Al Franken Did the Right Thing
Al Franken announced his resignation from the Senate today. He did so, because seven women have claimed that in some way, Franken acted sexually inappropriately towards them in the past. While those actions should be unacceptable, in this age of Trump and Moore, politicians have followed the path of denial and blame to stay in political life. Franken did not, instead doing the right thing and resigning.
There are concerns about whether Franken was targeted by the alt-right. The fact the original charge against him, brought by radio commentator Leann Tweeden, first came to media attention by alt-right tweeter Mike Cernovich, and was fore-shadowed by Trump’s advisor Roger Stone saying, “…it’s Al Franken’s time in the barrel…” raises questions about the legitimacy of the charges. Franken himself describes his memory of the “rehearsed kiss” as completely different, and the photographer claims the damming photo was staged.
It doesn’t matter. It is all about political math. Before Franken, Democrats could use the GOP support for Roy Moore, an accused pedophile, and the acknowledged statements by the President (“…I just start kissing them, it’s like a magnet…”) to make Republicans the party without principles. They would do anything for a vote or a political win.
Franken cancelled out the equation. Regardless of the severity of the offense, an inappropriate kiss versus a thirty-four year old man “dating” a fourteen year old; Franken (and Congressman John Conyers of Michigan) leveled the playing field. Every party seemed to have its perverts, and as Senator Kristin Gillibrand of New York said yesterday:
“I think when we start having to talk about the differences between sexual assault and sexual harassment and unwanted groping, you’re having the wrong conversation. We need to draw a line in the sand, and say that none of it is ok…”
Franken before all of the charges would have agreed. His speech on the floor of the Senate today made it clear that he still does. Conyers and Franken have announced their resignations from the Congress. Moore proclaims has innocence against growing evidence against him. Trump is still President.
The Democratic Party is setting the table for the elections of 2018. Should Roy Moore win the Alabama Senate seat, now with the support of President Trump, the Republican National Committee, and multiple Republican politicians; the party that claims to be for Christian and Family Values will be the party without morals. For this, if for nothing else, Franken had to go.
He did the right thing. But now the American people need to put their own morality to the test. The first quiz will be this Tuesday in Alabama. With the little I know about Alabama politics, I am still hopeful that Alabamians will do the right thing and send Roy Moore home. But if they don’t, the Democrats have already cleared the decks, and Senator Moore will be a “target of opportunity” that will hang around each Republican candidate’s neck in 2018.
A singularly ungracious and unapologetic resignation. Admitted no wrongdoing. No sense of contrition. Only sad for himself.
As to the photographer saying that that photo was staged, https://www.snopes.com/photographer-said-franken-image-was-staged/
Dems threw him under the bus to stake out the position of the party of righteousness. Which, my party cannot claim. Al Franken is roadkill. I am sure he is thinking, ” WTF? I was just a goofy non-featured player on SNL. I was just engagiung in the same kind of shenanigans that dan & john & bill did 1000 times over.” And you know what? I WOULD have sympathy for that position. But not for his self righteous “resignation”. Honestly, this dude is an a**hole. #Iimwithher.
I guess Franken’s resignation was “in the eye of the beholder.” I do agree that I heard little remorse from him, though there had been plenty in his statements before. I do wonder how much of Franken’s problems were of his own making, and how much was a Roger Stone smear campaign? Either way – as a Democrat – he had to go. Regardless of the true nature of the “photo”, that picture said a thousand words he could not take back.