Major News Outlets Keep Getting Suspicious Tips That This Guy is Up For a BIG Job Working For Kamala Harris: Politico

Publications have reportedly received catfished emails with a tip claiming a contender for a role in Vice President Kamala Harris’ office.

Politico reported on Tuesday, “Since at least Dec. 1, White House reporters from The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, CBS News, and POLITICO have been receiving emails from several different accounts all with the same tip: J[ovanni] O[rtiz], the manager of community outreach and engagement for the Department of Public Safety at Hofstra University, is being eyed for a senior role in Vice President K[amala] H[arris]’ office.”

Each of those outlets did not immediately respond to a Mediaite request for comment.

The Hill published a piece on Dec. 3, reporting, citing “two sources familiar with the discussions,” that Ortiz “is in talks to join the Biden administration, potentially in a top communications role in Vice President Harris’s office.” However, the “office denied that Ortiz was in talks to potentially take a communications role in Harris’s office, saying it was not true.”

Local outlets reported the story as well.

Senior communications officials left Harris’ office by the end of 2021 including Ashley Etienne and Symone Sanders. In early January, Jamal Simmons succeeded Etienne as Harris’ communications director, though that wasn’t without controversy as Simmons came under fire for past tweets calling for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to round up illegal immigrants.

According to Politico:

After the Hill published its story, the tips about Ortiz kept filling the inboxes of reporters across Washington. The messages contained similar, if not identical, phrases but came from four different email addresses.

One email from “Mike Cristofu” told a reporter Ortiz was being considered for a job in a “senior comms capacity.” Another message from “Jess Ceballos” said they heard Ortiz “may take on [Chief of Staff] job.” A letter from “Jon DiMasi” noted that they heard there was “some hesitancy in the White House about him given Ortiz’s apparent loyalty to the Vice President–He was an early supporter of her presidential campaign and pushed hard for her selection as Biden’s running mate.”

…

In two emails shared with West Wing Playbook, Ceballos and Krup sent the same phone number as their contact. Calls to that number were not answered, leading only to a generic voicemail without a name listed on the recording. In subsequent text messages, they said they couldn’t talk on the phone, but could text message. Krup texted us that he works for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus but, according to Legistorm, there is no one by that name who works for or has worked for the caucus.

A CHC spokesperson said they weren’t aware of anyone with that name or a similar name who works for the CHC. “I haven’t heard of that person at all before,” K[elly] O’K[eefe], communications director for CHC Chairman Rep. R[aul R[uiz] (D-Calif.), told us.

As we asked more questions, Krup asked to go off the record. Asked why Krup’s number was the same as Ceballos’, Krup stopped responding.