Obstruction of Justice or harassment. A Managers Perspective.

So listening to the talking heads and various pundits today it strikes me as odd (though sadly not surprising) how various people interpret part of the testimony.

On The Obstruction Charge

Senator Jim Risch emphases that the words "I hope" are not an actual order.

James Comey replied how the words were not and he was  very specific about hat but it seems to have been missed by some people.

He probably never experienced this kind of activity himself but a lot of Americans have.

And we are taught about it in supervisor or managerial training and harassment courses at work.

Also it fits in many military settings.

When your boss asks you to a private meeting and tells you he would like or hope that you do something it is an implied order.  Some examples

• I hope you can get this project done today.
• I hope we will not have any more incidents like this.
• I do not want to hear about this kind of thing again.
• Remember that thing I helped you with?

I am sure you can imagine or maybe even think of more from personal experience.  I suspect even more if your a woman.  That implication rather than overt and plain spoken command or challenge is one we all have seen or heard about in corporate America at one time or another.

While it is possible for statements like this ot be perfectly innocent you have to ask yourself if there is a subtext to the words.

Signs you may be in an improper situation

• Your boss asks you to stay after the meeting and specifically tells others who lag behind to clear the room.
• Tone of voice and body language indicate there is more importance to the situation than the words themselves.
• When you leave and your immediate superior is there and you say that needs to not happen again and he shrugs but wont say anything.
• When you have had repeated awkward conversations before about loyalty and how much you value your job.

Common sense indicates the intent here was less than above board.

Some say Comey should have gone to someone else right away and that since he did not he must have felt there was no obstruction of justice.

Think about that though,  His immediate boss and the one above that were both at the meeting. Sessions is a lawyer and had to know it was improper and likely the subject of the conversation.

Anyone who has had to deal with a harassment case knows that they get messy and proof is hard to come by and this becomes a he said she said kind of thing.

We are taught to immediately document the incident which is what he did.

He also reported it to the only people he could trust in the administration.

No one could have done anything without more proof and bringing forward allegations would ahve just created more turmoil.  So Comey did the smart thing,  He waited, documented and gathered evidence and let it play out.