Al Franken was pushed out of Senate by Chuck Schumer in secret bedside ultimatum

[brooklynite]

New York Daily News

Al Franken was forced to resign from the Senate by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer who reportedly delivered a bedside “quit now” ultimatum to the ex-Saturday Night Live funny man in a secret meeting as sex harassment allegations mushroomed.

Franken says Schumer refused to allow him to present his side of a damning photo that showed him fondling a female comedian’s breasts and gave him just a few hours to resign, The New Yorker reported Monday.

Intead, Schumer, sitting on the side of his bed, warned Franken that he would rally Democratic senators against him after summoning the Minnesota senator to his Washington D.C. apartment on Dec. 1, 2016.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Franken said, according to the magazine. “I asked him for due process and he said no.”

I could have sworn I was told that Gillibrand masterminded the whole plot and everyone else was just a weak-willed lackey.

[tblue37]

1. He did NOT fondle her breasts. His hands never touched her. It was a jokey pretense. nt

[madaboutharry]

20. Isn't that something?

Getting facts wrong right off the bat, probably on purpose. The other possibility is laziness. I’m not sure which is worse.

[LuckyCharms]

30. +1

[trof]

47. She was wearing a freaking FLAK JACKET.

You cannot feel somebody up through a flak jacket!
He was obviously mugging for the camera.

[MontanaMama]

53. Yes. That was the basis of the joke.

If a bullet couldn't pierce her flak jacket then odds are Al couldn't either. JFC. You'd think Chuck Schumer would have known better.

[tblue37]

64. The author made that false statement --she wasn't quoting Schumer when she said it. nt

[GoneOffShore]

86. Read the New Yorker piece on the lynching of Franken.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken

[Bradical79]

84. I don't know much about the other accusations...

...but so many of the descriptions of that specific photo drive me up the wall. "Fondle", "grope", etc. I have fucking eyes. I can see none of that is happening in that photo lol.

[Vinca]

2. I'd love to know how any breast can be fondled with a flack jacket on.

[leftstreet]

3. a "secret meeting?" LOL n/t

[Me.]

4. I Have To Agree

and if true, that coward Schumer has been letting her be the one to take the heat. IMHO, he has been a poor, ineffective leader and should be replaced. Durbin would be/would've been the better choice and I say this having Schumer as my Senator. I have never gotten over him siding with the leader of another country against our own president.

[cilla4progress]

21. agreed

what country though?

[Me.]

26. When He Stood With Netanyahu

who was trying to stop PBO's deal with Iran

[yardwork]

61. That did it for me too.

[Grins]

42. I also agree. I've disliked him for years.

A complete failure at his job. He doesn’t fight, has no strategy to stymie McConnell. Caves on pretty much everything. I have zero confidence in him. The Netanyahu thing with Obama had me screaming!

[trof]

48. He's a mealymouth.

[BeyondGeography]

5. So Schumer engineered the whole thing?

[Trumpocalypse]

40. He' the only one

with the power to do so.

[mr_lebowski]

6. I don't mean to ... uh .... downplay it ...

But wasn't it just a photo of his flat hand lightly resting on her breast area, and underneath it, there was not only a shirt, but also under that, a bullet-proof flak jacket? And it was just a gag for a magazine cover (or something to that effect)?

I have a hard time with any publication calling that a 'photo of him fondling (the woman's) breasts'.

It really doesn't meet the criteria, as it were.

But maybe that's just me

[eppur_se_muova]

9. It wasn't even clear if he was touching her -- his hand was between her and the camera, but ...

that's all you could say for certain. The photo was taken on board a transport plane, during a USO tour. They were traveling between gigs, and she fell asleep. So they set up a joke photo w/ Franken pretending to grope her. Harmless stuff, and Dems were extremely useful (to Uglicans) idiots to hound Franken out of the Senate.

[Texin]

54. Others on that flight said she wasn't asleep, but pretending to be for the photo.

[LiberalFighter]

51. Based on the photo he was not even touching her.

His hands were just over the spot with air between.

[Joe941]

89. He was railroaded. Im still upset with the dems that did it.

[hlthe2b]

7. Oh, no, Gillibrand didn't act to force him out at all... not at all. BS--see below:

As reported by NYMagazine's Jane Mayer this morning in her indepth expose':
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken

Minutes after Politico posted the story, Senator Gillibrand’s chief of staff called Franken’s to say that Gillibrand was going to demand his resignation. Franken was stung by Gillibrand’s failure to call him personally. They had been friends and squash partners. In a later call, Gillibrand’s chief of staff offered to have Gillibrand speak with Franken, but by that time Franken was frantically conferring with his staff and his family. Franken’s office proposed that Franken’s daughter speak with Gillibrand instead, but Gillibrand declined.

