Change your party affiliation to "Republican", thus you are safe from the Democrat's lynch mob.
You ask, "Will other lawmakers who abuse their power be held to the same standard" as Franken? How precisely did he abuse his power? Did he retaliate against those who rebuffed his advances? Did he come on to employees? Did he provide political favors in exchange for sex? I don't think he did any of that.
28
The fact that we seem to be infantilizing women, painting them as helpless, is not good for women. Getting your butt pinched in public is annoying, and you can tell him to knock it off. Being in a room alone with a powerful man who exposes himself and forces himself on you is not the same. That is a crime.
Weinstein, Lauer, Moore, Trump are criminals. Franken is an annoyance. Why are we doing this to women. It will backfire if we assume women are helpless victims.
19
The best ending for this would be for a republican to be elected in Franken's place. Then the cultural elites would have something to think about.
4
What gets lost in all of this is a sense of proportion: is a pat on the back under an open shirt (Keillor), or an attempted kiss, sophomoric photo or momentary clothed butt-squeeze (Franken) really on a par with exhibitionism (Conyers), offering a staffer $5 million to--shades of "The Handmaid's Tale"--impregnate her with his baby for his infertile wife (Franks), an obsession--acted upon--with grossly underage girls, including detaining one in his car trying to force her to fellate him (Moore), or boasting of being able to grab women's genitals--and at least a dozen women confirming his physical assaults (Pres. You-Know-Who)?
Yes, they're all unacceptable. But the consequences should be proportional, just as a shoplifter shouldn't be punished as severely as a home invader, strongarm robber, embezzler or massive fraudster. And whatever happened to due process and the presumption of innocence (which is not the same as calling an accuser a liar)? We've gone straight from "if it's he said/she said, therefore always believe him" to "always conclusively and irrebuttably presume he's guilty," with no in-between.
22
Let's be even more explicit - what can Congressional Dems learn from Al - Part deux might be what they can learn from Roy Moore - a part of the country would rather elect a pedophile than a Dem - talk about time for some soul-searching.
6
This is clearly not "welcome," even on your own, almost entirely left comment pages. It is d eeply concerning to many. The editorial board had no right to suggest that this was "welcome." To whom? How many? How "woke"? And by the way, it's awakened. This whole thing is getting on my nerves. It is a testment to the American will that we maintain our opinions, despite the propaganda.
10
Boy NYT...your journalists are the best in the world...which is why I continue to subscribe...but your ed page is barely tolerable. Even the most evangelical liberal would have to admit that Franken was simply sacrificed for political ends. "Democrats are also drawing a bright moral contrast with the Republican Party and President Trump". That's a joke...right? Tell me you don't really believe that.
21
Why aren't all those Democrats who publicly demanded Franken resign, get up and demand Trump resign and Moore remove himself from the Alabama senate race EVERY DAY!
10
The dems who did this will not be supported by me.
I think it is time we looked at the numbers of ALLEGED incidents before deciding to fire someone, and are they prosecutable incidents. If you it was theft or drugs you would go through prosecution, but here, no trial, no investigation. Can we look at the levels of that which is being lumped under sexual misconduct? Can we be specific and prosecute before firing?
If you are not a MINOR of either sex:
S/He allegedly kissed me, I said no, he stopped. (Not prosecutable... context tells the story.) FRANKEN
S/He allegedly kissed me and when I said no s/he shoved me against (name it) and would not stop and humiliated me or threatened to get me fired. (prosecutable.)
S/He allegedly drugged me. (prosecutable.)
S/He allegedly groped me. (prosecutable.)
S/He allegedly raped me. (prosecutable.)
He allegedly gang raped me (sorry I don't know about women doing this one). (prosecutable.)
And BTW, they need to be WILLING to press charges or I am not interested.
Then there is pedophilia... a completely separate thing and i don't want to hear "sexual misconduct" spoken of here. It's child rape. Period.
I worry about loss of jobs due to rumor -- NOT every person is telling the truth and they should have to prosecute!
I am angry at the Dems that Franken is gone (and will not be helping the American people) without a trial when in fact he called for an Ethics investigation.
21
Dear Outraged People,
Yes, you are right. Al Franken didn't rape anyone. All he did was try to force himself on at least two women, grope or fondle 5 others, and use a sleeping woman as a prop in a crude sexual joke.
You are also right that other people have done much worse and that these people either are or may be in positions of power in the near future. Of course, does that really matter? If a Republican Senator was accused of the same thing as Franken you'd be demanding their resignation and possible criminal charges. You are, without a doubt, allowing your partisan preferences overwhelm what should be your sense of disgust at a man who abused his position in order to sexual harass women.
You are faced with a choice - you can either work to change the a culture that allows and excuses sexual abuse or you can keep a senate seat. Which is it going to be? By the way, if you say the senate seat is more important then you really have to ask yourself how much you actually care about sexual misconduct and abuse.
1
Problem with your opinion is that sometimes the search for truth takes time. Your rush to judgment is un-American.
What is clear is right wing dirty tricksters and an opportunist radio personality with ties to FOX, Hannity, and Roger Stone put Franken in the cross hairs and the corrupt neo-liberal DNC leadership shot him without a full investigation.
Nice hit piece.
19
The Democratic party needs to stop congratulating themselves and be prepared for there own demise. Republicans are far more loyal their own. This is what you all death by your own sword. Lets see how deep the rabbit hole really is.
6
It's now time for the Republican leadership to visit the White House and demand the President resign.
2
Dear Editor,
Finally, we find out what the Democratic party is up to:
"In demanding Mr. Franken’s resignation, the Democratic Party seized an opportunity to atone for its own bad history"
Political parties do not atone,
they win or loose elections.
The Democratic party, in the absence of political wins, is offering us Al Franken as the proverbial piece of cake.
I'm not biting.
Jimmy Allen
12
I slightly different lesson:
Democrats to try to claim the high ground will dump anyone on their ranks for any misdemeanor proven or not.
On the other side of the aisle were there is much less concern about where is the high ground is child molesters, and proven sexual harassers occupy the positions they vacate moving the whole country to lower and lower ground.
2
Oh, brother.
Senator Al Franken of Minnesota should not be the sacrificial lamb for predators. He made some mistakes to be sure, but a predator he is not.
If you saw actor Tom Arnold's tweet, he says what so many of us were thinking, that right wing sex celeb Leeann Tweeden was part of a coerced and rehearsed hit on one of the Democrats' brightest stars.
Arnold also says he has proof of the Republican take down of Senator Franken.
Given the lightweight "proof" against Franken, anonymous accusers of waist and fanny tweaking during photo ops and phony-sounding lines for fake kisses that no writer of Franken's talent would ever utter, journalists need to rapidly pursue Arnold's story.
Democrat female senators made a misstep here and need to bring out the facts as soon as possible.
When Minnesota calls for a new special election for senator, hopefully Al Franken can take back his hard-earned seat. And maybe Minnesota can charge those quick-to-convict-without-the-facts senators for the expense incurred.
20
I believe Franken made the right decision to resign. Also I think when Trump decided to endorse Roy Moore because he now believes him and not his accusers, glaringly exposes himself to the ultimate hypocrisy, on tape as Franken said we heard clearly Trump brag about his own perverse behavior towards women. He has made the case for his own resignation.
The Democrats have found yet another minority to pander to. This time it's white female Senators. A privileged white minority if ever there was one. They threw a good man under the bus, but sometimes that's necessary to protect the rights of minorities. Accusations of sexual harassment were made by a certain female named Leeann Tweeden but a hysterical atmosphere prevented Leean Tweeden from being cross examined by Senator Franken's lawyers. It seems likely that a Republican political operative named Roger Stone coached her on what to say and when to say it. Mr Stone and President Trump are friends. It seems strange that all these revelations of predatory male sexual behavior, from Senator Franken, Matt Lauer and others occurred exactly when the Republicans were pushing a large tax reform bill through Congress. But does it really matter? At least the Democrats have the political high ground when it comes to the sexual harassment issue.
They threw a good man under the bus.
15
Good job, elite Dems. Don't let the people of MN speak. And don't be surprised when they don't vote next time around.
20
December 8, 2017
We are witnessing the power of power to erroneously deflect its errors for to long; and in many strong career positions driven by their competitive struggles to gain rank and status and indeed gender neutral. Yet the testosterone is ever the drive to conquest in bits and bytes - and that is beyond relearning without the current cultural paradigm toward - in transparent era of electronic social media - and its fallen star was Anthony Weiner now serving prison time for his out of control libido and pathological aggression. Thus the learning, relearning is an occasion for celebration and notice to the demand of society rehabilitation and better moral etiquette living our pledge as citizenry with honor and justice for all.
jja Manhattan, N.Y.
1
All I know is the next time my NY Senators are up for re-election, I am going to write in "Al Franken".
17
Well done, NY Times Editorial Board, for helping to destroy the Democratic Party and insure our further slide into Trump/GOP/Russian oligarchy. Listen to your readers! This is a watershed moment, which you are ignoring, save for your reader's comments. The Democratic Party has just thrown itself under the bus. Between the sudden and overwhelming backlash in support of Senator Franken, and David Brooks' pathetic lament about no longer feeling at home in the GOP, it seems both parties have walked away from their people.
15
This is the new reality...social media justice. And as a liberal, I have seen that in fact, 'liberals' as a whole seem to be the worst in applying this one-sided form of 'justice'. Liberals now seem to want to have perfectly curated lives in which no one makes an off-color comment, or joke, where everyone agrees with their own viewpoints (and anyone who disagrees is immediately annihilated on social media), with everyone else seeming to fall in line with the sheep-like mob mentality, mainly out of fear that should they not go along, then they may be the next victim of the online lynch mob.
#MeNeither
13
Franken was railroaded and you cheer this unjust outcome. It seems that both the New York Times and the Washington Post have a hard time accepting Progressive Democrats. Both papers shut down any mention of Bernie and the thousands who came to his campaign events while having all their opinion writers belittle him. Now, another Progressive, Franken is the target and they cheer his demise. I would really like to know why. Somehow I've always thought the NYT and Post were "fair and balanced" but they are apparently hostile to Progressives.
11
"the Democratic Party seized an opportunity to atone for its own bad history, including President Bill Clinton’s sexual misconduct and [...] foot-dragging by leadership on the fate of Representative John Conyers Jr."
This is a misuse of the concept of atonement. One cannot expiate their own sins by leading or participating in the destruction of another.
The "Democratic Party" is not an actor and has no agency to do anything whatsoever; the mob action that was taken against Senator Franken was taken by a gang of individual Democrats, who with their eyes wide open, saw fit to destroy another Democrat in order to demonstrate their own moral purity, and thus destroyed their own claim to any such purity.
Senator Franken was entitled to due process, and our so-called leaders--many of whom are in fact lawyers so they should understand the 'due process' concept--denied Franken that very opportunity, and instead chose to be judge, jury, and executioner in a true kangaroo court fashion.
I am ashamed to admit to having voted for Senators Feinstein and Harris, given their roles in this travesty of injustice that will also cause actual harm to progressive interests. For shame!
22
I am waiting for ALL the female ( or male for that matter) Senators and House Reps to come out- now- and PUBLICLY identify all the men and/or women , in Congress and out , who have sexually harassed and/or assaulted them during their careers. I have heard over and over from virtually every woman I have discussed this with, including my wife, that all ladies have been subjected to this behavior many times. So , come on, lets name them, ladies. Now. If you don't , can we conclude you are "protecting" them while sending others already named to ignominy. Perhaps you are considering past offenses based on "shades of gray"? Why is that ? As we are witnessing, in this frenzy that has ensued in this atmosphere, where all degrees of improper behavior are judged "as equal" - no shades of grey here - and all punishment is the same no matter, I fear that a tsunami of thoughtless reaction will consume the issue. Lets just get it all out there ! Everybody , lets start the exposure train rolling !
5
The problem that is being dealt with is supposed to be sexual harassment, a powerful man using his power over a subordinate woman to abuse her. The women complaining about Al Franken were not his subordinates. He had no power over them. His actions were clearly intended as bawdy jokes and could not possibly have been mistaken for sexual overtures or threats. As for abuse of power, the shoe is on the other foot. The abuse of power was perpetrated by Senator Gillibrand and her lynch mob who are playing into the hands of the Republicans, who will miss no dirty trick to aggrandize their own power.
