Massa under investigation for allegedly groping male staffers

[Jennicut]

By Carol D. Leonnig
Tuesday, March 9, 2010; 3:02 PM

Former Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) has been under investigation for allegations that he groped multiple male staffers working in his office, according to three sources familiar with the probe.

The allegations surrounding the former lawmaker date back at least a year, and involve "a pattern of behavior and physical harassment," according to one source. The new claims of alleged groping contradict statements by Massa, who resigned his office on Monday after it became public that he was the subject of a House ethics committee investigation for possible harassment.

Massa had said that the allegations were limited to his use of "salty language" with his staff. He apologized for making some inappropriate comments and argued he was being unfairly villified. Days later, Massa accused the White House and Democratic congressional leaders of trying to oust him from office to improve their chances of passing health care reform legislation. Massa could not be reached for comment Tuesday, and no one answered the phone at his home in New York or his campaign office. Staff at his former congressional offices declined to relay messages to him and said they did not know how to reach him.

According to two sources familiar with the probe, Massa's former deputy chief of staff Ron Hikel provided the information about the staffers' allegations to the House ethics committee three weeks ago. Hikel had earlier sought advice from Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's office about brewing internal complaints, the sources said, and had been urged to report the allegations to the committee.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/09/AR2010030902157.html

This is all based on "sources" and we know sources sometimes lie but what does everyone think here?
If true, it is disappointing that Massa would do something like this. But if not true then someone is out to slander him.

[saracat]

1. Thats what happens when you step out of line.

[Lord Helmet]

2. his staffers put the pinch on him -- not the party leadership

just more horseshit from you

[DevonRex]

3. +1. The illogic runs rampant here sometimes. Seems like there are

several other congressmen who aren't in line and haven't gotten ethics complaints against them.

[saracat]

8. OH and of course ALL staffers can NEVER be corrupted and would never have any reason

to make such a charge other than the truth.:sarcasm: Amazing how little innocent till proved guilty means to some.I guess some folks really adapted to living in Bushworld.

[Inuca]

11. Agree with "innocent till proven guilty", BUT

your "step out of line" comment above WAS assuming blame without any proof. If I read it correctly...

[DevonRex]

14. Yes, the "step out of line" did assume blame. Wild, conspiracy nut blame, at that.

:crazy:

[saracat]

18. Yeah but then I don't "trust" these people much. I also don't clap for Tinkerbelle.

Other congresspersons have stated they are being pressured as well.So this isn't beyond the realm of possibility, unless you actually believe that Congress operates differently.

[karynnj]

43. The point still stands that you are assuming guilt, when there is no proof

and when the timeline makes it unlikely.

Not to mention, it is not to the Democrats' advantage to have another prominent scandal. Between Rangel, Stritzer, and Patterson - we already have 3 big NY scandals. Nationwide, throw in Edwards - where there is a new story very month - it seems. Overall, this begins to look like the Republican scandals in 2006. The saving grace, if you can call it that, is that Sanford, Ensign and Vitter make it more bipartisan than in 2006.

[saracat]

51. I can't imagine defending Emmanuel. I know a little too much about him

Lets just say, the facts may someday reveal themselves. I do not know what Massa may have done but it is obvious what he did do.Vote against the HCR.
Politics isn't a nice business and despite what people like to believe, these people usually aren't there to represent us.Some may start out that way. I think Massa did. I dunno. But this story is absolutely typical of the DC way. That is why I believe it.

[karynnj]

61. No one is defending Emannel here

But three facts are clear:
1) Massa staffers made the complaint
2) This has been going on for a long time
3) Massa has changed his story any number of times. The only reason for putting out the Navy and the wedding stories might have been to try to get the wedding story defined as the ethics issue, with the Navy story being why he might be vulnerable.

None of these suggest a big conspiracy. (In fact, if you wanted a conspiracy, what if Rahm/Hoyer etc had come to him when Hoyer was told of whatever the charges were and traded keeping silent for his vote. Doesn't that accomplish the task better - even though it would be a coverup.)