Gillibrand then went on Facebook and posted her demand that Franken resign: “Enough is enough. The women who have come forward are brave and I believe them. While it’s true that his behavior is not the same as the criminal conduct alleged against Roy Moore, or Harvey Weinstein, or President Trump, it is still unquestionably wrong, and should not be tolerated.”

Minutes later, at a previously scheduled press conference, Gillibrand added insult to injury: she reiterated her call for Franken to resign while also trumpeting her sponsorship of a new bill that banned mandatory arbitration of sexual-harassment claims. She didn’t mention that Franken had originated the legislation—and had given it to Gillibrand to sponsor, out of concern that it might be imperilled by his scandal.

AND from your own NYDAILY News article from the OP:
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) was the first Democratic senator to call for Franken’s head after the #MeToo allegations first surfaced against him. The allegations quickly snowballed and several female senators told Schumer they wanted action against Franken.

Schumer may well have delivered the final blow, but not until Gillbrand got everyone enlisted in the lynch mob action. I will NEVER forgive her for that nor forget

[still_one]

11. That is exactly what happened, and Gillibrand admitted as much

[BootinUp]

15. thanks, that's pretty much what I remember. Nt

[spooky3]

17. agree - and I posted some other excerpts that I think are compelling. nt

[sdfernando]

28. Someone needs to ask her about this at the next debate:

"she reiterated her call for Franken to resign while also trumpeting her sponsorship of a new bill that banned mandatory arbitration of sexual-harassment claims. She didn’t mention that Franken had originated the legislation—and had given it to Gillibrand to sponsor, out of concern that it might be imperilled by his scandal."

Something like "Why should the American people trust you when you stole the sponsorship of a bill banning mandatory arbitration of sexual-harassment claims?"

[Trenzalore]

35. They should ask her nothing

She barely qualifies to be on stage based on the donor and polling requirement. She won't be on the stage in September.

She deserves no attention to be paid to her.

[demtenjeep]

37. I hope she is not on the debate stage

she has no business running and sucking people's money for a measly 0% polling.

I have a lot of respect for swallwell for recognizing he wasn't going to get there so he dropped out. Before dragging others or people's money.

[Trenzalore]

43. They drop out when the money runs out

She has about 8 million to play around with right now and campaigns are expensive.

I expect her to pick a state and camp out there hoping to somehow maneuver into the top 3 in that state's contest.

[Karadeniz]

8. He was ACTING!!!...hamming it up for the camera. Very cowardly of Schumer. Easier to

throw someone under the bus than stand up for him. Shameful.

[spooky3]

10. Rather rely on this second-hand report, you may want to read

the entire Jane Mayer article re: her investigation published in the New Yorker.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken

(on edit-- some of this repeats passages quoted by another DUer, so I deleted some)

For example, "At the same time, the Presidential candidacy of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has been plagued by questions about her role as the first of three dozen Democratic senators to demand Franken’s resignation."...

"On December 1, 2017, seven female Democratic senators—Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, Claire McCaskill, Mazie Hirono, Patty Murray, Maggie Hassan, and Catherine Cortez Masto—met with Chuck Schumer to tell him that most of them were on the verge of demanding Franken’s resignation."

...

"According to someone familiar with the situation, Schumer spoke with Franken later that day, advising him to take the issue more seriously and to reach out to the women senators. Franken has no recollection of this conversation, but says that it’s wrong to suggest he wasn’t already taking the matter seriously. "

...

"Minutes after Politico posted the story, Senator Gillibrand’s chief of staff called Franken’s to say that Gillibrand was going to demand his resignation. Franken was stung by Gillibrand’s failure to call him personally. They had been friends and squash partners. In a later call, Gillibrand’s chief of staff offered to have Gillibrand speak with Franken, but by that time Franken was frantically conferring with his staff and his family. Franken’s office proposed that Franken’s daughter speak with Gillibrand instead, but Gillibrand declined."


more at the link

The most damning, IMHO, are

-- that Gillibrand says today that she would do the same things again. I can forgive good Dems for mistakes but not for failure to recognize what they did wrong and take actions to correct them and avoid problems going forward and

--"I recently asked Gillibrand why she felt that Franken had to go. She said, “We had eight credible allegations, and they had been corroborated, in real time, by the press corps.” She acknowledged that she hadn’t spoken to any accusers, to assess their credibility, but said, “I had been a leader in this space of sexual harassment and assault, and it was weighing on me.” Franken was 'entitled to whichever process he wants,' she said. 'But he wasn’t entitled to me carrying his water, and defending him with my silence.' "

And, as Mayer's investigation made clear, the allegations had NOT been "corroborated, in real time, by the press corps."

