What’s Dave Ramsey Hiding?

Not Chris Hogan anymore

Where did this go all wrong? There are always two sides to a story. Anyone who’s been through a divorce knows this only too well: the right way and their way. Both sides are right; both sides are wrong, depending on your viewpoint.

I still remember the look on the face of the used car dealer: “what are we notarizing today?” A divorce, we answered. I bet he uses that at family dinners still to this day. “Did I tell you about the time…” Yeah, it really happened to me.

You may wonder what’s the big deal; a guy got fired it happens all the time. Many of us who are so desperate to be debt-free follow Dave Ramsey and the Baby Steps to pay off debt and take control of our financial future. We listen to the podcast, buy the books and join the Facebook groups for encouragement.

We hear only one side because we’re focused on ourselves and our determination to be debt-free. We’re intentional about our money. It’s a long journey for some of us, but once we start our plan and see it happening, it’s intoxicating.

That’s why recent events are disturbing. I received an email from Chris Hogan on March 10, 2021, and didn’t open it until the following day. In a 49 second video, he explains we won’t hear from him personally again. So, I did what anyone would do; I went to google and then Youtube for more.

The Back Story

In July of 2020, Caitlin O’Connor filed a lawsuit. She was fired in violation of the “righteous living” code of conduct after she requested FMLA for her pregnancy. (No, Chris Hogan isn’t the father, that’s not the connection here.)

Here’s the back story, let’s look back to 2018 when Dave Ramsey learned of Chris’s violation of the code, but his book tour continued and a cover-up after that. Makes you wonder if you make enough money for Ramsey Solutions, are they willing to look the other way?

In an interview by Bob Smietana, he writes Ramsey Solutions “requires employees to adhere to a strict ‘righteous living’ code that bans gossip and sex outside of marriage.” In this article, Amy Fritz explains, “long-term staffers learn to dismiss his rants as just Dave being Dave. They love the work and keep their heads down.” Her husband later resigned after learning of Hogan’s cover-up.

So how could you follow someone, defend them even, and believe all they say without questioning them? When you focus on one thing, you don’t see the whole picture. You can’t. At some point, the truth unfolds, and your beliefs are shaken. You can’t blindly follow this person again; you’re driven to learn more.

It was all there but frantically shut down as quickly as something was said. Dissenters blocked on Twitter, secret sleuths watching co-workers’ and their spouses’ social media and turning evidence against them. It was called “Twittergate” in 2014 …Dave Ramsey offered bounties during a staff meeting for anyone who would identify the tweeters.”

Who does that? Who gave them the idea to go to these extremes? Anyone who openly disagrees with them gets blocked on Twitter or even receives a sarcastic letter sent to them like this one: Full Ramsey Solutions Response

During a May 2019 all-staff meeting, “Ramsey said that some staff had already begun to believe rumors that the leadership was somehow covering up misconduct on Chris Hogan’s part.”

In an earlier statement from Melissa Hogan, she describes her experience with Ramsey Solutions and Dave Ramsey personally.

“December 20, 2018, I came to Ramsey Solutions office for what I believed was a previously arranged meeting about issues in my marriage that I thought were going to be made public.” She was “surprised to be greeted by Dave and two other male board members in a conference room who then proceeded to accuse me of making false accusations. The very fact that I was alone in this confrontation with three men who largely had the power over our family’s income and who were making such accusations against me were extremely intimidating…”

She also describes how the board members “attempted to manipulate and control me through emails and phone calls. They characterized their plan as aligning with the Holy Spirit and suggested that things would not’ end well’ if I made choices to support healing in my marriage and family that either were not directed by them or decisions that they did not approve.” “The trauma I experienced from my interaction with Ramsey Solutions’ leadership was significant, given their public image and their conflicting and controlling communications with me.”

If you’ve listened to many podcasts, you may have heard some of Dave’s rants. But maybe not one like this.

During Covid, a team member anonymously reported to OSHA about the lack of protocol. Which prompted this rant from Ramsey: “So whoever you are, you moron, you did absolutely no good, except to piss me off,” he continued, “You are not welcome here if you are willing to do stuff like that. If you are really scared and you really think that leadership is trying to kill you…please, we love you. Just leave. We really don’t want you here.” “If you really think the people here are evil, bad people and you think that you can effect change by reaching outside of here, you are wrong,” and ended with “And you are not welcome.”

“I love this place and I really don’t want any morons here…I will fire you instantaneously for your lack of loyalty, your lack of class, and the fact that you are a moron and you snuck through our hiring process he said.”

So what’s happening now?

This brings us to March 8, 2021, and a request for Chris Hogan’s personnel file from O’Connor’s lawyers prompted the bombshell on March 10, 2021.

As a long-time listener of Dave Ramsey, I asked myself, how did I not know of any of this? And of course, the answer is you only hear his side on the program, or at least you did. All you hear now is reruns. It’s probably best to keep Dave from making any more rants the lawyers can use.

There are times that working for Ramsey Solutions sounded great, but not so much anymore. They are just like everybody else.