[KittyWampus]

62. Saracat sure as hell clapped for 'Tinkerbell' when Tinkerbell was John Edwards & Hillary.

I've noticed a bunch of ES denizens using that term today.

[DevonRex]

63. Strange, isn't it? Almost as if it were planned...

:shrug:

[saracat]

70. Someone else is using Tinkerbelle? That is MY sig! And you are really wrong about me and the primary

wars. I supported Edwards and Hillary (reluctantly when Edwards dropped out) but she had the better overall health care plan.I vigorously attacked Hillary before Edwards dropped out.And I was very disappointed in Edwards. I still feel he had the best message. I supported Obama for President because he was our nominee. I voted for him and campaigned for him because he wasn't McCain.BTW, who are ES denizens?

[saracat]

16. That is my opinion. It was after all Dems who filed the complaint.

And it is obvious he and Dennis Kuccinich were the lone no votes. Coincidence? :tinfoilhat: And it isn't like Rahm isn't capable od doing something like this.It isn't like he doesn't have that kind of reputation.

[karynnj]

48. 39 Democrats voted against it

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/11/07/health.care/index.html

[saracat]

54. But recently it was stated that they were having trouble lining up votes

and it was coming down to one or two votes. Kucinich referenced this the other day.He stated that He and Massa were among the lone NO"s.


Dennis Kucinich on Mar.3-before this scandal broke.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4qW3XckPdU&NR=1

at about 1;00 "Myself and Mr. Massa were basically the only two who held to our stand and said no public option, no vote"

[karynnj]

58. That's not what the Hill whip count said

In fact, if they were the lone "Nos" then there would be plenty votes.

[msanthrope]

71. Keep the tinfoil shiny side out.....n/t

[DevonRex]

75. Such a simple error to fix, too. But they insist on wearing it shiny side in. nt

[ShortnFiery]

65. I'm sure with the HELP of the Party Leadership and sweet whispers of a pay raise. eom

[Lord Helmet]

69. They are former staffers, so your theory doesn't hold water.

nice try!

You'll have to re-work your theory to blame it on the dem leadership.

Better luck next smear!

[saracat]

77. Staffers never take bribes? And bribes are never given from leadership?

Gee, my grandfather who used to pay the bribes for the MPPDA in the forties would be stunned to find out we are now so very proper that a staffer can no longer be bought! Old man Kennedy would be equally shocked!

[Name removed]

79. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

80. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[prolesunited]

4. Bullshit

First he was stepping down because of cancer and then all of a sudden, it's a Democratic conspiracy.

He's now the media darling of Hannity and Beck and you're willing to join them? Perhaps he knew the shit was going to hit and now he's duping people like you into believing he's a victim.

He never denied his comments and I'm interested in how these new charges play out. If my boss said, "I should be **** you," I would be filing a lawsuit. Do you let your bosses talk to you like that. Did the Dems make him say or do those things?

[DevonRex]

6. Lots of folks here will believe Beck and Hannity as long as it makes

Democrats and/or Obama look bad. Funny, isn't it, in a not-very-funny kind of way?

[saracat]

12. So why didn't anyone file an ethics suit against Rahm for any of his language when in congress.

His use of foul language was well documented fom everyone from the president too Hillary on down. I guess he was special and his words were music to their ears.They didn't make anyone uncomfortable.Only Rahm can use the C word and its cousins and get away with it. He makes them cute.

[prolesunited]

17. The charges were not for foul language

It was for propositioning a subordinate. BIG difference.

[saracat]

19. There are apparently two sets of charges. And the fact remains that

stories of Rahms abuses in Congress are legion and yet no one has ever filed a complaint. Wonder why??????

[msanthrope]

72. oooh! oooh! (Hand raised) Pick me!! I know the answer!!!!

Rahm Emanuel, unlike Eric Massa, hasn't groped any unwilling staffers, male or female.