19
Calling for Franken's resignation was, to me, a woman Democrat, cowardly. It was the cheap and easy way out. Throw out all other principles--the rule of law, the truth, voters rights, shoot, even simply political pragmatism, rather than defend what should have been easy to defend. No, it was just easier to take the presumed "high road." This wasn't any high road, this was as ugly as McCarthyism and it could end up costing us abortion rights, equal pay, health care, fair taxes, campaign reform and on and on. It was a bone-headed, cowardly move.
15
Please don't say this is about respecting women. That would mean women's equality can only be enforced by overriding democracy, which could make Mao and Stalin smirk. If the disgraced elected officials volunteer to resign and repair relations with their family and whatever they choose, fine. They should not be pressured to resign by their party. It is up to their voters, especially when enough voters are not party members nowadays. It is dictatorship when party rescinds elections.
12
ie it time for the NYT to pause and look more deeply into the accusations about Senator Franken. For days the comments on Franken have discussed the accusations, the full story of the famous USO tour and the rest if Ms. Tweeden's history. With the other accusations, there has been little or no look behind them. The last accusation, the one that apparently threw the Senator's colleagues into a tizzy was that he had touched her tummy role. Franken posed for thousands of pictures and had no way to deal with the picture taking accusations.
Additionally, I look forward to the story about the reaction to the Senators who joined the clamor for his resignation. I gather from the comments in the Times that it is for the most part very negative. I hope to see the analysis of this reaction tomorrow or Sunday.
16
"...[Mr. Conyers] paid a $27,000 settlement to a woman who alleged he fired her after she refused his sexual advances."
Except, according the the BuzzFeed piece this editorial links to, the $27,000 came out of Mr. Conyers' "office budget," not his own pocket. Therefore, the settlement didn't cost Mr. Conyers a dime; instead he had us taxpayers foot the bill for his misconduct.
2
So the Democrats can now claim the moral high ground. Fine. The question is, what are they going to do with it? Are they going to insist that Moore be thrown out of the Senate (assuming he gets in, which appears pretty certain)? Are they going to demand that Trump's sexual misdeeds be investigated and he be held accountable? Or are they going to sigh and whimper, as they're prone to do, and continue to allow the honor- and integrity-free Republicans to ride roughshod over them?
4
During the late 80's/early 90's we experienced a spate of allegations of child sexual abuse on the part of out of home caretakers, such as day care centers. Unsubstantiated allegations, each more spectacular than the last, were made. Lives and reputations were destroyed. People were sentenced to lengthy prison terms. "Believe The Children" was the mantra of the day. But the children we're being manipulated by bad science and parents looking for a payoff. Many, if not all, of these allegations were later proven to be specious. While many men are cads and bounders, most are not. An unsubstantiated accusation from 40 years ago should not be accepted as evidence of anything. This thing has the characteristics of a witch hunt. Beware.
7
Democrats better use their newly found moral high ground to pound, batter, and scream bloody murder with regard to the blatant Republican hypocrisy on this very issue. Democrats should raise this issue every moment of everyday. Democrats cannot, and absolutely must not, except or in anyway excuse the actions of Donald Trump, Roy Moore, and all the other Republicans that are surely guilty of sexual misconduct.
2
In resigning, Senator Franken has demonstrated that he has what we (meaning, we Democrats) want in our representatives. He has been one of the most effective and outspoken advocates in Congress for all Americans and for our democracy. All the same, his moral compass and ethical courage have now been his guide. I am sad for the women, sad for Franken and sad for our nation which has lost a valuable and valued public servant.
At least 16 women have accused Mr. Trump of assault or rape. More likely than not, Mr. Moore molested young girls. It goes without saying that Trump's and Moore's actions were immoral and unethical. However, House and Senate Republicans like Mr. Ryan and Mr. McConnell are telling us that they, too, have neither a moral compass nor ethical courage. They are an embarrassment and an outrage.
6
Franken apologized and you do not apologize for something that you did not do, even though he later denied it with no credibility during his totally phony exit speech. But if someone does not apologize or does not admit guilt then our system of law is "Innocent until proven guilty" which applies to Trump and Moore.
By the way, were you equally outraged with Bill Clinton last year when he campaigned for Hillary and was one of the main speakers at the 2016 Dem convention?
I'm appalled and disgusted by many of these comments. Senator Franken is hardly a victim of a lynch mod or witch hunt. Calling for his resignation is not equivalent to killing him without trial. No one is saying that his actions are as loathsome as those of Moore's or Trump's, but is that really where the bar is set now? Are we really willing to ignore anything short of being caught bragging about sexual assault on tape or documented history of molesting teens? Because if so I am no longer interested in participating in the democratic party. There is far too much hand wringing over Franken and far to little over the women impacted by him. And yes he deserves a trial; he could have chosen to stay and let the ethics committee work on this. He choose to go. I have no tears for him.
1
Considering most of congress is composed of lawyers, I figured they already knew what due process was. I guess I was wrong.
8
The fact that virtually all the comments here are along the lines of "But he was only pretending to grope her" or "Republicans are so mich worse" show how much work we have to do.
That Franken's behavior is not as bad as Trump's or Moore's is not a reason to keep him around.
He was not forced to resign. Other senators called for the resignation of one of their own after a half dozen credible allegations of highly innappropriate behavior came to light.
If he never groped anyone, he should have said that - instead of the perennial politician maneuver "My recollection of events is different."
That he did not say he was innocent, combined with that photo, combined with the number and corroboration of the allegations of grossness, makes me think senators were right in calling for him to leave.
And that photo? Since when is it okay for a 55-year-old man, on the brink of running for high office, to pretend to grope an unconscious woman?
It's not okay. It never was. Let there be room in the Senate for someone who doesn't think "unconscious" and "grope" belong in the same joke.
2
Democratic voters are incensed and what is the feedback from their leaders on this? None. Its interesting to read in the comments, though not in the Times, about the backlash. Its absurd for the Times editorial board to agree with this zero tolerance concept. Its already been found to be unworkable in other settings. The ethics committee exists for a reason and should do its work. So, Republican leaders protect their own (no matter what) and Democratic leaders do not. I hope all of them are paying attention. They better be. For different reasons.
7
As a Minnesotan I believe this should have been our choice.
16
Why the epiphany as soon as Bill Clinton no longer is needed to be Key-Note Speaker at the Dems convention to endorse Hillary? Why the epiphany when Gillibrand no longer has a need to be photographed with Bill Clinton having his arm around her as in 2016 with her comments about "how truly honored" she was to receive Bill's assistance in her campaigns?
6
What congress can learn from Al Franken is this:
Pick your fights wisely, not wantonly. Before you decide to give a colleague the boot, make certain he's truly a creep, worthy of dishonor: make certain that his infraction against the woman was an obvious assault, not merely an act of levity in a comedy routine.
Make certain that the man you ruin is not a good man.
10
Gillibrand 's righteous posturing precipitated the downfall of the 2nd most important progressive voice in the Senate. BIG MISTAKE! Moreover,, there is a likelihood Democrats will actually lose the seat. Imagine! Minnesota is a purple state. Pawlenty and Michele Bachmann are mentioned as possible Republican candidates running for Franken seat. Could even be Coleman who lost to Franken by 312 votes.
What have we learned? What I have learned?
I will never vote for Gillibrand and Schumer again.
Reader comments in the NYT are overwhelmingly critical of the Democrat's move to throw Franken under the bus. We feel we have lost a key advocate for progressive policies. There is general outrage. This aspect of the story is underreported.
We can thank Kirsten Gillibrand we have lost one of the most important, hard working, honest, and independent voices in the senate. For what??? A disgusting betrayal on her part, and that of 34 other senators who shamelessly called themselves Franken's "friends". Until this second, I do not grasp what it is Senator Franken is paying such a high price for- his senate seat- having also been brazenly robbed of due process. It is difficult to believe, under the circumstances, Sen. Franken is the person painted in the accusations that befell him. Allegations that were never proved to be true. It is outrageous. We have become a banana republic, indeed.
14
It was to be evaluated by an ethics committee, no criminal or civil charges have been suggested so this court of law business that everyone is talking about doesn't apply. He had the right to an unbiased investigation in Congress and opted out. We don't know why Franken resigned; all we know is what has been said publicly so far. He's a persuasive fellow, he could have assuaged the concerns of the Senators if there was not much there and come out of the ethics investigation with a slap on the wrist. Maybe there's more than we know and he resigned because he didn't want the investigation. Apparently numerous women have come forward and he has not addressed the accusations other than to say that some of the allegations are not true. I am sad that Al Franken resigned but I do not blame the senators for saying "enough is enough."
3
You say "Democrats are also drawing a bright moral contrast with the Republican Party and President Trump". I don't think that is even remotely true. Democrats are saying they WILL rely on accusations alone to proclaim someone guilty or even if not guilty they should suffer the same consequence of someone who is. They are WILL NOT rely on a process to determine truth and appropriate consequence. And if that system is too slow or archaic maybe work for fixing that. (And if it is too slow they should look at what normal poor people have to put up with for "speedy justice".
In stead of "drawing a bright moral contrast with the Republican Party and President Trump" they are showing me once again they are willing to stand up for things I and others richer and poorer than I consider fundamentally important. I have not supported the Democratic party with my donations for a number of years. I have only supported individual candidates with my donations. Those that have called for Senator Franken to resign will NEVER be among those I support financially.
8
Al Franken would have stayed on as a senator if he knew that he didn't have anything to hide and all allegations against him were false.
But there is someone weird about him wanting to kiss and grope women. Maybe that was all part of a stick while being a comedian but in the current climate it's clear that he needed to resign.
One can only hope that the same actions will be taken against Trump and Moore in the coming months. Neither of them should be measured otherwise and both must go. And don't use the excuse that the voters should decide on them staying in office or not.
1
Al Franken at one time acted shamefully. Not criminally, not abusively, not despicably, but no doubt shamefully. But who of us hasn't at some point acted shamefully? And we have to admit our shame and ask for forgiveness, and hopefully it comes. 'Twas not to be for Franken.
Meanwhile, there are those like Trump and Moore who also acted shamefully, or worse, and they will not even admit it. Instead they compound their shame by bearing false witness against their victims, calling them liars.
A past shame ought to elicit some compassion, it's the current sin that's unforgivable.
So Franken has to resign because this or that other Senator says so? Look, there is a big difference between businesses and the government. Businesses may have to demand resignations since they are providing a product. Businesses as employers have the right to fire employees. In the case of government, the voters are the employer, and therefore are in charge of hiring and firing Senators. I repeat: the voters are the employer. Not Senators from New York or elsewhere. Not the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party can sanction Franken in various ways (party affiliation; funding) - but forcing him to resign is really not in their remit. Also, Senators from other states likewise do not replace the judicial system.
(1) Bill Clinton - refused to resign, went through due process procedures (grand jury, impeachment etc.)
(2) Roy Moore - refuses to resign without due process.
(3) Trump - refuses to resign on harassment grounds, without due process procedures.
(4) Al Franken - resigns due to pressure from colleagues, before even asking the people of Minnesota what they want. If I were a Minnesota voter, I'd be pretty angry that Senators from other states overrode my vote.
Does no one know anymore what the boundaries of their jobs actually are? This whole thing just shows terrible judgement. Some high-ranking Democrats really do over-estimate the value of their opinions. Wisdom and level-headedness sure are in short supply these days.
8
What needs to be learned is that just because men tend to be bigger and stronger does not mean that you get your way even if you can by use of force.
I can easily drive my car 120 mph and it would be a hoot, but I don't. There are laws against it and I control myself.
3
Congress, the entertainment industry and electronic media seem to be the last bastion of hard core quid pro quo sex discrimination as compared to the old line corporate industries that took their legal beatings over the last thirty years. Interesting to speculate why it took so long for these outlier industries to be taken on.
1
So now Minnesota's governor will appoint a warm body to serve out the year and Franken's seat will be up for the vote in 2018 (his term ran until 2020). You know, it's not like Minnesota is a deep blue state. Hillary didn't win it by very much in 2016. Franken originally won his seat by mere hundreds of votes in 2008. What if Minnesota Republicans run a charismatic moderate next year?
4
As a Democratic voter for the past 40 years, I had been looking at Gillenbrand as a potential 2020 presidential candidate. No longer after she exposed herself as an unprincipled political opportunist.
7
I never felt that it was necessary to defend Al Franken, even though I agree with all of his policy positions and regret that we have lost an effective voice in the Senate. Franken has the intellect to take the lead on this issue if he chooses - hopefully he will. He could start by explaining the nature of patriarchies; its prevalence throughout the world; and how misogyny works on little boys and girls to establish sex roll identities by 6-10 years old.