[drbtg1]

12. Which happened first, Gillibrand or Schumer?

Did Gillibrand go public first with her demands for resignation before due process (thus creating a media firestorm and an untenable position for Sen. Franken's request), or did the Schumer meeting happen first?

I would say it's an important distinction.

[klook]

38. The Mayer article makes it clear that Gillibrand's abandonment of Franken preceded Schumer's

ultimatum. Some here want to portray the sequence differently, for their own reasons.

Edited to add: Congrats on 1,000 posts!

[drbtg1]

88. Yeah, that's how I read it too. It seemed Schumer was only reacting to the maelstrom created...

...by Gillibrand.

BTW, thanks on the congrats. Only took me 16 years to get there! I only realized the post count after I posted. I kinda wish I posted something worthy of all those zeros (like an "H2O Man" type post) instead of the " ' Oh no, she didn't!' 'Oh yes, she did! ' " battle post, but oh well.... Again, thanks for noticing!

[PufPuf23]

13. There was an element of removing a competitor in the Democratic party

when Al Franken was pushed out of the Senate. Gillibrand and Schumer were involved front and center but the party and party leadership stood by and let their colleague and one of our most intelligent and effective voices be deleted from the political process.

Franken would likely be a stronger candidate with the voters than others of the current tentative Democratic 2020 POTUS gaggle.

[brooklynite]

19. Except that Franken never talked about running for President...

...and Gillibrand never broke the knees of any of the other Senator hopefuls.

[PufPuf23]

32. So what? Who said that they did?

That was then and now is now and the fact is that one of the then most effective Senators was removed from the political kitchen and we have lacked Franken ever since. He would have matured into a strong POTUS candidate.

[brooklynite]

33. YOU just accused Gillibrand of targeting Franken to eliminate a Presidential opponent...

...based on absolutely no evidence.

[PufPuf23]

45. Suggest you re-read what I wrote with some nuance.

If anything I hinted that the Democratic party as a whole had the effect of eliminated Franken who may have been a future POTUS candidate. Gillibrand at worse marginalized her own future political career.

Do you favor what happened to Franken?

The effect of the political destruction of Franken was Franken is not a 2020 POTUS candidate but Franken was not a POTUS candidate when he resigned under pressure.

IMO Franken was treated arbitrarily and without much thought as the Democratic party allowed Franken to be a victim of right wing mischief using the rhetoric of #MeToo.

The silence in support of Franken is deafening even now.

[Wellstone ruled]

14. Schumer was affraid of Franken from day one.

You just knew when Al took out Jeff Sessions,something was about to happen down the road. Gillibrand appeared to have had a couple of helpers with the PR she threw at the Press in NYC and MPLS.

[FakeNoose]

29. Anyone who has read Al's book should know

... that Chuck Schumer has never supported Al from the get-go. Schumer tried his best to talk Al out of running for the Senate in the first place. When it went into the extra innings because of the recounts and the court filings, Schumer did nothing to help Franken's case.

I'm not sure what his reasons were, but Schumer was just as happy to see the last of Franken. It's too bad because he was so great in the Senate. I wish he would move to Pennsylvania and run against Pat Toomey. Franken would beat Toomey in a heartbeat.

[MrsMatt]

55. As a Minnesotan

who was heartbroken over Franken's resignation, AND who still needs to be convinced that Tina Smith is adequate replacement (milquetoast comes to mind); I give you leave to adopt him if he's willing.

[dustyscamp]

16. We need to move on & stand United against the Right

Don't let stories and rumors divide us. That is what the Right wants

[DFW]

23. And I hate it we let them get their way. N/T

[Crunchy Frog]

50. The Right wants to eliminate our best and brightest, and in this case they succeeded.

I think it's an important issue that needs to be discussed. If we allow them to have that kind of power over us, then we'll never get anywhere, no matter how "united" we pretend to be.

[dustyscamp]

66. I know he was a good man in a bad position. He should have had a fair hearing, but it's too late now

When I said we need to move on & stand united I meant in the bigger picture of things. We do so much damage to ourselves when we fight and hold grudges against one another in the party. Pelosi vs the Squad, Impeachment Debate, Illn Omar's controversial comments, Dem infighting, The Perfect Candidate, Pelosi's leadership and many other things. It really feels like we are sitting here punching ourselves while the other side is mostly standing by each other laughing at us. I just want us to set aside any bitterness and work together.