[TheWraith]

22. That's not true.

According to the reported content of the original complaint, it was because Massa's language made another staffer "uncomfortable," not because he was propositioned in any way.

[saracat]

26. The Post has another report.Something about groping.

I wouldn't be surprised if it is bogus.

[TheWraith]

33. I wouldn't be surprised if it was true, sort of. See #28.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=433&topic_id=214118&mesg_id=214200

[saracat]

45. And if that were the case, I am sure that most staffers wouln't be filing

complaints unless they had an incentive to do so. Just like no staffers filed complaints about Rahm.There was no "Incentive".

[Garbo 2004]

9. It can also be what happens when rumors had been swirling for months, GOP knew

& the leadership couldn't afford to look the other way.

Massa's own staff was the source of the complaint.

[saracat]

23. Well, IF and it is an IF , Massa was set up it is only logical his staff would be used to do it.

[Bobbie Jo]

13. Yeah...if he had just stayed in line

he could have groped his staff to his heart's content. :eyes:

[saracat]

20. If you knew anything about DC you would know that is actually true, if he had groped anyone, and we

don't know that he did.

[Bobbie Jo]

29. Obviously you're far more informed in these matters than

the rest of us. What was I thinking? I forgot who I was dealing with.

On the other hand, we also don't know what Rahm did, but you've already written the narrative.

Carry on....

[TheWraith]

30. Self delete, posted in the wrong spot. nt

[DevonRex]

34. .

:rofl:

and

:spank: for making me knock my Raspberry Zingers off the desk.

[inna]

38. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

So sick and tired of your BS.

[Bobbie Jo]

41. LOL

Ok...so do you know more about this than her?

Do tell! :rofl:

[DevonRex]

44. You understood that post? Between the rest and not the majority

I got a little flummoxed.

[Bobbie Jo]

59. Not sure, really.

But no doubt someone will show up to "school me" soon. :spank:

[Bobbie Jo]

68. and?

[ShortnFiery]

66. It would probably blow your mind ... but YEAH, that sounds about right. eom

[Cha]

5. I think the saga continues but it's worth noting the timeline Steve Benen..

has written..

"MASSA ENDS BRIEF POLITICAL CAREER ON A SOUR NOTE" It's been sad to watch freshmen Rep. Eric Massa's (D-N.Y.) struggles of late. Just six days ago, Massa announced he would retire due to serious health concerns. He acknowledged rumors about a pending ethics investigation, but angrily denied the allegations.

A day later, his denials softened a bit, and he conceded he may have used inappropriate language with his staff.

Two days after announcing his retirement, Massa changed his story a little more, announcing he would resign in order to avoid the looming ethics investigation. In a statement, Massa accepted responsibility for his missteps, and said he was stepping down "with a profound sense of failure." He said the ethics issue is "my fault and mine alone.... My difficulties are of my own making."

Over the weekend, Massa changed his story once again, announcing that his difficulties were not of his own making, but were instead the result of a conspiracy orchestrated by Democratic leaders on the Hill and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. Massa now believes his position on health care reform -- he voted against it in November because it wasn't single-payer -- prompted his party to go after him.

"Mine is now the deciding vote on the health care bill," he said, "and this administration and this House leadership have said, quote-unquote, they will stop at nothing to pass this health care bill, and now they've gotten rid of me and it will pass. You connect the dots."

"The future of the Democratic Party rests on passing this health care bill," he added. "They can get anyone to say anything about me concerning anything at all, and in fact they did."


Massa's conspiracy theory is not only at odds with his own remarks from last week, they're also belied by the record. The ethics inquiry was initiated in early February. In order for the conspiracy theory to be true, Democratic leaders would have needed to know at the time that a Massa vacancy would improve the arithmetic on the final health care vote. It's far-fetched, to put it mildly.