I remember Hillary Clinton’s indignant “tea and cookies” statement that put her in the eternal crosshairs of conservative men bent on turning back the clock to a time when subservience to men was a female survival tactic. When economic independence was denied to women because they were effectively locked out of the workplace, consigned to low paying jobs with low social status - jobs without the opportunity to advance.
In my lifetime, I’ve seen women outnumber men in college and become financially independent thanks to the advent of birth control. They have assumed positions of power in virtually all professions. But while we have broadened the definitions of what it is to be a woman, we have failed to establish new definitions of maleness for boys and men.
This subject is as difficult for women as it is for men. Women have husbands and sons who need to be educated and not hanged in the village square. This purge is long overdue, but men need to fully understand what has actually hit them.
2
The fact that the Senator was never even allowed the courtesy of an ethics investigation brings new meaning to the term "witch hunt." No wonder Bernie refuses to become a member of this party. As of yesterday, I am now proudly an Independent.
4
The False Equivalence Express rolls on. It does make a difference whether the alleged, or even admitted, offense took place while in office. It makes a difference whether the complaining party was a child at the time. It makes a difference if the complaining person is a Congressional staff member reporting to the person charged. It does make a difference whether misconduct is just that or if it rises to the level of a crime. It does make a difference whether the allegations are substantiated in some form of due process or are not. Meanwhile, we've just gotten rid of a Senator who admitted to at least some misconduct and are about to replace him, in a sense, by someone accused of molesting children using his public office to coerce them. Oh, the Republicans will complain a bit, then reliably swing into line if Moore wins the election.
1
Gillibrand is a disgrace, and the Democrats' rabid and ridiculous punishment of Senator Franken has made me seriously consider never voting again. What's the point?
7
It is sad that this editorial endorses the sacrificial removal of Al Franken and his contributions to improving the lives of millions of Americans for the supposed past mistakes by Democratic officials concerning (minimization of) the real and alleged misdeeds of President Clinton. Perhaps they have forgotten that he was impeached and acquitted and that some allegations were never proven or the evidence suggested that the most egregious claims were false. And perhaps some will find their conscience cleansed by the forced resignation of Franken. I find this mob mentality disturbing, antidemocratic, and foolish.
7
Congress will learn nothing but that women are helpless and want to be infantilized. Gender dynamics are complicated. The Franken situation has been handled very, very poorly by our female Senators and the male senators who joined them to condemn Al Franken, whose silly behavior may have been gently sexist, but not sexual. Our Democratic senators have behaved in a prudish and wrong-headed way.
4
This kind of action may make the democrats feel good about taking the moral high ground, but will create a backlash from people appalled at the lack of proportionality demonstrated.
To punish by loss of someone's job actions which are not only not criminal, but not even severe enough to be deemed "sexual harassment", so have to be described as simply "sexual misconduct", without due process, is nothing to be proud of, and reminiscent of totalitarian societies.
I am female and have had my share of unwelcome sexual incidents, but...get a grip! Behavior that should be condemned as bad judgement, bad etiquette, crass or impolite, yes, but not career-ending!
I believe most women are like me, we want a rap on the knuckles, an apology, an acknowledgement of wrongdoing, but a proportionate, i.e. slight, penalty, not the end of a career.
Knowing the result of a complaint will have consequences much more severe than warranted is more likely to deter more women from complaining, than the reverse, imo.
5
Senator Franken is anything but a man "who think[s] [he] can treat women however [he] want[s]."
He's a man who inappropriately and awkwardly tries to flirt with women. His flirtations were often unwelcome. He has demonstrated through his words and deeds that he respects women and their dignity.
The media's effort to conflate Franken's flirtations with Trump's forcible rapes is abhorrent.
3
"But we are in the middle of a stunning and welcome cultural shift."
Welcome by whom? What characterizes this "welcome" shift? The railroading of Sen. Franken out of the Democratic party -- by his fellow senators? The lack of any semblance of due process with respect to this political assassination? The false moral equivalence between sexual predation and boorish conduct? None of this is welcome -- to anyone, not just Sen Franken. This article by the NY Times editorial board reflects neither a balanced and objective perspective on this matter, nor the sentiment of the vast majority of its readers.
8
I'm an ordinary woman, but I'm getting old now and I do realize I have a good nose for truth and eye for character. Nothing special, just lived a long time in a particular place, known a lot of people over years and years and observed many children grow up into adults. Don't want to claim omniscience, just good instincts from life experience in my little personal world. All this is a preamble to say, listen to me. I don't believe Al Franken is guilty of much, except being decent and maybe too scrupulous, to call out some partisan women who decided to lie at a particular and unique moment to do damage. Now, my own Senators Murray and Cantwell joined the wrecking crew! Now this old woman is going to be nasty, and... accurate!: Patty and Maria, as far as the Good Lord dished out brains and good sense, the two of you together do not make one Al Franken.
10
As a woman nearing her 80's, I am excited to see the "old boys' club" being confronted once again in a very real way. As a WW2 baby, I watched my Dad, a pilot come home from the war, become a respected business manager in a large Insurance Co. It was considered normal for him to put his entitled male arm around waitresses waists & hips, to hug & lay his hand wherever it came to rest on his secretaries' behinds. His demands to bypass female bank tellers & go straight to Bank Managers, to bypass female store clerks & demand their Manager, etc - it was all just the normal societal expectation for the men of my childhood. Then came the 60's & 70's when women raised their voices & their writing pens & said things my mother did not even pretend to understand: that women deserve equal rights, equal respect & the same dignity as men do. As Hollywood & TV plied its strong male types & productions based on these, since then (having sacrificed many women "stars" & actors along the way), society slipped backwards from those heady days for women. Some progress was achieved for women - but changing a culture is hard & takes generations of hard work.
I am relieved & happy to see the next generation of suffragettes begin their next battle - which many men will resist, protest & revile, as they have always done. But we are 52% of the population & the day is coming when we, as women, will be seen as human beings more than worthy of equality to men in all respects. No more kowtowing, please.
2
I would prefer rule of law. Not every accusation of wrongdoing by men and women is accurate. There are different levels of unwanted sexual attention, ranging from staring too long to forcible rape and different power relationships ranging from roughly equal to absolute control over career and finances and different venues from public to trapped in a locked space.
For me, the Washington Post article on Roy Moore set an appropriate standard for "political" accuracy. Multiple corroborating witnesses, others with similar stories, and lots of contemporaneous documentation of behaviors that indicated his behaviors, plus a partial confession. In his case the assaults were significant as well. Similar (and worse because of systematic attacks against those who speak out) charges are made against Trump and Harvey Weinstein.
I was appalled by the cheering on MSNBC with crowing "now we will replace all of these awful men with women". Yes, to lose the elections to fair-minded voters, unless there is a clear process. We already know the Right-Filth is busy making false accusations (against Moore, to trap the Washington Post, and failing), and there are rumors they did so against Franken.
Certainly the harassment claims processing in Congress (and elsewhere) is very broken and unfair--but no more broken than accepting every accusation, and using all incidental contact and overlong stare as an opportunity to utterly destroy the career of any targeted individual. Rule of Law, please.
2
Whoa! Turns out that the party with morals is the Democrats and the Republicans are the immoral party? If the Democrats could only jettison the Republicans as efficiently as they did their own, that would be great.
1
Cui Bono?
Who benefits from this resignation?
In this new moral universe, is it not enough to acknowledge guilt and repent? Must we all be 'blameless' from the get go? If so, God help us all.
It is a travesty that a man who freely acknowledged his wrongdoing and strove to do better is made to resign while the brazen liars who refuse to admit anything stay in power.
That is why we have procedures that need to be followed, in order to prevent such travesties occurring.
Democrats, you have made a terrible mistake. There was no need for this, the country is not with you on this.
Congress has no intention of 'learning' - see what is happening with Roy Moore.
Go online. Sign the petition. Re-instate Senator Franken and let due process be served.
7
What Congress can learn? How about this Senators Feinstein and Harris, get out there and talk to your constituents. Listen to the people. Get out of the bubble. And Senator Harris, your response to my email regarding Senator Franken with a form letter, speaks volumes.
5
Franken may end up being a more powerful voice outside the Senate than within. Regardless, that is over. We now need to focus on preventing the despicable Roy Moore from ever seeing the Senate chambers and make predator Farenthold pay back his $74,000 taxpayer-funded settlement and then kick him out of Congress as soon as possible.
Let's expose the names of the members of the 1995 Congress, who created and signed off on having harassment settlements paid by the taxpayers.
1
Al Franken is a disgrace to the office he held. He needed to go.
It's is disgusting and disturbing to read so many defenses of a serial groper. Why can he not stop himself? Is he sick in the head?
There is a former DJ in Denver who not only groped Taylor Swift, he then sued her when it was his own behavior that caused him to lose his job. This is the sort of rationale enshrined into law in countries where it is legally a woman's fault if she gets raped. We cannot have people of this mentality deciding law for our nation. There is something fundamentally wrong with men who feel entitled to just jab their hands wherever and on whomever they please. I was a fan of Franken, of Keillor and of Conyers. But all three of them blame their victims for their own circumstances. 2017 isn't just the year that monuments to bad men get toppled, so do the bad men.
There are a few weeks left and a few more men who've got to go.
1
All wrong! What we have learnt is that both Democrats and Republicans have focused upon pandering to their extreme base and have lost focus on all others. Both parties have thoroughly ignored all rules that are inconvenient to their need to pander.
The House & Senate have ethics committees that have for many years performed the task of investigation and punishment as determined by evidence. We now see witch hunting instead of rule of law!
By way of Congress ignoring of rules, the President ignoring rules & speaking disrespectfully of the judicial, congressional branches & media and Judiciary making determinations based upon their personal religious beliefs, the USA has become the U$A, and collapse is within sight.
2
Gillibrand statement "when we start having to talk about the differences between sexual assault and sexual harassment and unwanted groping you are having the wrong conversation,” is just wrong.
3
The forced resignation of Franken was a travesty of judgement in the name of purity??The NYT's continues to further this travesty by further keeping it in it's headlines , enough already , this is why all the movements fall by the wayside and "me too" will also. How about keeping what's really happening in the headlines , North Korea , the tax cut, things that are really going to affect us all . The Democrats have managed to assure they will be the minority party for years to come and in this day and age when the entire country seems afflicted with ADD , this movement will come to naught. Men will keep on behaving badly and women will continue to bristle at their misogynistic treatment . I am not for one moment justifying any bad behavior but one size does not fit all and feel Franken was forced to resign to benefit someone politically . The Democrats have just shot themselves in the foot big time and will go the way of the Whigs!
6
In the 21st century American world of business and politics, in which gaps between the powerful and the powerless as well as rich and poor are widening, we have a Turkish seraglio-like situation in which women - willingly or unwillingly - are drawn into competition for the favors of a (usually) more powerful male "Sultan" (Trump, Weinberg, Moore, even Franken). For those women (I assume a majority) who don't want to play the game, perhaps we need a dress code, one that communicates to the Alpha Male that "I'm not interested."
The moralistic panic over sexual harassment is ironic, if not cynical, given American celebration of wealth and power and the total disregard of our Chief Executive over decency and humanity in any form.
1
With the forced resignation of Al Franken, the Democrats have forfeited any chance of winning the House in 2018. Not only is guilt-by-accusation a bad juridical precedent, but it opens the door for a new brand of dirty tricks during the 2018 election.
Days before the election—almost certainly, now—some women will come forward claiming unwanted attentions from Democratic candidates in swing districts where the margins of victory are close.
Like the Comey letter, such accusations—all spurious—will tip the balance toward the Republican, when it is too late for rebuttal or counterattack.
Democratic leaders apparently hoped to take the high road on the issue of sexual harassment, but they didn’t think it through, or they didn’t have the courage to do what was needed—to take a tough stand against a witch hunt.
Think about it. Charges of improper touching and kissing years ago, in a more permissible cultural climate, when lewd behavior was expected of standup comics, has become the basis for forcing a good and caring man from the Senate. No due process. No investigation by Ethics Committee to evaluate the merits of the charges. His sterling record in The Senate accounting for nothing.
Instead, the Dems have bowed to moral outrage, moral absolutism and political grandstanding by some senators, forsaking any long-term strategy. In so doing, they have exposed their soft underbelly to the enemy. That is why they are consigned to the political wilderness, and will remain there.
16
Franken CHOSE to resign. In doing such, it is he who stopped the ethics committee from going forward - which, as a senator wanting to keep his seat - IS his due process.