[Crunchy Frog]

74. I'm not setting aside my bitterness about this anytime soon.

The problem is with Democratic elected officials backstabbing each other instead of going after the Rs.

And, many of us feel, ignoring their constitutional duties while the country burns.

Nothing that anyone on here says will have an impact on the big picture, but sometimes venting can at least help some of us cope.

[demmiblue]

18. Good lawd, read the original article.

I would say that this is beneath you...

[questionseverything]

71. beneath him...no it is the essense of him

posting from a right wing rag to save a wall street senator

[brooklynite]

79. The Daily News is not a "Right Wing Rag"...you're perhaps thinking of the New York Post?

[Peregrine Took]

22. I heard that on the Bill Press show at the time.

Schumer called him and told him he had to resign that very day.

[UpInArms]

24. I think I will have anger management issues about

This for years and years

[yardwork]

25. I always knew it was Schumer.

[TreasonousBastard]

27. This links to a much longer New Yorker article by Jane Mayer...

who is as painstaking a writer as there is these days.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken

Gillibrand does seem to deserve much of the blame, but certainly not all of it. She was just a willing tool in a character assassination organized by largely by others. Schumer originally agreed Franken should have full due process, and then pulled the rug out.

This is not the first trick Schumer has pulled, but the first one I know of that dragged a fellow Senator down into the muck with him.

[usaf-vet]

60. Gillibrand decided to run for an office that gives everyone a chance to vote for her or not.

Schumer stays hidden in the political weeds of his state. if he ever put his name on a nation ticket I will remember this post and vote as the situation demands.

No matter who did what when they forced a STRONG voice out which is a determent to every progressive nationwide.

Force out without due process. Makes the matter worse.

[eissa]

31. She literally made a campaign ad boasting about her role

Whether Schumer was the one behind the whole thing or not, she's the one most proud of her part in pushing out a colleague without due process.

[Duppers]

34. Yep and...

[EveHammond13]

36. let's make a list of the major wins Schumer has secured for us

DACA? oops no

a raft of freak-show conservative judges being approved? oops no

Merrick Garland? oops no

border funding bill --- with accountability for the funds? oops no


I'm having trouble. Someone help me here. Seriously.

[tandem5]

68. Here's how Schumer negotiates...

We'll agree to your terms (Republicans) as long as we can at least discuss [fill in the blank] at a future opportunity. Opportunity never comes. Repeat as needed.

[EveHammond13]

73. that's about right. also: am I still invited to the cocktail party later?

[tandem5]

85. Definitely -- Just because the Republicans are trying to kill us all

doesn't mean we can't all be friends when we punch out at the end of the day!

[BigmanPigman]

39. Very long but good article in New Yorker about all of this.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken

Could be run again? Would he want to?

[Greyhead]

41. Time for chuck to go!

That’s it. We need new blood.

[Crunchy Frog]

44. It's always been my understanding that Schumer was the mastermind, while KG chose to assume the role

of the public leader of the lynch mob.

They're both my senators, and that really sucks.

[PDittie]

56. +1

[PufPuf23]

46. Franken says he 'absolutely' regrets resigning from Senate

Note: Gillibrand is quoted in the following article saying, "I'd do it again today," Gillibrand said in the article. "If a few wealthy donors are angry about that, it's on them." On the other hand Leahy says, " "one of the biggest mistakes I've made".

Franken says he 'absolutely' regrets resigning from Senate

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former Democratic U.S. Sen. Al Franken of Minnesota told The New Yorker magazine in a story published Monday that he "absolutely" regrets resigning from the Senate after several women accused him of unwanted kissing or touching.

The article, Franken's first interview since leaving the Senate, calls into question some of the assertions against Franken and quotes several female former staff members and close friends who described him as physically clumsy but not predatory.

Franken said at the time that the allegations were false, and he repeats that in The New Yorker article. A former comedian who made his name on "Saturday Night Live," Franken resigned amid a national wave of sexual harassment allegations against men in powerful positions as the #MeToo movement was gaining momentum.

Both Franken and Tweeden had called for an independent investigation at the time, but none was conducted before fellow Democrats forced Franken to resign three weeks after Tweeden made her claims.

Asked by The New Yorker whether he regretted stepping down, Franken said: "Oh, yeah. Absolutely."

"I can't go anywhere without people reminding me of this, usually with some version of 'You shouldn't have resigned,'" he told the magazine.

more at: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/franken-says-he-absolutely-regrets-resigning-from-senate/ar-AAEHLQv?ocid=spartandhp

[SleeplessinSoCal]

49. this is a highly suspicious article in light of Jane Mayer's

She did the in depth look. Not the Daily News.