We're also starting to get a better sense of what, exactly, his "salty" language constituted. Massa believes the ethics investigation stems from a comment he made to aide at a New Year's Eve wedding party, when he apparently told a male staffer that "what I really ought to be doing is fracking you." (Whether this is actually the basis for the investigation is unclear.) He also acknowledged an incident from his Navy years when he walked in on a male roommate masturbating, and offered to "help with that."

Regardless, after initially taking responsibility for his own "difficulties," Massa has now decided that his missteps are his party's fault, and he's lashing out wildly in the hopes of punishing his perceived Democratic enemies. That will apparently include Massa joining Fox News' Glenn Beck on the air today, for a full-hour anti-Democratic, anti-reform tirade.

It's an almost tragic ending to what was once a promising career. The right-wing will no doubt embrace him as some kind of hero -- a "victim" of Democratic heavy-handedness -- but in truth, it sounds like Massa is going through a very difficult personal time right now, and he's dealing with the issues in a destructive and unhealthy way. That's not heroism; that's just sad.

—Steve Benen 8:40 AM Permalink | Trackbacks | Comments (20)
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com /

Here's one of the "comments" I found interesting..

"Our local morning news anchors, not usually noted for their resistance to story lines which work against the Democrats, were openly mocking Massa's "they forced me out because they don't like my vote" story this morning"

Posted by: Lis on March 9, 2010 at 10:00 AM

[Inuca]

10. I agree, it is sad n/t

[tishaLA]

15. that's an excellent timeline

The ever-shifting story is troubling, to say the least.

[karynnj]

7. I hope it is untrue and don't think we should comment until

there are at least people willing to state for the record that this is what is alleged. Beyond that, he deserves to be considered innocent unless it is proven to be the case.

One post that Tony Rinaldo made, that I can't easily find, had an article that spoke of him being married with two kids. If this is not true, this could cause a lot of pain to his family and the Congressman, at the point that he is dealing with cancer.

[Cha]

21. I hope it's not true but

what's up with blaming the Dem Party for it? I definetly don't believe that.

[saracat]

24. Well, Dems did file the charges. Ya can't blame the GOP for it.

And Hoyer did come out with some nasty remarks earlier.

[Cha]

25. I don't give a shit what the ignore has to say about it.

[saracat]

27. Funny, I wonder why it responds to someone on ignore??????

[DevonRex]

31. Oh, just the usual. Dems bad. Obama bad. Dems squeezed Massa

and they're squeezing <gasp> OTHER dems, too. Or something like that. And she doesn't believe in Tinkerbell. Oh, and Rahm has a foul mouth and nobody every complained about HIM; therefore, this is a bogus charge brought on by the evil Dems and Obama.

I think that about covers it. See, I read it so you don't have to. Oh. I just realized you said you don't give a shit. My bad. :rofl:

:hi: dear!

[Cha]

37. The usual blah blah blah..Dems are bad blah

blah blah. Just what I thought.

:hi:Devon:D

[DevonRex]

39. Well, the Tinkerbell thing was new. Gotta give credit where credit's due.

:hug:

[karynnj]

36. I agree - it is disgusting that he is going on every RW show there is

and trying to make it about healthcare, which makes no sense because of the timeline and because it was his decision to step down and he could have stayed at least even while the investigation went on.

Whatever the details turn out to be, he has only made everything worse with the stunts of this week.

[Inuca]

53. The whole thing is stunningly bizarre

no expertise whatsoever for the "diagnose" but it sounds like a nervous breakdown to me. Triggered by what... who knows? As I said above... sad.

[saracat]

78. What else has he gone on other than Beck?

[Garbo 2004]

32. Since when is there a rule for when or when not to comment? Massa made allegations

against the White House & Dem leadership and some folks here took it as gospel and still do.

They're all allegations. The likelihood of anyone in a leadership position going on the record about details of an ethics investigation of a former congressman is slim. Perhaps former staffers might but they'd also have reasons not to.

Do you think Massa's radio rant, including his recounting of a previous "misunderstanding" with another male while in the Navy and other strangeness was something his family enjoyed?