2
He was run out on a rail. 32 (or 35?) Dem senators came out to call on him to resign - before the ethics process started! In his speech, he pointed to the fact that it was a distraction. And wanted to have the party avoid the distraction. The Dems - predictably - shoot themselves in the foot. Again.
6
Let's leave aside for a moment the specific accusations against the men caught up in this wave of sexual misconduct allegations and just consider the chilling effect it will likely have on men who are scared of being accused.
I'm not saying that the women coming forward don't deserve to have their claims taken seriously, just that if we get too carried away with a passion for righting past wrongs we may end up doing more overall harm than good. The accuser shouldn't be intimidated from coming forward, but the accused should also not be intimidated into capitulating.
Consider what has happened to morale in many police precincts since all those cameraphone videos came out. The unforeseen consequence of the slew of caught videos taken together was that it became a sort of media fad; they became hungry for repetition. Eventually, the fad waned, and we don't hear about the incidents anymore.
While the problem of police abuse and excessive force is a very serious problem worthy of attention, the national media became obsessed with the latest filmed outrage. A lot of people I know, of various races, think of cops as potential assailants more than protectors. Police effectiveness has declined in many areas.
The net result of the sensationalization of any controversial issue these days is bitter polarization, not nearly enough progress or synthesis of the needs and beliefs of each side. The issues matter a great deal, but we are being driven apart by fear and resentment.
9
What Congress can learn from Franken's treatment by other Democratic Senators is that if one does something bad never admit it and nobody can do anything about it but if one confesses one will be crushed by others who want to be seen as uncompromising by their constituents. This groups of Senators are unconcerned about giving Republicans a shot at more seats in that body from a special election to replace Franken, in November.
13
Franken needed to go. If not for the myriad allegations, then definitely for that incriminating photograph that was forever seared upon our minds. There was never any excuse for that type of behavior, but men like Franken made many excuses for themselves and their friends anyway. To think that we wouldn't hold Franken to the new realistic standard of expecting his resignation is holding onto that fading old world in which men make excuses for inexcusable behavior.
4
On the road to the moral high ground don't lose sight of the founding democratic principle of due process, equal justice under law.
21
Al Franken was railroaded by a gang of women out for blood who cared little for due process or what the voters of Minnesota wanted.
My hope is that when his former Senate seat is up for a vote in 2018, that Al Franken puts his hat in the ring and lets the voters of Minnesota decide if they want him as their Senator.
I hope he gives them that chance, because I bet that they still do, and will, when they see the other options available.
20
I was just denied my vote for Al Franken by the Democratic Party. I will no longer support a party that doesn't support it's members. I was upset when they super sized Hillary Clinton in the primaries and gave us few choices for presidential candidates. We need some artificial intelligence in 21st century or we are doomed to political failure.
16
Exactly. You, and 1,053,204 of your fellow citizens who voted for Franken in 2014.
2
The exploitation of women by men who could harass and assault them with impunity if they were powerful or influential or wealth has been so frequent and occurred in the same way for hundreds of generations must result in very deep resentments and longing for retribution, and that is driving the extreme responses to men who have been accused of misconduct involving sexual motivations since Mr. Weinstein's egregiously bad behavior towards women became public. They are extreme because the only the fact of having engaged in wrong acts is sufficient for the most severe penalties not due to proven criminality, and there is no consideration for the penalties varying in severity to the harm done. One nasty incident is equivalent to decades and hundreds of even more egregious behaviors.
But one must also consider the motivations of the Senators who demanded Franken resign. They are serving the wants of a lot of constituents who want them to show strong actions against those who have preyed upon women. In addition, the kinds of people who run for high office seldom are more egotistical than are most people, if they can make a big splash by being associated with a well publicized issue, it's irresistible for them to compete to be center stage.
4
Franken, falling on his sword, creates no change in Congress, except to weaken the Democratic Party. Great!
None of the Republicans are copying him. They like to elect their rapists and pedophiles, because they want seats in Congress.
The Dems, in pressuring him to quit without due process, have lost one of the best minds in Congress.
A battle is being fought for the futures of average Americans. The current Congress has no compunction about making poor and middle class Americans pay higher taxes, and lose their Social Security, Medicare and Welfare for it, just so the rich can be richer. They're removing sacred public land and turning it over to mining and coal interests.
Franken is the guy who did such a good job of grilling Jeff Sessions, that Mueller's special investigation was started. He's been one of the best Senators the Dems have had. And he's responding to "outcry" -- he hasn't been proven guilty of anything.
Times have changed. Dems sporting halos and taking the "PC" route will not work in this very visceral battle for America. They need to fight as viciously as any Republican--they've got enough ammo.
None of the Republicans are resigning -- they have sense enough to fight for votes in Congress.
The Dems can save the piety for later. They must now focus on a more important battle...getting elected.
And Franken should not resign before bring proven guilty.
27
The great strategic failure of the Hillary Clinton campaign was believing that demographics, women and minorities, could carry the day. If you were male, particularly a white male, listening to her stump speeches for some word for you, all you heard was howling emptiness. Democrats are on course to replace that howling emptiness with a howling mob. Purging Franken without the hearing he requested and deserved, without thereby holding out to men generally the promise of due process and proportional justice in this "cultural turning point," is a catastrophic political miscalculation.
21
Al Franken apologized. He voluntarily offered to submit to an ethics investigation. Roy Moore is denying that anything happened, even with solid evidence that it did. Also, Roy Moore's actions were appalling, and probably criminal. Franken's were somewhat boorish and juvenile.
Did any of the women accusing Franken of bad behavior say anything to him at the time? Seems to me he was blindsided, and that eventually we'll learn that the Republicans set him up.
Men are going to be afraid of even looking women in the eye, for fear of being accused of leering. This has absolutely gone too far. The Democrats are going to lose men's *and* women's votes. I'm a Gillibrand constituent, and I believe she has overstepped big time.
22
Will Congress learn from this? In a word:
NO.
11
Come on Bruce, it's Christmas! We can dream can't we?!
What a rosy assessment of the Al Franken episode by the Board.
"In demanding Mr. Franken’s resignation, the Democratic Party seized an opportunity to atone for its own bad history, including President Bill Clinton’s sexual misconduct"
No, they didn't. The Democratic Party is still controlled by the Clinton cabal and Juanita Broaddrick has yet to see justice. Neither Bill or Hillary have publicly acknowledged nor apologized for their despicable behavior. Bill still receives his POTUS benefits.
The Rs are laughing all the way to the bank right now, thinking “Gee, this was too easy. We didn't even have to do anything, They did it to themselves. Hahahaha”.
And they have every right to laugh and gloat. They got even more than they wanted out of this. They get to have a genitalia-grabber as president and a alleged pedophile running Alabama (he will win) while the Dems are self sabotaging.
Well played GOP. Kudos.
The Dem establishment is filled with people with misplaced priorities, disconnected from real life, tactically challenged and they wonder why we ended up with Trump in the WH.
None of the laws our legislators enact affect them.
They can afford taking the high road, they got the luxury for some grandstanding because their livelihoods, jobs, healthcare etc. aren't at stake here. They are all sitting pretty. For them this is some abstract exercise; to make a point.
And for apparatchiks Gillibrand, Harris et.al. a chance to position themselves to LOSE in 2020.
Truly pathetic
27
Just a ludicrous editorial
28
The resistance just like the revolution eats it's own.
11
What I learned was how vile the Democratic Senators can be. You see them running for cover, willing to sacrifice Franken in an effort to claim the mantel of moral purity for Democrats. Oh, none of us would ever behave like that. It's just the Republicans and Roy Moore, who Alabama voters will soon install, not fazed by his sexual misbehavior, "ethics" or "morality."
Democrats, always pure, like Kennedy, Roosevelt etc.
What a spineless bunch of self righteous eunuchs.
18
I should not have trusted my lying eyes when I observed Al Frankens hands hovering several inches above the top of his accuser's bullet proof vest in that stupid photo. Most media reported that he had grabbed her breasts, as did the accuser herself, so here we are.
20
This editorial and the Democratic Party's unified stance, asking Franken to resign, is "group-speak." How could mere loutish behavior --grabbing someone's butt or hugging them too tightly during a photo-op rise to the level of Conyers's offenses: forcing women out of jobs because of refusing his sexual demands?
I am a transplanted NYC woman (soon to return), and I'm dismayed at Gillebrand's spearheading this. Why do I think Franken's case is separate from the others?
This loutish behavior was towards women who were not compromised because of job security. They were free citizens, unencumbered by such considerations. These episodes occurred in public spaces where no threat to the women's safety existed. They were all grown women. If women can't be empowered to thwart undesirable behavior from men, then how fragile will be public perception about our strengths and abilities.
Casual slights, insults are part of daily commerce. In my NYC career I assembled art collections for corporations. If a client made a demeaning comment about a piece of artwork I was presenting, I didn't like it, but I sought to educate them rather than impugn them.
One of Franken's accusers published an article in the Atlantic, overblown, in my view.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/12/i-believe-frankens-...
Perhaps young, impressionable women should look to heroines rather than heroes so our disappointments will be less painful.
12
Gillibrand led a lynch mob. What ever happened to due process?
26
The only intelligent commentary in the NYT on the entire Senator Franken matter has come from your readers. Your pundits (Michelle Goldberg I am looking at you) had their sanctimonious heads in the sand and all the NYT commentary like this effete opinion are trying to offend no one and play all sides. While trying to offend no one you have offended the great majority of your readers if you bother to read the thousands and thousands of readers comments who feel that they and Senator Franken have been maligned. First by their own party and secondly by the paper that we read for information and guidance.
When will anyone at the NYT grow a pair in this circumstance and stop lumping Franken in with actual sexual predators? Michelle Goldberg's first article calling for Franken to resign the minute that the first allegation came forward set the lynch mob in motion. I just started reading her columns and my opinion of her will forever be tainted by this miscarriage of justice and her role and ergo the NYT's role in it. I have subscribed to the NYT for 15 years now and am sorely disappointed that only the readers have lucid, convincing opinions on this matter.
26
It's gotten to the point where I come to the New York Times almost solely for its smart reader's comments. I've been a subscriber for decades, still get daily home delivery, but it is on this sidebar where the sharp thinking is to be found.
4
Some of you might remember one old western cliché.
There's the fella in jail who everyone in town believes is guilty.
No one wants to wait for the long and boring judicial process to take its course. They're angry. They're living in their limbic brains...except nobody knew what the limbic brain was back then. They grab their torches and march on the jail.
Out comes the stolid sheriff with his shotgun. After a long moment and a dispassionate gaze, he talks of mob rule. And it's bad. Best wait for the circuit court judge to arrive "Cause we need law in this town.”
Helps if he spits after uttering that line.
But he’s guilty the crowd shouts as they move toward the sheriff.
"Well, you can kill me," the sheriff says easily, "but I'll get at least five of you. Starting with you, [mob member name] and you [mob member most of them know is a jerk].
One gun or shotgun cock sound later the crowd always disperses. Justice prevails.
Except for Wednesday night.
Doesn't matter if the guy the person the sheriff is protecting is guilty or innocent, you see. It's about the law.
There’s no law in the me-too movement. Just guilt about a past creating an evanescent reality of the moment – emotionally satisfying for some, but unsustainable, on multiple levels, for a nation (allegedly) built on rule of law.
This should be a movement that produces enduring, permanent change. But it can’t get there this way.
11
I'll leave the NY Times Editorial Board and their allies in the corporate DNC with one last thought. I've read over 100 of these comments in the "Readers' Picks" section, and not one, that is not one approves of the railroading of Al Franken. In fact, many are extremely angry in their disapproval.
So, DNC and NYT — although I've made this plea before — would you consider listening to your political base and subscribers? Maybe you'll finally figure out what the "American people" want.
24
I'm not feeling the optimism, Editorial Board
15
This editorial is flat out dumb, and can't even come to terms with plain facts. Senator Franken's alleged offenses weren't investigated nor was there any weighing of proportion, plus the whole affair of judgment and execution was done in frantic haste. With a Democratic Party like this, it is all too understandable why the Republicans control the federal government and much of state and local governments. I worked for the '08 Obama Campaign. I will never vote, much less work, for any of the Democratic senators involved in this travesty. The Republicans are rolling on the floor laughing at the stupidity of the Democratic Senators.
I
25
Republican congressman Farenthold MUST Resgin NOW. And, Republican Leadership MUST make it untenable for him to stay in Congress. If they don't force this guy out, they will loose my vote in the next election.
3
Democrats self-flagellate, to the delight of the Republicans.
