A San Diego woman who worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs while she hosted a podcast critical of former President Donald Trump is suing Trump and U.S. government officials, claiming she was forced out of her job by the former president’s administration due to her political views.
Allison Gill is one of the co-hosts of “Mueller, She Wrote,” a podcast that initially examined the investigation into potential Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Gill, who went by “A.G.” on the podcast, alleges she was retaliated against due to the podcast’s criticisms of the administration.
These alleged retaliatory acts included reassigning her from San Diego to Washington, D.C. — a transfer she had declined in the past for family reasons — and refusing her requests for telework accommodations, which she’d sought due to a PTSD diagnosis.
Gill’s lawsuit alleges the podcast “provoked the ire of President Donald J. Trump,” prompting government employees to attempt to root out the true identity of “A.G.,” then subject her to discrimination and retaliation.
Her complaint filed Monday in San Diego federal court names Trump, former U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie, and current U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough as defendants.
Her lawsuit alleges her First Amendment rights were violated through “retaliatory measures and the fostering of a hostile work environment due to her politically critical podcast about the administration.”