[karynnj]

56. There isn't a rule

I was just giving my opinion on the new rumor of what the allegations were.

I think that even if the only charge was Massa's story, his behavior was sleazy. I am not defending him and I doubt his family likes either of these stories.

Maybe I just feel squeamish about piling on when between cancer and these stories, this man has lost his health, job, and reputation and possibly his family, if these charges were not expected.

[TheWraith]

28. I suspect that it's true but nothing like what people are assuming.

This is a guy who spent 24 years in the Navy, which is--let's be blunt--a fairly homoerotic environment. It doesn't surprise me at all that he might at times when he felt relaxed be prone to cuss, make lewd jokes, smack asses, etcetera. From his perspective it would be perfectly normal and innocent, even though he would actually be on the wrong side of protocol.

[Cha]

35. He already admited that.

But, "groping"? That's just crazy.

[TheWraith]

40. Locker room type ass smacking equals groping to some people. nt

[Garbo 2004]

42. That would be inappropriate behavior in just about any regular work environment

and lead to problems if not lawsuits. This guy isn't a kid who could claim he didn't know better & was unaware of potential consequences since by his own admission he had at least one such "misunderstanding" before...while in the Navy.

It's more than a matter of mere "protocol."

[DevonRex]

47. I tend to agree with you. Don't know all the details because I've

been trying to avoid the whole thing. But, yes, that sort of behavior is definitely inappropriate in a work environment.

[TheWraith]

49. My point is that there's a wide gulf between inappropriate and malicious. nt

[DevonRex]

55. That's definitely true. However, inappropriate will still get him in deep doo doo.

And it would get most working people in deep doo doo if they behaved that way.

Personally, I hope it's not as bad as it sounds. And personally, I'd respect the man a lot more if he didn't run around screaming that teh Dems are out to get him. That is ridiculous on its face since we hardly need another scandal.

[Cha]

64. +1

:hi:

[Jennicut]

74. Totally. My husband has had some issues with his a boss being inappropriate.

Things meant to be in a joking way can make others uncomfortable. That boss was eventually let go.

And we don't want or need another ethics scandal. We just had Rangel.

[prolesunited]

57. So it's OK if it's good-natured and not mean spirited?

I don't think so. Bosses should keep their hands off employees. Period.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

60. I agree. That seems like 1960s "Mad Men" thinking.

[Enrique]

46. the 'salty old sailor' defense

could be true, but why would people be filing complaints if that's all it was? Is his staff so sensitive that they'd risk their boss's job over lewd jokes? Doesn't seem likely to me, sounds like he was doing things his staff couldn't function with.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

50. On Beck, he just said he tickled a staffer "until he couldn't take it anymore"

I mean, if my boss did that to me, you bet I'd file a complaint. But congressional staffers usually tend to be more buddy buddy, don't they? That doesn't seem that bad for a friend thing.

[TheWraith]

52. All it takes is one person who wasn't okay with it.

I know some of Massa's people personally, and they don't strike me as the type to put up with crap that they don't have to. His press secretary was a left-wing blogger before she signed on to work for him.

[ShortnFiery]

67. Yes, but the timing is sort of curious. Not unlike when they took down Elliot Spitzer. eom

[Jennicut]

73. Elliot Spitzer brought that partly on himself. You cannot go after prostitution rings and then go

solicit the use of a prostitute and then claim it was not your fault and it was one big conspiracy. Same with Massa. If you did perhaps grope a few staffers, then you cannot claim anyone else took you down when you did it partly to yourself to begin with. Spitzer knew better and didn't care about how it would effect the people who voted for him. IF it is true about Massa, neither did he. I did state in my initial post that it may or may not be true but if true than it is all his own fault and he didn't care about his constituents.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

76. No! It was the DLC and Rahm leaving all those tasty prostitutes around Spitzer!

How could he possibly say no?!

And then they took down John Edwards too!