And the thinking is that this will somehow ultimately improve ethics in the Republican party?? It is to laugh. Yielding the field to an enemy who cares nothing of your crises of conscience. Ridiculous.
6
When will the NY Time ‘atone’ for their over blown coverage of the Clinton Email Investigation? The institution of the Times took that Storey like a rabid dog with a bone, and seeded doubt about Secretary Clinton’s integrity and trustworthiness. You had as much to do with the current Trump environment as any mistakes her Campaign made along he way. President Clinton had a sexual relationship with a young, consenting adult. He lied about it, but the activity, while unseemly, and inappropriate was not illegal. The Democrats have nothing to atone for in supporting the president while the hypocritical Republicans in the House impeached him. The downfall of Gingrich and Livingston, both embroiled in their own illicit affairs while condemning Clinton should remind us of how corrupted the system was at the time. Things sadly have not improved but the notion that Democrats have something particular to atone for is rubbish!
6
We need a party for the rest us!!
10
"the Democratic Party seized an opportunity to atone for its own bad history, including President Bill Clinton’s sexual misconduct"
Bearing in mind that it was the Times itself that not only published Steinem's much-criticized op-ed defending him, but has since scrubbed the version in their searchable archives so that all the most egregious points are gone.
Which certainly looks like literally rewriting history, no?
8
No, this is not the first time women are speaking out. Many women have spoken out for decades against sexual harassment. I'm one of them.
And no, this is not the Democratic party atoning for past sins. This is Kirsten Gillibrand running for president and -- aided and abetted by the NYT op-ed page, and now the editorial page -- sacrificing one of our best senators to jump on a bandwagon.
Senator Franken was denied an ethics investigation and forced out on the basis of questionable allegations; allegations, that in any case pale in comparison to charges made against others, were repeated, including on these pages, as truth. For some reason only resignation -- no lesser censure -- was going to satisfy.
The people of Minnesota elected and valued Senator Franken. Their voice apparently doesn't matter. The rest of the country lost an irreplaceable voice for democracy and justice. That apparently doesn't matter either. Meanwhile, the task of providing effective remedies at the level of the ordinary workplace remains untouched. Indeed, one of the legislators most likely to champion and support such measures has fallen.
The Times should be ashamed of its part in this.
35
We learned from the democrats and their Left-wind ideology (that killed millions in the Gulags who were not even charged with a crime) that allowing yourself to be crucified when you are innocent so your party can claim to have the "moral high ground" is .... rational? And it really is a good idea to essentially give any women a license to kill a man with false accusations, always assume a man's guilt, because then more women will vote democratic in elections. Oh that's right Franken was a comedian so he gets it! As he said "the irony" that he is not actually guilty of anything that his lynching was a political theatre necessary to set up a moronic "now show us yours" challenge to the Republicans. Apparently the democratic leadership must think that most Americans are "baskets" of idiots as well. And then of course we are all supposed to know or will also "learn" that the democratic party will pay him off for his hypocritical sacrifice with no-work corporate board memberships, head of 'foundation' positions and book deals that will pay him many, many, many millions for his needless humiliation.
9
Al Franken's willingness to resign says a great deal about his character. I expect that, after the dust settles, The House and Senate will go back to business as usual. I hope not but that is what I expect.
4
And when exactly is the press going to get around to investigating these claims against Mr Franken the first of which is the most egregious and easily proven false!?
23
Aristotle Gluteus Maximus Louisiana false
Why is the word "false" in the headline of my comment where the time elapsed since posting should be? I didn't put it there.
2
I'm not going to be happy if Gillibrand becomes the 2020 Democratic nominee. After Trump, we are going to need a solid, measured, thoughtful, intelligent president to pull the country back together. Gillibrand just demonstrated to me that she is not above using an issue to draw attention to herself at the expense of a good Senator. Yes, Franken behaved badly, but unlike Moore, he is not a child predator, and certainly is not in league with Weinstein. This matter should have played out in the Ethics Committee where Moore's ethics should be evaluated as well if he enters the Senate.
I am grateful that the overall issue of sexual misconduct is now being publicly aired and hopefully will no longer be tolerated. Hopefully, this new sensitivity towards respecting the sovereignty of women's bodies will usher in a new age of equality, but let us not move from one extreme to the other. The majority of Moore's and Weinstein's accusers' stories rang true, depicting harrowing experiences indelibly etched on the minds of these women. Leeann Tweeden's story sounded more like a political stunt to me - that was my initial reaction long before Brzezinski voiced a similar opinion this morning. The point is, it is wrong to lump all the stories together and it is wrong to pass judgement as though they are all the same - even when there is a political advantage in doing so.
28
Not a small thing: as an attorney, Gillibrand had no qualms about representing Big Tobacco... is this the kind of 'principle' that we are looking for in our party? Someone willing to sell their soul to a lying and destructive corporate entity? I'd take one Franken over a whole congress filled with Gillibrands. Gender isn't the sole indicator of how good or principled someone is. I don't discount the importance of calling out sexual harassers; however nothing I have heard about Franken causes me to believe he is one;, and it deserves a considered inquiry. Maybe he's a bit clueless at times, but educate-able and certainly not someone who would sell out principles for political gain. This whole 'rah, rah' atmosphere about women's power, and 'turning the tables' is not helpful in actually addressing issues of abuse of power that happen not only with men in the particular context of sexual harassment (something I've personally experienced), but also with women (something I've also experienced). Let's not get so self-congratulatory in the face of mob rule and mccarthy-esque tactics. I don't think it will change things in the way the celebrators think it will.. and I am concerned about the backlash to creating an atmosphere where every perceived misstep invokes pitchforks.
8
The NYTimes-the paper of false equivalence-puts the behavior of Al Franken in a group with Roy Moore?
Somehow the Times Editors opinion is that the “Democratic Party” is using this as an opportunity to “atone for its bad history”? Seriously?
There is something wrong when the Times defends their puff piece of Nazism in Ohio, while still agonizing when to use the word LIE when it comes to Donald Trump.
32
"What Congress Can Learn from Al Franken"? The Republicans can learn that by smearing Democrats on sex accusations (serious or trivial or in between) they can get rid of Democratic Senators (effective ones, especially), while by denying or ignoring accusations against themselves they can get elected. It's interesting that some lesser Republicans are also feeling the heat, but the imbalance is still there.
35
At least I hope the "bright moral contrast" between Dems and the GOP will be seen by voters. I hope that the Roy Moore issue can put to rest the idea that Republicans are the party of morality.
Still, I am saddened by Franken's departure. Smart, articulate politicians who clearly care about the issues are much needed, and he leaves, in this way, big shoes to fill.
13
The Congress need to focus on " # Me too " movements ' growing influence on almost a very wide range of problem at Work places across the United States . Speaker Ryan has committed to say and do to openly and fairly with bipartisan support to have a policy . The call for more training has become an outdated SOP in Government agencies , business corporations and public institutions . The new approach need to include : i ) The news reports are that $15 million of Tax payers funds have been paid to cover up cases of sexual harassment and sexual assault crimes, if any in Congress . There should be full disclosure of all those past and present Congressmen and staff if any asap . ii ) Sen. Franken should not be the only one left to resign . Rather it’s time about to call on Clarence Thomas . Why in the aftermath of 2016 presidential election result GOP in Congress has become intensely partisan ? Almost all others on Tax payers pay rolls reported are open to face removal from their jobs . Also every one of " them " accused in public of sexual assault and harassment need to become part of the process , of public hearings by appropriate Committee ( s) ) in the Congress . This is one urgent issue as of Women rights . What do you think
With what happened to Al Franken, the Republicans can now claim that they're the ones that stand up for due process. Nice work, Kirsten.
On another note, Ms. Green's experiences point to a long standing procedural need. Those who complain of harassment, exploitation, and discrimination in the work place are typically ostracized from the work place--i.e. unemployed. If we are going to adequately address those problems, we need some sort of safe process for resolving them, so that an employee that complains of harassment does not sacrifice his/her career by doing so.
9
Is it ok to throw Franken under the bus without question? This new feminist movement that demands we "believe the woman" without questioning is going to backfire and hurt Democrats. Does anyone else in America see the potential abuse of this movement? We just kicked one of our best to the curb without questioning the political motives that may have underscored some of the acusations against Franken. A turning point? I doubt that. Franken proved his bonafides and the women who accused Franken did not. This is a very sad day for men and women. No more slaps on the back, no more hugging regardless of how innocent...someone may feel uncomfortable and come back to haunt you in the future.
29
More than anything, for me, lifelong Democrat, I see now that no one will come to save us from this hell we are in. Their actions against Al are so demoralizing. These grandstanding Senators do not listen to their constituents any more that the Republicans. They think about their own careers first. Could part of why they threw Franken under the bus is that he truly spoke for the people he served and therefore was not afraid to rock the boat. The contrast was too obvious. Out he goes.
The Republican party (and Putin too), want nothing more than to divide
the Dems so I will support the party for now. But if we ever get out of this nightmare we are in, I will work with those building a third party. Shameless.
34
Wow. So Franken is paying for the sins of Clinton? Now there's a bargain from hell. Franken should stay!
44
I think the demand that Sen. Al Franken resign without due process proves that some women get emotional, and can not think in straight lines.
13
Let it also be noted to Sarah Huckabee Sanders that using the same tired response that Trump's sins were "litigated during the election" needs to be called out and blown up. Never mind that 75% or more of the nation believe those women. The bigger reason is that change can happen suddenly and the watershed moment the nation's brave women started in October means Mr. Trump's actions should be more ferociously spotlighted and re-litigated in the court of public opinion or the court of law.
7
If you are male in America today, you have to be asking, "Does the Democratic party even acknowledge that I and my point of view exist?" This is a political mistake of the highest order. The Democratic party is seeking leverage in greater purity at a moment when it should be seeking leverage in greater common sense. Where Trump is vulnerable across the board for flouting the rule of law, Democrats are marking their party as one in which accused men cannot even get a hearing. If women voting women's rights could alone elect a president, Trump would not be in the White House nor Congress in GOP hands. But Hillary couldn't win a majority of white women, despite the Access Hollywood video. For every woman inspired by this belated pose of righteousness to vote Democratic, there are dozens of men growing queasy at the spectacle of media-frenzy mob justice and women worried that this, out of control, might reach their men and their family incomes. There is little real prospect of that last; instead, the more likely is that it will be lost on few working women that this is a "women's moment" that does not reach their lives and workplaces; that only men, only some, in elite, highly public positions can be shamed into stepping aside; that, absent new, aggressive labor law enforcement, the only beneficiaries of this are upper class career women. The problem is deep and broad, but this media-driven recrudescence of 70's feminism is as shallow as ever, as alienating as it is inspiring.
22
Fewer women (41%) than men (45%) said that they thought Franken should resign. That's across the ideological range, which had 27% of liberals saying he should resign, 40% of moderates, and 61% of conservatives.
The actions of some senators, initiated by Gillibrand, don't appear to be a good reflection of the views of their constituents. I certainly disagree, although I am a woman who has experienced sexual harassment.
17
MeToo
2
What Franken taught me was this: If you keep your moral ground and do the right thing, you lose to the cowardly weasels that now welcome a pedophile into the halls of Congress. Happy, Kristen?
46
Democrats are obviously easy targets. Let us see how critical the women's caucus, the repubs in general, and other are in holding the self confessed molester in chief and the child molester
5
Careful. These gains can be lost. Grabbing a butt prior to entering the Senate is not commensurate with touching the genitals of a 14 year old at any time. And slamming Paul Ryan, while generally a laudable exercise, is excessive if the fact that he essentially ordered Franks to resign is ignored while lambasting his "usual partisan courage." He does plenty enough real wrong without the Times editorial board resorting to cheap shots.
7
The GOP is learning nothing. That party supports a child molester to be a US Senator.
5
They are learning:
Accusations are enough to hang anyone. Facts and investigations are not required.
NYT columnists like Michelle Goldberg should serve as prosecutor, jury, and judge. We don't need no stinking law
Miss Big Tobacco Gillibrand will run for President on the backs of Franken and others. It's her turn, after all
35
Now if someone can convince some young man to come forward and accuse Elizabeth Warren of groping him while he was a young law student, the Dems can completely decapitate the Liberal faction of their Party. I suppose we should just learn to survive as citizens of a new Fascist Country.
33
With a protected boastful sexual predator in the Oval Office, what can Congress learn from Al Franken? Nothing, as they've so far proved.
13
So far, the "metoo" movement has bagged a senator, three congressmen, roiled our government in scandal for three months, and promoted themselves as candidates while screaming for more heads to roll. Yet, somehow, many people still don't think this is about politics.
14
Will we be able to change the culture of abuse and harassment without things devolving into a kangaroo court of public opinion. I don't find it ironic that Franken is leaving while t rump is staying. I find it criminal.
Huckabeesanders has said Franken deserves what he gets because he admitted his behavior, while t rump and moore are OK since they are denying their accusers. Well t rump is denying them now.
Maybe a couple of displays of courage from men like Franken and even Conyers will inspire some of their republican colleagues to grow a spine.
Nah.....ain't gonna happen.
12
What voters can learn from Dems pushing Al Franken under the bus:
Dems lack courage, conviction, loyalty and a goal
Sucking up to Wall Street a la Gillibrand, Schumer is not a problem
Trivial sexual allegations are, however
Dems are losers
26
I’m a woman and like most have experienced their share of sloppy kisses, a pinched waist, a pat on the butt or thigh. And, know the difference between a Pass and real sexual abuse and harassment.
The media, women corespondents and congressional women have created a hysterical atmosphere making a pinched waist equivalent to a 14-year-old being sexually molested. This is an out-of-control witch hunt, which articles such as this continue to perpetrate.
I consider myself a Center-Left Democrat, who supported Bernie and voted for Hillary. I was upset after the DNCs disastrous decision to throw Bernie under the bus and support Clinton with all her baggage for president. I’ve been waiting for them to get their act together.
Instead, they again, throw their most likable and influential senator under the bus forcing Franken to resign from spurious, unproven allegations.
I’m done with the Dems.
Senator Franken - please - switch parties and become an Independent.
33
So let me understand: The "standard" for being fired from Congress is now inappropriate conduct, which may fall short of sexual assault, both during and prior to one's taking office. Well, let's line them up and shoot them down, because this is just the beginning. In Franken's case, it isn't groping a woman's vagina and bragging about it (Trump), molesting teenage girls (Moore) or exposure and masturbation (Weinstein). Not that this excuses Franken's conduct, but the allegations against him do not rise to the same level as the others. Republicans say "let the voters decide" in the casea of Trump and Moore, but Democrats are unwilling to give the same choice to Minnesota voters -- or even allow Franken the opportunity to defend himself before the Ethics Committee. Guilty as accused on all counts.
Okay, fair enough. People shouldn't be subject to behavior that is offensive or degrading, both physically and verbally (the latter would bring multiple charges against Trump). But are those standards going to be applied universally? We'll see. It will be interesting to witness the response of Congressional women when one of their own is accused of sexual harassment -- either while serving in office or at some point in their prior careers. Given the nature of power, and its corrupting influence on the human psyche, this is bound to happen.
One can only hope that Franken's replacement has the same record in support of women's rights as did he.
12
This editorial is completely off base. The backlash against those #MeToo-er opportunist who are destroying the lives of any "icky boy" that ever made them feel "uncomfortable" is frightening to millions of men and women. Read the comments. Talk to us.
I have never voted for a Republican. Never plan to. But two senators lost my support yesterday when they called for Franken to resign.
If we take every accusation (save the provably false ones, of which there are two), and just accept that they are all completely true, this warrants a stern lecture.
I've worked more phone banks than I can count for Democratic candidates. I've canvased, driven voters to the polls, been a precinct captain and given more money than was wise (and I get umpteen thousand emails a day from innumerable candidates for my generosity). But everyone who supported this travesty is out.
Tonight, I have no party. My party left me. I am angry. I am bitter. And I'm praying Al Franken changes his mind and tells every self-serving jerk who urged him to resign to go take a flying leap.
35
If a Democrat does something wrong, run him or her out of town.
If a Republican does something 10 times worse (child molestation, anyone?), look the other way.
What a bunch of flaming hypocrites the Republicans are.
5
The women of the united States senate: you just mutated the #metoo movement into sexual Mccarthyism.
28
The Times is wrong on this one. You've joined a lynch mob.
37
Congress. Here is Franen lesson in a nutshell. 1)Don't grope women's breasts when they are sleeping and then take a picture of your stupidity. 2)Don't shove your disgusting tongue down women's throats and blame the skit you were rehearsing.
2
What Congress can learn, is that Democrats would do anything in knee jerking reaction to occupy the moral high grounds and will not protect their own. This is perhaps more of a lesson for future politicians.
6
The spiteful GOP attack throwing a few lousy made-up claims over the fence in an effort to smear a popular contender has been met with a spectacular move to self-mutilate by the Democrats who responded by burning their own place down in the consternation, probably taking out two contenders in one strike: Al Franken and Kirsten Gillibrand, who both come out strongly wounded.
Gillibrand had caught my positive attention with her efforts against human trafficking. She just burnt the credit.
I was already not free to escape unwanted massive for-profit pollution, rigged science and its devastating offspring, a cost and debt prison built by market and political power abuse forcing me to involuntarily co-finance incredible predator wealth while robbing me of quality lifetime, and unwanted peeping into my private correspondence and online history by the NSA, NSA- or other party-enabled hackers, my provider and browser giants, or by the folks the Trump admin parachutes into the NSA. Now my freedom is also gone, if folks like Roger Stone or the people working for 'Project Veritas' want to hit me, unless I'm very lucky and they blow their cover. I can't even begin to gather the emojis that would do the job of expressing my outrage and sorrow. But hey, conceded, I volunteered for life and it still gives me freedom to speak up and respond within the walls of all these prisons, though the moderation here is doing a helluva job in even taking a strong bite out of that over at this place.
3
You are arguing that it is necessary to burn a woman accused of witchcraft without really caring if she is innocent. Else you are on the side of Satan.
If this is indeed what the ladies of the Senate demand, it is an argument for voting for men. It reinforces all those long forgotten arguments about the emotional judgements of women that kept them out of political life until one hundred years ago. Is that really what you want? This could end up doing for feminism what Bull Conner did for segregation.
8
If any of the ultra politically correct female senators who ultimately took down Franken runs for president in 2020, I will not vote for them.
While Franken may have made some mistakes it appears they were relatively harmless. Putting a hand around someone's waste is far different from grabbing someone in the crotch. Same for the "photo op" with the "victim" wearing a flak jacket!
Yet the reaction to Franken has been grossly disproportionate but proves woman can be every bit as arrogant and foolish as men.
The senators responsible for this outrage have yet to realize that their unorthodox political correctness is a large part of what propelled Trump to the presidency. Here's wishing you another 4 years of him!
11
A reminder to Franken fans: he chose to resign and to avoid an ethics review. Senator Franken swiftly opted to leave. Perhaps this is an indicator that more reports of harassment were coming. Those of you so eager to jump on his bandwagon of support do so with blinders on. The picture of him standing beside a sleeping woman, mimicking the squeezing of her breasts, as a man in his 50s, is compelling in light of 6 accusations made against him, but quickly brushed under the rug because he was a "likable guy".
4
He was a like-able guy to all the women who worked with him save one. He had no history of abuse of power or predatory behavior. There is nothing wrong with believing the women, but there is something wrong if you only believe the women who are making the accusations and don't look elsewhere. There was nothing else on him.
3
“It’s a boys’ club … you’ve got to play by the rules and keep quiet about it, The feedback that was given to me was, if I wouldn’t stay quiet and fall in line, then my career was over.- Lauren Greene, former Communications Director for Congressman Blake Farenthold
Representative Farenthold, who once posed with scantily clad lingerie models wearing his yellow duckie flannel pajamas,( google it), until fairly recently was the proud owner of the domain name blow_me.org.
Just vote him out you say? This is one of the Texas districts ruled unconstitutional by a federal panel because the boundaries were drawn along racial lines, drawn to guarantee the election of a Republican. He continues to serve, while Ms. Greene has been turned down for nearly 100 jobs, and now babysits for extra cash.
6
Apparently the "Editorial Board" who authored this article not take notice that many of commenters on the NYT lead article about Sen. Franken's resignation, see the democrats who called for his resignation as playing politics at his expense.
10
The elephant in the room on the Franken matter is NY State Junior Senator, Kristin Gillibrand.
Read her Facebook page. Her own followers are dead set against her position on Al Franken and have been warning her that she is showing her blind presidential ambition and betraying all of us who are concerned with staying focused on real outrages:
The Republican Tax Theft
Wealth Transfer
Health Care Elimination
Social Security Theft via sequester using a $1.75 Trillion hole the GOP 'tax bill' produces
Medicare elimination via the same devious route
Gutting of voting rights and civil rights protections
Electing known pederasts as U.S. Senators
Allowing a Traitor to Occupy the White House
Allowing the sale of state secrets and weapons in exchange for bribes
Obstructing justice and interfering with investigations
The trolls weighing in, in favor of the Franken railroading have been given their talking points and direction from the fringe Right, Drudge Report and Brightbart. This is all part of the weaponization of the web by a small group of white supremacist fascists and the Times is misguided in thinking its part of a larger trend. Gillibrand is more misguided in letting her personal ambition blind her to being used in such a cheap and destructive manner. No finesse or tact, let alone discretion on Gillibrand's part in evidence whatsoever.
18
Ever hear of a book called the Ox Bow Incident? In summary, a group of self-appointed vigilantes sets out to catch some cattle rustlers. They find some men innocent camping nearby and try and hang them. Meanwhile, the real sheriff has located the real cattle rustlers elsewhere.
This came to mind when I read about Franken's ouster from the Senate.
15
“When they go low, we go high,” Michelle Obama asserted in 2016.
How did that work out?
Republicans are bringing bazookas to a gun fight, and Dems respond by shooting themselves in the foot.
15
If the Resistance / IndivisibleAgainstTrump / MediaMatters Democrats had not spent the last year politically harassing President Trump, their current escalation of the same would have far more credibility . The Democrat Party seems unable or unwilling to just " MoveOn. "
1
I'm a Democrat who sees no "irony" in the reluctant resignation of Al Franken. Mr. Franken represents a political party that is also reluctantly drawing a bright moral scarlet line on sexual misconduct for our heretofore immune political elite. The debasement of sexual morality by our Chief Executive in his own tape recorded self-admission of sexual abuse and his recent endorsement of a man accused of being a pedophile by numerous women is well beyond "irony," it is clearly immoral if not criminal. On this day, I'm proud to be Democrat and a constituent of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand who took the lead in protecting women by saying, "Enough is enough" to Mr. Franken. It's time that the powerful men who cross the line into sexual misconduct lose their jobs rather than their victims like Ms. Greene and many others [Disclosure: I, too, was fired--twice--decades apart for standing up to powerful men who had committed similar acts of sexual harassment.] I'm proud also to say #MeToo.
3
Yes, there may be a welcome cultural shift ... no, Franken's resignation is not a good thing. A "cultural shift" that does not equally apply to legislators of both parties is not a good thing. A "cultural shift" accompanied by scapegoating, by a failure of due process, by the hounding out of a good and capable senator on the basis of unproven and frankly suspicious allegations is not a good thing. Perhaps Franken did need to go, but in the absence of a proper Ethics Committee process we will never know. That is not a good thing, especially when the Politicaster in the White House continues to serve in the face of much more credible evidence of sexual inappropriateness, especially when the GOP senate candidate in Alabama looks likely to be elected despite much more credible evidence of predatory pedophilia.
A "cultural shift" that disenfranchises only the Democrats but not the Republicans is not a good thing; it is, in fact, no shift at all. It's just a cynical misuse of the pain endured by generations of women. It is very likely to continue and probably the next Democrat to be accused will be from a state where the sitting governor is a solid Republican. This "cultural shift" may very well become the next government-rigging tool in the GOP bag of dirty tricks.
6
When a woman's statement that Franken touched her waist and squeezed TWICE is cited as evidence demanding the political death penalty, the world has gone insane. No, contrary to some reports, Franken did not grab the women's breasts through her flack jacket. He posed a stupid and grossly insensitive picture pretending to do so.
Franken should have been sent a "sexual harassment for dummies" course and, at worst, sanctioned by the Senate.
Moore is a despicable person but even a despicable person has a right to something other than mob justice. The citizens of Alabama can make the choice and, if they do elect him, I can assume the Senate will conduct some investigation. And, they can do it with the same safety net the Democrats had when they hounded Franken out the Senate - the assurance that the governor will appoint someone of the same party of the exiting Senator.
To all those claiming the moral high ground for the Democrats, do you really think they would have done it in the weeks preceding an election so as to guarantee a GOP candidate the seat?
6
What a stupid editorial. Anything the liberal elites sell, the New York Times and MSN must go along with. Selling this Polisi, Schumer line, is like Trump telling us the tax bill is great for middle-class Americans. I am what would be called a liberal. I have voted democratic for thirty years and I wonder now, why I was loyal. This shows no discretion, no common sense, no political sense and worst of all it was not even remotely fair to Mr. Franken. Allegations or not facts the NY Times should know this better than anyone else. We will have Moore and Trump, but no Franken, wow. Mark my words this whole me too thing when women un bravely come out years later with complaints will die down, the hysteria will die out and democrats will be scarcer.
17
This article is totally out of touch with what actually happened. Al Franken was bullied out by "holier-than-thou" Democratic Senators, the final blow coming from its women. The blowback to these Senators has been big in the last 24 hours. Democrats need to get off the cross. We need the wood.
24
Democrats eat their own.
Al Frankenstein resieigned because a man of integrity doesn’t want to be where he is no wanted. The other senators that called for his resignation can now resign themselves to ignominity
7
You're assuming Franken abused his power. There is no proof of that, only unsubstantiated allegations. If this episode proves anything, it's that Establishment Dems are more out of touch than previously indicated; that they have no respect for due process - "innocent until proven guilty"; and that they wet themselves and over-react at every turn. It also shows that the Dem Party does not deserve your vote.
8
The question I want answered is, "Why have the TAXPAYERS been footing the bill for the hush money shelled out to the victims of these men's libidos?" I think it is a travesty that those in the halls of power don't have to come out of pocket when they can't keep their hands to themselves or their zippers up. Does the Freedom of Information Act cover the public acquiring access to the bribes paid by Congress? It should.
1
Congress can learn to let democratic due process run its course and not bully a good man out of the Senate. the American people by everything I have read on social media are very upset by this hatchet job done to a good MAN. New York Times very conveniently is not mentioning the support Franken is getting on their very own pages..not by the reporters but in the posts. Radical feminism is trying to take over the democratic party and its going to lead to disaster. people would rather vote for Pedophiles right now rather then democrats which is the most bizzare true thing that has ever been said about American politics.
5
Cultural shift? Gimme a break, I'm 70, I was part of the "sexual revolution". We sure had a lot to do in those days to get to equal everything. But this hysteria about sexual abuse makes me sick. Franken was on our side. I sure made advances in my days. I do not plan to apologize for having been a normal guy. Should have I been castrated? This has gone too far. Men want justice too, like these guys (most of them black) years in jail before , oops, they are found not guilty as DNA shows... Never mind, the jury just BELIEVED the woman. Well, sorry, men deserve justice too, they also deserve to be considered innocent before being proven guilty. Funny, 50 years later, I'm on the other side. That means I am thinking. Can you?
6
Paul Ryan should write a book titled, "Profiles in Cowardice".
2
Failure to realize War Declaration makes Franken resignation more Neville Chamberlain than Winston Churchill. Churchill knew what was at stake. Democrats cannot misread-THIS IS WAR. And just when this resignation should resonate- NYT puts front page Economy Robust to sideline any Trump grousing-
1
I've had it with the Democrats. No more money. No more votes unless they make this right by apologizing to Franken for the Star Chamber move. This is up to the voters in Minnesota. It's completely disgusting.
11
Shame on the Democratic party for allowing Roger Stone to set them up to run off Al Franken. Shame on them.
9
As the hard-core liberal feminist that I am, I am deeply disappointed in the Democratic party, for forcing Franken from the Senate; I think it is the absolute wrong move. Having read his memoir, Giant of the Senate, I could see his sophomoric actions in his life as a comedian and how he owned and regretted them. I could also see the innate decency in Franken. In my opinion, there is no moral equivalence between Franken's sexist jokes and sexual assault (Trump)/child molestation (Moore). When we equate these things, we diminish the real problems in the workplace in and society. I hate to think of the stupid things I said in my classroom before I was enlightened and more knowledgeable about immigration, gender, and racial issues. (And I give little credence to the photo-taking groping charges, particularly when over two dozen of his former SNL staff signed a letter of support, having never seen any kind of abusive behavior from him over all the years together) If Franken were to stay, he would have continued to grow in his knowledge of women's issues surrounding harassment, and I suspect would have been womens' greatest ally. This whole thing makes me question the intelligence of the Democratic Party - makes me want to give up on all of the idiots running our government today.
15
What this lifelong Democrat from New York has learned about the dastardly deed committed by my two senators, Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, is I can no more trust them than I can Trump. What these self-righteous Democrats did Wednesday was undermine democracy. They conspired to unload on Al Franken before next Tuesday's election in Alabama. Well, Dems, it backfired.
You have no right to take away the choice of the people of Minnesota any more than you have the right to tell the people of Alabama how to vote. Shame on you, Dems.
I now understand how the people in Alabama feel. My two senators are so filled with egotistical arrogance they not only think they are better than the voters in Alabama they think they're better than the people in Minnesota, a state which loves Al Franken.
But Gillibrand and her horde of do-gooders in the senate decided to railroad one of their own. The fix is in. Minnesota's Governor Mark Dayton a Democrat will appoint a woman to replace Al. Make no mistake, if the governor was a Republican Al Franken would be defended to the hilt. What utter hypocrisy by a party I have been a member of since the days of JFK. Well, this is the final straw that broke this camel's back. I have had enough. As Gillibrand so self-righteously asserted: "enough is enough". Yes, indeed it is, Kirsten. I will not support her for re-election and most certainly will vote against her should she run for president. Enough is enough.
DD
Manhattan
15
Abuse what power? Franken wasnt in the Senate when these basically flirtatiois infractions took place. No forcible anything and he was in the entertainment business at the time, not the Senate. The Senate Dems should be ashamed of themselves.
10
It makes no difference how bright the line is Democrats are drawing if the other side is morally blind!
2
What Franken did was disrespectful and unacceptable, but Roy Moore and Donald Trump committed serious sexual crimes and one is sitting on the throne and destroying the world and is getting away with it and the other, is deystroying the lives of little girls and no doubt will get elected to a high office instead of getting prosecuted. No justice.
2
The minor issue is that Senator Franken was hounded by more than a dozen DEMOCRATIC congress women to resign immediately, and not given a chance to explain himself before the congressional ethics committee. His sins were not grievous - he apparently did not rape or drug or physically harm anyone. He's a lot more like someone who steals a kiss. He deserved a "talking to", but not to be ramroded out of Washington while the real criminal is left to continue what he's done to women for many decades.
Yes, the MAJOR issue is that the molester in chief is still free to continue doing what he gleefully bragged about in front of hundreds of millions of people last year. He kisses and touches them all over until he finally applies the coup de grace - he grabs them by the P___Y. Why didn't those brave congress women demand that he resign? What message does his continued presence in the White House send to our daughters and sons? He doesn't deserve to be in the same home once occupied by Abraham Lincoln.
8
I wish I had confidence that Franken's resignation represents a change but I do not have that confidence. I recall watching Democrat Gary Hart's run for President destroyed by an affair In the 90s we saw a "Democratic" President impeached and a Republican 3 times married cheater named Newt Gingrich led the charge. We saw Democratic Anthony Weiner resign because of lewd photos. Now we have Franken resigning while the President and the GOP stand behind a pedophile running for senate in Alabama and he will most likely be seated in the Senate this January. Of course, we also have Sanford and Vitter both Republicans and both in office despite their illicit actions.
What change is really happening? The party in power is not changing at all and will continue to behave as they've always behaved. Perhaps, if I had any confidence, in the Democrats being able to present the difference to the American people in a way that could be understood by the average citizen I would feel differently. But, the dems simply have lost the ability to present their agenda. It's sad to me that I feel this way but my party has saddened me many times since 1968.
5
Wrong New York Times, wrong. You and the Democratic Party got it wrong. Have you acknowledged the heartfelt pleas that Franken stay and the fury towards the group of sanctimonious Democratic senators that brought him down?
I feel that your editorial board and the Democratic Party are pushing your view down our throats. No mention is made of the thousands and thousands of commenters on the New York Times online comments pages by Democrats, Republicans, former rape victims etc. expressing anger and deep sadness that this was happening and wanted Senator Franken to stay and fury at the senators leading this witch hunt. Our country is under assaulted every single day by the current administration yet the Democratic Party chooses to kick one of its best Senators to the ground just when we need him most. Despicable and wrong.
16
Your comment is spot on; couldn’t have said it better myself. I feel gut-punched by the Democratic Party over this and I’m as establishment as they come.
2
I have written to both of my Senators who sadly signed on with Senator Gillebrand's vigilante justice program to announce that I will be removing my registration as a life-long Democrat and will no longer vote for either of them in coming elections. the Greens will get my vote because evidently the Democrats - including these two progressive Senators - cannot tell the difference between serious sexual abuse and anonymous long ago accusations of an arm on the shoulder or stupid pictures that show nothing. One wonders why Gillebrand doesn't go after the truly abused immigrant office cleaners in the NY cities she represents. Oh yes, nothing there to fuel her Presidential ambitions.
8
Whoever was behind last year's "October Surprise" and leaked the famous tape of Trump bragging now has Senator Franken scalp and Trump in the white house. Thanks allot. Trump was inoculated by the tapes release and his quick apology for locker room talk. He got elected with this out there, as it's looks Moore will too. There is no further apology or resignation required if you get elected with the dirt already on you. Franken was taken down for hypocrisy, Mr clean - the guy they voted for was a fraud. Franken and Harvey Weinstein both took a hey I'm one you shot at trump on the way out the door. Gosh darn it, no one is buying it.
2
Franken and Weinstein in the same pail? Are you serious?
The Times is deluding itself. The national GOP has turned this matter into a knife fight in a dark alley. They will do whatever is necessary to win. PLEASE place necessary emphasis on the word "anything".
6
Al Franken behaved like a privileged boor who thought he was hot stuff. He never tried to use his position to force women into having sex with him or to manipulate their careers. He was arrogant and stupid--but he is no Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Matt Lauer, Bill Cosby, or Charlie Rose.
The Dems, in their usual zeal to be the holiest of the holy, have slaughtered their own. Their reward will be Norm Coleman runing for the Minnesota Senate seat next year (thanks to Governor Dayton's inexplicable decision to name a placeholder to the seat) and quite possibly winning. Maybe he can sit next to Senator Roy Moore.
When will the Democrats learn judgment and proportion? Al Franken was made into a sacrificial lamb for the sins of others; his own actions were certainly reprehensible and obnoxious and stupid, but they did not merit the death penalty. He held onto a woman's waist? Really? This is the equivalent of sexual assault? Have you lost your minds? Unfortunately, the Dems have thrown the baby out with the bath water. And the winner is the Republican party.
In the meantime, the Republicans solidify their hold on power while Dems give the boot to all sense of proportion. What is the standard now? Any allegation of sexual impropriety, no matter how inconsequential, and the accused is shown the door? How about instead beginning a drumbeat demanding the resignation of Blake Farenholt and, oh yes, Donald Trump? Goose and gander, right?
They are hopeless.
7
Our rich, powerful, and privileged representatives have stacked the odds in their favor for decades. When Jack and Jill are up on the Hill and Jack is a naughty boy, Jill, being very unhappy with Jack, is required to undergo counseling, mediation and a 30-day “cooling off period” before filing a formal complaint of sexual misconduct against Jack. Nice try Jack. This non-subtle attempt at victim intimidation won’t cut it with women anymore. Jill never needed this sham 30 day cooling off period, Jack did. Now Jill is bypassing Jack’s intimidation tactics and turning the light into where there was only darkness. It would be better if women turned the lights on a little closer to the time of the infraction, but it is totally understandable and this is a good start. Washington should have set the example, not be the example.
1
Democrats chose purity while Republicans chose power
5
If men grope, women also lie.
2
My wife, Rosalie, after managing the office of one of the biggest commercial glass companies in N.Y. , got it in her head that she was good enough to compete against her former employer and start her own company, which she did, with the best glazier she knew as a partner. Her biggest client was the largest commercial land owner on Long Island and their support was essential to the company's success. Everyone was professional, above board and friendly. The only problem was the building's general manager who took a liking to her. He was a crucial link between her and her good fortune but every time she was alone with him, he would try something. Elevators, hall ways, empty offices that needed window repair. My wife, divorced at the time from her first husband, with three children, was making the most money she had ever made in her life and going to work was killing her. Being a second husband, I was the last to learn that her depression, her longing to relocate down south and her sad smile were due to this one hideous man. The man with the power. All the other construction workers and professional tradesmen couldn't have been nicer, but she gave it all up because of Louie. We've done all right, but even all the happy endings, cant make up for the fact that my wife's dream was shattered 27 years ago. I know the damage sexual harassment can do. I get the message. By having Sen. Franken fall on his sword for such minor offences, you are impaling yourselves.