[TheCowsCameHome]

52. Then two NY senators need to be replaced.

Disgusting, if true.

[mn9driver]

57. The big democratic donors are well aware of what she did, which is why her fundraising from them has

disappeared.

She knew exactly what she was doing. And a cherry picked quote from a very long article that describes what she did in detail doesn't cover it up.

[doc03]

58. Meanwhile we have a admitted sexual preditor in the WH and the people

that are supposed to uphold the rule of law and the Constitution don't do their job.

[budkin]

59. Schumer is part of the problem

Spineless and irresponsible

[dalton99a]

83. Harry Reid made a big mistake in choosing him

[Blue_true]

62. I have pointed out many times.

But I typically get assaulted by the "Franken was framed" crowd while my DU friends run for cover. If Gillibrand could convince something like 35 other US Senators to essentially jump off a high building, then she should be President NOW, because only well known brutal dictators have ever shown that type of power, and she is no dictator.

Also, Franken could have said "fuck you Chuck, I am going to go public and insist on a public hearing and repeat what you just said to me". The sex diaper senator from Lousiana ignored calls within his party to resign and not only did he not quit, but he later won reelection by the toothless masses of his state.

[Nuggets]

63. While I don't trust Mr

“I represent Wall Street” Schumer, Gillibrand took the reins in this baloney railroading of Franken.
She’s proud of it. She makes me sick.

It matters not how many excuses people make for her she is guilty as sin.
Franken didn’t choose to resign without the pressure led by Gillibrand. She was happy to help Schumer.
She won’t be president and I hope she loses her next election.


I sure love the ridiculous efforts though to exonerate her though...
She’s just another GOP mole, asaic.

[Azathoth]

67. "Schumer refused to allow him to present his side" ... Bullshit

Schumer might have railroaded him and refused to run interference for him while the investigation progressed, but the minority leader has absolutely no say over whether a senator can go out and present his own side of the story to the public. Party loyalty is great, but politics is fundamentally a "me first" sport, especially if you're innocent. Franken was elected by the citizens of Minnesota; the f'ing senators from NY don't get a veto on that decision.

Ralph Northam is still the governor of Virginia. Why? He ignored the panicked whining from the spaghetti-legged party establishment. The name "Franken" should become a warning to all future Dems: stand up for yourself, or you deserve to perish.

[Ms. Toad]

69. Why was Chuck Schummer sitting at Franken's bedside?

That just seems a bit bizarre (and not explained anyplace I've seen)

[IADEMO2004]

76. Meeting at Schumer's DC apartment. Franken's wife Franni there too.

[lame54]

70. Fondling her breasts? - WTF?...

That's not what the photo shows at all

It was an OBVIOUS joke about her wearing a flak jacket

It can stop bullets but not wandering hands?

Franken isn't even touching her

[Retrograde]

72. If true, I have to ask

why isn't Schumer using similar tactics of persuasion (for want of a better word) to get the Senate to actually do something? From what I can see he's putting no pressure on ,to do anything. McConnell may have the majority, but even back when the margins were slimmer I don't remember him speaking up.

[TheFarseer]

75. All so we could be more moral or whatever

Than the Republicans. Yeah, that’s really having an effect on . . . . nothing.

[rufus dog]

77. Wait until Franken responds

A bed side conversation? Seems a bit smelly, we also need to look at who is pushing this before making a decision.

Hint, we have some people here who aren't interested in liberal Dems winning.

[brooklynite]

78. So, you're saying that the article Franken was interviewed for was false?

Franken asked to meet with Schumer, who suggested talking at his apartment in downtown D.C., in order to avoid the press. “It was like a scene out of a movie,” Franken recalled. Schumer sat on the edge of his bed while Franken and his wife, who had come to lend moral support, pleaded for more time. According to Franken, Schumer told him to quit by 5 p.m.; otherwise, he would instruct the entire Democratic caucus to demand Franken’s resignation. Schumer’s spokesperson denied that Schumer had threatened to organize the rest of the caucus against Franken. But he confirmed that Schumer told Franken that he needed to announce his resignation by five o’clock. Schumer also said that if Franken stayed he could be censured and stripped of committee assignments.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken

[UTUSN]

80. I read the whole thing. MAYER's word is gold. That said, when so much has to be said, it's over.

[3c273a]

81. Sounds suspicious n/t

[Tarc]

82. "to present his side of a damning photo" only covers one of the situations

Why do the other 7 get glossed over?

[GoneOffShore]

87. Perhaps you should read the New Yorker article.

It's likely that the other seven, on examination, will be just as specious as Tweeden's - https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken