Franken to resign, but he calls accusations untrue
Senator takes parting shots at Trump, Moore
WASHINGTON – Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn. said he plans to resign after more than a half-dozen women came forward over the past several weeks with allegations that he touched them improperly or made unwanted sexual advances. Franken also disputed some of the accusations and suggested he is being held to a different standard than President Trump.
“A couple months ago I felt we had entered an important moment in the history of this country,” Franken said on the Senate floor. “We were finally beginning to listen to women about the way mens’ actions affect them. Then the conversation turned to me.
“I was shocked” but was trying to be respectful of the women’s feelings, Franken said. “It gave some people the false impression I was admitting to doing things that in fact I haven’t done. ... Some of the allegations against me simply are not true.”
Nevertheless, Franken said he would resign over the next several weeks.
Many of the allegations predate his Senate career, but the former comedian and Saturday Night Live cast member had apologized and said he would “gladly cooperate” with a Senate Ethics Committee investigation of his behavior.
Radio host Leeann Tweeden made
the first allegations against Franken last month, and Franken’s Democratic colleagues appeared to accept his apology and endorsement of the ethics inquiry. But as additional allegations emerged, Franken’s support became tenuous, and on Wednesday dozens of Democratic senators — led by Democratic women — called for him to resign.
Franken became the second member of Congress to announce his resignation this week after allegations of sexual harassment. Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., first elected to the House in 1964, stepped down Tuesday after several women accused him. Conyers has denied any misbehavior and said he was being denied due process.
In his speech, Franken noted that he had been prepared to submit to an ethics investigation and was defiant about his legacy. “I know in my heart that nothing I have done as a senator — nothing — has brought dishonor on this institution,” he said.
“I, of all people, am aware that there is some irony in the fact that I am leaving while a man who has bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the Oval Office and a man who has repeatedly preyed on young girls campaigns for the Senate with the full support of his party,” Franken said. Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore has been accused of having inappropriate contact with teenage girls when he was in his 30s; Moore has denied wrongdoing.
Inside the Senate chamber, staffers lined the wall, and some were dabbing tears from their eyes. As he left, about 20 of his Democratic colleagues approached
“I know in my heart that nothing I have done as a senator — nothing — has brought dishonor on this institution.” Sen. Al Franken
him for hugs and handshakes. Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona was the only Republican who appeared to be in the chamber for the speech. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., who was among the female senators who called on him to resign, was seen wiping her eyes.
The latest allegations against Franken, which were reported by Politico, was based on an unidentified former congressional aide who said Franken tried to forcibly kiss her after her boss had left a broadcast studio. As she was collecting her belongings, the woman said, she turned around to find Franken coming at her. As she ducked, she says he told her: “It’s my right as an entertainer.”
Franken, who was deferential to and apologized for his conduct to his first accuser, Tweeden, had a different response to the latest account. In a statement this week, Franken initially said the idea he would say such a thing was “preposterous.”
The state’s Democratic governor, Mark Dayton, now needs to appoint a successor to Franken until there is a special election to fill the seat through the end of Franken’s term in 2020. In a statement Thursday, Dayton said he expects to announce his decision “in the next couple of days.” Among the possible Democrats who could replace Franken are Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith and Reps. Keith Ellison and Ken Walz.