Top Washington Lobbyist for Google, Susan Molinari, Stepping Down

Susan Molinari, a former US Representative who has served as vice chair of the House Republican Conference, been a news anchor on CBS, and most recently served as Google Inc.’s head of its America Policy Team in Washington, has said that she will be stepping down from this position in January. She will be moving to a senior advisory role, the company reported. Her move comes in light of the criticism that Google has received in the recent past for actions ranging from a delayed public notification about a data breach on its Google+ social media platform, in addition to being accused of making its search results biased to not display results from right-leaning news outlets and personalities. There is also the incident of the company’s non-presence at a Senate hearing where it was one of three internet giants to be called to answer for the potential security risks of its online services.

Most recently, employees at several Google offices around the world have staged walkouts for what they believe are unfair business practices that the company promotes when it comes to way in which it deals with those higher up in the hierarchy, particularly in light of allegations of sexual harassment. The issue was pointed out by a New York Times article that stated that several high-level employees at the company had been dealt with leniently in the face of sexual-harassment accusations against them, receiving large severance packages and being quietly exited from the company without any further consequences.