What is it called when person attributes their opinion to some 3d party?

Question

A manager in my company keeps using this trick where she would say " I received some comments/questions about what you did/said, can you explain?". I am 100% sure it's coming from her but she has no guts to say it.I would like to call her out on it but I don't know how this trick is called. Are there any names for it?

paulchap · Accepted Answer

Maybe a kind of argument ad verecundiam[0]?[0] https://philosophy.lander.edu/logic/authority.html

jqpabc123 · Answer

I would simply call it deflecting responsibility.