR - THE COMMENTS ABOUT ME ON A RADIO SHOW THIS WEEK by this individual are 100% false and a complete fabrication.

This individual is a serial harasser who has been lying about me for well over a decade. The individual has a history of making provably false statements against me in an effort to slander, smear and besmirch my reputation.

The individual has not just slandered me over the years but many people who this individual disagrees with.

This individual desperately seeks attention by any means necessary, including making unfounded personal attacks and using indefensible and outrageous political rhetoric.

My patience with this individual is over. I have retained a team of some of the finest and toughest lawyers in the country who are now in the process of laying out the legal course of action we will be taking against this individual.

In this fiercely divided & vindictive political climate, I will no longer allow slander and lies about me to go unchallenged, as I see a coordinated effort afoot to now silence those with conservative views. I will fight every single lie about me by all legal means available to me as an American."

This is not the first time Schlussel has attempted to smear Hannity. In 2010, the blogger claimed Hannity and the Freedom Alliance, a charity raising money for wounded veterans was barely donating any of the millions of dollars raised to vets or their families.

Schlussel also charged Hannity was bilking the charity by demanding expensive private jet travel service, "fleets" of luxury SUVs and several suites in high-priced hotels in order to get him to the "Freedom Concert" events held by the Freedom Alliance.

Both Hannity and the Freedom Alliance dispute Schlussel's claims. In fact, the day after the original post hit the internet, Freedom Alliance released a detailed statement addressing each accusation.

At the very top of the statement was a clear debunking of the assertions about Hannity and the travel to and from the concerts.

Freedom Alliance has never provided planes, hotels, cars, limos, or anything else to Sean. Sean gets nothing from Freedom Alliance except our gratitude for his personal generosity and for all he has done to help the troops and our organization. We have never had to ask Sean for anything, he always generously offers his help before we have a chance to ask him. But to be clear Sean pays for all his own transportation, hotels, and all related expenses for himself and his family and friends and staff, which over the years has added up to tens of thousands of dollars. He does not use any Freedom Alliance Funds or Concert funds in any way, period.

In terms of Hannity's personal donations to the Freedom Alliance, a statement from his office claims the TV and radio star has given in excess of a million dollars to the charity, with all of the profits from his 2010 book going to them.

Freedom Alliance backed up Hannity's claims of generosity in its 2010 statement.

Sean Hannity has contributed $100,000 to the Wounded Warriors Foundation, over $200,000 to the Freedom Alliance, and over tens of thousands of dollars to other military charities and individuals. We only make this information public because of the outrageous slander against him. Sean has no management or operational involvement in, or control over, Freedom Alliance. He has been a selfless patriot in his efforts to raise funds for the education of children of armed services personnel.

Also, Freedom Alliance's president Thomas P. Kilgannon and founder Oliver L. North both point to the charity's annual filings documenting the millions of dollars in expenditures on scholarships and various programs to support soldiers and the families of soldiers wounded or killed in service to the country.

A scan of the Charity Navigator website shows the Freedom Alliance currently sits with a two-star rating and has received the nonprofit monitor's highest rating of four stars five times in its history.

Listen to the Pat Campbell interview with Debbie Schlussel here.

To see more from Mike, visit his channel on TheBlaze and listen live to “Pure Opelka” weekdays 12-3 p.m. ET, 7–10 p.m. ET & Saturdays 6–9 a.m. ET, only on TheBlaze Radio Network.

(Editor's note: This story was updated.)

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