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Al Franken says he can't recall if he groped women while having picture taken Al Franken on the sexual misconduct claims against him: 'I feel ashamed'
(about 1 hour later)
Al Franken does not remember if he touched women inappropriately while having his picture taken with them at campaign events. A chastened Al Franken said on Monday he would never repeat the behavior that led multiple women to accuse him of sexual misconduct.
“I take thousands and thousands of pictures, sometimes in chaotic and crowded situations,” the Minnesota Democratic senator said in an interview aired on Monday by CBS. “I can’t say I haven’t done that. I’m very sorry if these women experienced that.” The Democratic senator and former comedian told reporters on Capitol Hill he was “tremendously sorry”, adding: “This has been a shock, and it’s been extremely humbling ... I am embarrassed. I feel ashamed.”
His comments were the latest indication that he has no plans to step down amid allegations of sexual misconduct. “I know there are no magic words I can say to regain your trust and I know that is going to take time,” Franken said.
One woman alleges Franken forcibly kissed her on a USO tour and took a sexually suggestive photo while she was sleeping. Three other women allege Franken grabbed their buttocks while posing for photos during separate campaign events in 2007, 2008 and 2010. “I know I’m going to have to be much more conscious in these circumstances, much more careful, much more sensitive, and that this will not happen again going forward.”
Franken added that he has to be “a lot more sensitive, and a lot more careful” when he takes a picture and when he meets someone. “I’m going to make sure that this does not happen again,” he said. The Minnesota senator’s comments marked his first public appearance before reporters in Washington since broadcaster Leeann Tweeden accused him earlier this month of forcibly kissing her during a 2006 tour to entertain US troops. Tweeden also released a photo in which Franken appeared to place his hands over her breasts while she was sleeping.
Interviews with Minnesota media outlets over the weekend were the first granted by Franken since he was swept into a nationwide tide of sexual misconduct allegations. Since then, three women have alleged that Franken grabbed their buttocks while posing for photos between 2007 and 2010. One of the women said Franken suggested she join him in the bathroom at a fundraiser.
The Alabama Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore is accused of initiating sexual conduct with teenagers during the 1970s. The Michigan representative John Conyers is giving up his leadership position as top Democrat on the House judiciary committee amid a congressional investigation into allegations of sexual harassment. Both men deny the allegations. Franken, who was elected to the Senate in 2008, had previously apologized to the accusers in written statements. He has nonetheless maintained that he did not recall some of the events, noting he has posed for thousands of photos. Franken also disputed Tweeden’s account that he kissed her without consent, but apologized nonetheless for how it made her feel.
Franken told the Minneapolis Star Tribune he does not remember taking the specific photos, but said such groping was “not something I would intentionally do”. On Monday, Franken reiterated that he had a different recollection of the kiss, which occurred during a skit rehearsal. He nonetheless added: “I feel you have to respect the women’s experience.
Asked if he expected other women to step forward with similar allegations, Franken said: “If you had asked me two weeks ago, ‘Would any woman say I had treated her with disrespect?’, I would have said no. So this has just caught me by surprise. I certainly hope not.” I am tremendously sorry, and I know that I am going to have to be much more conscious when in these circumstances, much more careful, and much more sensitive.”
The first woman to come forward was the Los Angeles radio news anchor Leeann Tweeden. She released a photo showing the then comedian grinning while reaching out toward her chest, as if to grope her, as she slept on a military aircraft during a USO tour in 2006. Franken also spoke to a handful of Minnesota-based media outlets on Sunday, and acknowledged in one interview that he could not say with certainty that more women would not come forward with allegations of groping.
Franken told Minnesota Public Radio on Sunday the photo was “inexcusable”. He declined to explain it further. “If you had said to me two weeks ago that a woman was going to say that I had made her uncomfortable and disrespected her in one of these ways I would have said ‘no’,” Franken told Minnesota Public Radio. “So, you know, I don’t know. I can’t say.”
“What my intention was doesn’t matter. What matters is that I am chained to that photo,” Franken said. “She didn’t have any ability to consent. She had every right to feel violated by that photo. I have apologized to her, and I was very grateful that she accepted my apology.” The controversy surrounding Franken comes as several powerful men have been accused of sexual misconduct, including former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly, Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, actor Kevin Spacey and journalists Charlie Rose and Mark Halperin.
Tweeden said Franken also forcibly kissed her while rehearsing for a USO performance. Franken has said he has a different recollection of the rehearsal. Multiple women have alleged they were sexually assaulted by Roy Moore, the Republican Senate candidate in Alabama. Several of the women said they were underage at the time. Donald Trump, who has been accused by more than a dozen women of sexual assault, has publicly endorsed Moore amid the fallout.
Franken faces a Senate ethics investigation – which he welcomed in the wake of Tweeden’s allegation – though it is unclear when that review may begin. Franken, who has not faced widespread calls to resign, said he would fully cooperate. Reporting has also shed light on the culture on Capitol Hill, where women have said sexual harassment is “rampant”. The process for filing claims of sexual misconduct has come under intense scrutiny, with some lawmakers demanding reforms.
Franken missed votes after the first accusations were made public. He said he spent the holiday break with his wife and the rest of his family. When he goes back to work on Monday, he said, he will ask tough questions about proposed tax legislation that “would affect Minnesota and the rest of the country in a terrible way”. Allegations that congressman John Conyers, a Democrat from Michigan, quietly settled a sexual harassment claim from a former employee illuminated the lack of accountability when US lawmakers are accused of misconduct or inappropriate behavior.
Franken sidestepped when asked whether the allegations would make him less effective in the Senate. He noted he has apologized to women who have felt disrespected and “to everyone I have let down”. Conyers announced on Sunday he will step aside as the top Democrat on the House judiciary committee, less than a week after a BuzzFeed investigation disclosed he paid a former employee a $27,000 settlement as part of a confidentiality agreement and a second woman accused the congressman of misconduct.
“I think this will take some time,” he told Minnesota Public Radio. “I am trying to handle this in a way that adds to an important conversation. And to be a better public servant and a better man. That is what my goal is.” Both Conyers and Franken have said they have no intention to resign and are committed to cooperating with an ethics investigation.
Franken came to the Senate after a months-long recount gave him a 312-vote victory in his 2008 election. He immediately tried to distance himself from his decades in professional comedy, which included raunchy writing and off-color jokes. He also avoided national reporters. Asked on Monday what the bar for resignation should be for a sitting member of Congress, Franken declined to say.
Dozens of women who have worked with Franken, including former Senate staffers and women who worked with him on NBC’s Saturday Night Live, signed statements supporting him following Tweeden’s allegations. “I am not going to get into that or speculate,” he said. “I am trying to take responsibility by apologizing.”
“I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting,” Franken added. “I want to be someone who adds something to this conversation, and I hope I can do that.”