8
Al Franken was a poor comedian and an even poorer Senator.
(His only claim to fame was his Senate vote that created the passage of BO's healthcare plan. Ugh! )
I love the uppercut that took him out. He was a prototypical arrogant liberal Dim.
Sour grapes Frankenstein. Trump did worse but Frankenstein got worse.
Good riddance that’s my takeaway.
1
Yeah, lynch mobs still exist, due process got stomped to death by the DNC Politburo, and Franken got what he deserved but not for "sexual misconduct"--whatever that might mean.
1
The faux self righteousness of liberals just wont go away. Having learned nothing from the election they ( I used to be one) continue to think they can see forever from atop their high horse.
3
Let's hope a Republican gets elected in his place.
It is amazing to me that Democrats would forgo one of their precious Senate seats just to shame the Republicans. "I am gonna hurt myself so you must to hurt yourself. And since you are more despicable you have to hurt yourself more than I did."
2
Why didnn't Franken say to Trump "I'll resign if you will"?
1
Beyond stupid for Democrats to force Franken to resign when censure would have been appropriate punishment."Zero tolerance" bragging rights treats Al Franken the same as Harvey Weinstein. Such unnecessary extremism.
7
Franken DID NOT "abuse his power." Equating a fine and decent man who made moronic jokes twenty years ago with serial sexual predators and pedophiles is revolting. Fix your headline!
9
Sorry, but this is another case of false equivalency. Trump’s and Moore’s offenses outweigh Franken’s by orders of magnitude. What Franken did was rude and stupid (assuming that all his accusers are telling the truth), but it wasn’t rape, taking advantage of an employee, grabbing the external genitalia of strangers and boasting about it later, or hitting on a minor.
And to punish Franken for what Bill Clinton did? That’s just plain nuts.
5
We will never see the right police themselves in any meaningful way on harassment issues because they feel entitled to whatever they have (and then some).
The notion of "I've got mine" extends to sex as well as money. It doesn't REALLY matter how you got it. If you're rich, you must have worked hard. If you're having sex with your secretary, she must find you irresistible. If you can get away with murder, you must be doing something right. Let the left get all hung up on "immorality" and "what's right". We've got ours.
Better wake up, Democrats. You are turning off voters again and you didn't have to. Shame on you.
8
Senator Franken is so obviously the victim of a political hit job set in motion by Leeann Tweedon (with Roger Stone pulling the strings) and with Kirstin Gillibrand (with Roger Stone pulling the strings) delivering the coup de grace. Stone and the White House wanted Franken gone. Gillibrand wants to be President. It was kismet!
Thousands of your readers understand this. The Times seems hellbent on ignoring it.
10
Al Franken should have fought the accusations tooth and nail despite the current cultutral seismic shifts.
Franken is currently a serious and sober senator but before that he was a comedy professional and his goofing around, while in today's light appears unseemly, was just that; goofing around. Those who willfully disregard this distinction are refuse to see that he was the target of a hit job (I'm looking at you, Kristin Gillibrand) are doing great harm to America.
5
What we learned:
that we don't learn that we don't learn.
By this time tomorrow there will some other idiotic outrageous event. A week from now: Franken who???
So I guess a couple of million chumps in Alabama are going to elect a pedophile. Would they still vote for Moore if he dressed in a red devil's suit complete with cloven hoofs and a tail. Sure, why not. At this point in my life, I have have finally come to recognize the human species as completely stupid. Maybe it has always been thus and I didn't realize it? In 1897, Indiana attempts to establish mathematical truth by legislative fiat (pi bill). Yes this is it, we are completely stupid. Stupidity is not a recent occurrence, it is eternal.
1
As long as we have an admitted sexual predator in the White House, we cannot expect to see much change. If a pedophile becomes our next Senator with the support of his party, the internal rot will continue. Water seeks its own level.
1
Paul Ryan continues to be a coward. You should not expect more. He will never change.
2
Franken was railroaded.
He got pranked by Roger Stone. Any word about that in the NYT?
4
“Will other lawmakers who abuse their power be held to the same standard?”
What a misleading sub-head. In what way did Sen. Franken abuse his power as a senator? Most of the allegations against him predate his time in office, when he was a comedian. Those that don’t involve women who accuse him of being handsy while posing for pictures. Inappropriate behavior, but a far cry from harassment, assault or abuse of power.
4
All I know is you liberals went ballistic when Mitt Romney made the stupid, clumsy remark, "Binders full of women,." He may as well have groped binders full of women the way you went after him! Here we are 5 years later and had to practically beg Al Franken to resign for his highly suggestive overtures and inappropriate advances on 6 different women. Certainly not a binder full- but far greater in severity than anything Mitt ever did.
Hypocrite liberals! Every last one of you!
2
PL IS PRACTICED BY THE GOPpers. Predator Liberation that is. What else would you call it when the GOP defends a president who bragged repeatedly about assaulting women sexually, clearly describing his belief in his entitlement to do anything he wished with them, as a "star." Including grabbing their genitals without their consent, saying that "they let you." Then there's Roy Moore whose history as an uncharged sexual predator, who in his 30s stalked and sexually harassed underage girls and younger women. I cringe to think that the GOP's moral reckoning in the Alabama election, will be that they reckon that Roy is OK to serve them in the Senate. Never underestimate the power of the good ole boy's club.
2
This is ridiculous. Franken, one of the Democrats' best senators, has been railroaded out of office for "transgressions" committed well before he was even a senator. I say "transgressions" because I do not believe that what he did qualifies as sexual harrassment. He did not use his power to force women to have sex with him, did not use his power to threaten their careers. He was not their boss, was not a "predator" in any sense of the word. The one woman he kissed (as part of a skit they were rehearsing) was certainly not damaged for the rest of her life, the other woman he allegedly "groped" in the photo was presumably not scarred by the incident forever.
This hysterical reaction to offenses as minor as Franken's comes with the risk of trivializing real cases of sexual harrassment, which continues to be a serious problem for working women everywhere. IF Franken did in fact touch a woman's backside while taking a photo, that is regrettable. If your boss does that to you repeatedly at the workplace, that's sexual harrassment.
6
It is not clear to me that Franken engaged in conduct which should disqualify him from office. Franken knows what he did and has chosen to resign. So be it. Hopefully, recent events will be a disincentive for sexual misconduct (although I doubt it). But let’s not talk about democrats drawing a “moral contrast” as though this will have any positive political effect. Franken was a good senator who is resigning. Trump is a horrible president who is not. Moore is (unbelievably) even worse and will be going to the senate. Politically, this is just another tragedy and it makes me want to puke.
2
Al Franken was lynched by his Senate pals. He should have had the chance to defend himself before the ethics panel. The accusations against him are for purported offenses nowhere near the level of a Trump, a Moore, a Weinstein ... And after Senate Democrats lynched one of their own they went out to resume their game of touch football against Republicans, who play tackle.
6
Sadly, it seems that the Democrats (in Congress) are trying hard to live up to one of their derogatory monikers:
Snowflakes.
4
How exactly is Franken reaching for the breasts of a fellow USO performer when he was just a traveling comedian an "abuse of power"?
The Times was among the first to call for Franken's resignation. Forget about Roy Moore for a moment: What about one of your own Senators, Robert Melendez, who just got a hung jury on an influence-trading trial? With witnesses, testimony, lawyers, rebuttals, etc.? Where are your editorials every day demanding his resignation?
The standard established in the Franken debacle is "guilty and cannot be proven innocent." Moreover, it is also "guilty and cannot be proven innocent of charges leveled by anonymous people," and "guilty and cannot be proven innocent of charges leveled by political opponents."
Is this really the country you want? Beware, for when the allegations without evidence are made against you.
6
The Republicans are unabashedly blatant in their goals of being the controlling party by any means necessary. Lying, manipulating, backstabbing, They long ago sold their souls to the devil. Their disingenuous, dishonorable actions show their true colors. Bottom line is power and money. I am sick at heart what is happening to our country.
1
Democrats are fools, overplaying their hand. They kicked out a good Senator whose actions, even if true, were mildly objectionable. Nothing worthy of resignation. Dems will win the fake moral high ground and Repubs will win the real Senate seats. I have news for you all, Judge Moore will soon be referred to as Senator Moore.
6
Women should run for every office. Kick out the old boys club that has failed a million times over.
2
Dear NYT Editorial Board. You are out of touch. And you have been out of touch for a couple of years now. I am a female, hippie-dippy, tree-hugging, liberal “elite” college professor. You’d be hard pressed to find someone more liberal than I. I live in a New England college town, and EVEY WOMAN I KNOW – ALL OF US HIPPIE-DIPPY COLLEGE PROFESSOR TYPES - WE ALL DISAGREE WITH YOU. We all wanted Al Franken to keep his job; and we are all angry about Kirsten Gillibrand. If we ultra-left wingers do not stand with you, who do you suppose does? I stand with Al Franken, and I know many other who do as well. This story is not over.
6
Franken didn't abuse his power and there is ZERO evidence that he did. The lesson is how a mob mentality can destroy common sense and reason to convict a person on groundless and meritless accusations,
Shame on you NYT. I am seriously considering canceling my subscription for this article and many more that gave life to this witch hunt.
5
Instead of anything fair and substantial, this editorial justifies the ouster of Franken by saying he had to pay for the sins of Clinton and Conyers. That's preposterous. Individuals deserve to be judged by their own conduct, not the misdeeds of predecessors. And yes, times are changing, but expulsion without fair consideration of cultural transitions, particularly when evaluating allegations prior to his tenure, reeks of a witch hunt. You can bet there will be a backlash that drives men to the GOP. Real smart, senators! Even more hopeless is that Warren and Sanders joined this lynch mob.
For some time I thought Franken was the Dem's best hope in 2020, and I still believe he could have weathered the storm if his colleagues hadn't thrown him under the bus. I suppose the DNC will trot out another phony, disliked candidate like Hillary in 2020, and their hand-picked candidate will lose again and they'll be oh-so surprised. To complete the farce, maybe it will be Gillebrand. If so, I'll be writing in Franken.
7
Certainly no one can argue that it is way past time that we as voters stop condoning sexual aggression, coercion and assault by continuing to vote for candidates that engage in such despicable acts. Why, however, does the Democratic Party think they can begin to win an increasingly more desperate battle for the hearts and minds of an electorate (who has made it crystal clear that their top priority is, after all, decent jobs and economic security) by choosing to launch within their own Party their own version of a Cultural Revolution, at this particular critical moment-When the all important Mid Term elections is only less than 11 months in the future?
Call the GOP loathsome all you want to for their foot dragging on immediately cleansing their ranks of predators, but do not call them naïve enough (or perhaps self righteous enough) not to keep their eyes on the prize, and not to realize what the long term consequences of blowing the Mid Terms will be for the entire country.
5
Al Franken is a victim of a gender witch hunt. It was not the Republicans who forced Al out, it was his "friends." Franken did not apologize. Essentially, it was "why me. I'm one of you." There is absolutely no reason why any Republican should follow Franken's example. Demand due process.
7
I regret the loss of Al Franken, for relatively minor offenses. We will miss him. But the principle of zero tolerance is more important than one talented man, as the Democrats, and especially their female senators, have seen. Now the Democrats need to keep reinforcing the point that they and only they are defending this principle, while Republicans circle the wagons around their own offenders and celebrate the egregious molester they elected president. Hold that line, Democrats, as long as it takes, and insist that the Republicans pay a steep price for their moral cowardice.
2
I'm afraid that "zero tolerance" often means "zero specificity". I have zero tolerance for zero tolerance.
3
Zero tolerance is fine but make sure the punishment fits the crime and that the actions rise to the level of unacceptable. Jesus Christ, this was juvenile public behavior. It's witch hunt time. This will damage the #MeToo movement in ways they haven't begun to comprehend. What man is going to risk having one woman issue an accusation and ruin his whole life?
2
Zero-Tolerance is the rose-strewn path to full-on stupid.
"In demanding Mr. Franken’s resignation, the Democratic Party seized an opportunity to atone for its own bad history, including President Bill Clinton’s sexual misconduct..."
Should I laugh at that statement? How exactly will the Democratic Party deal with Bill Clinton's conduct (possibly actual rape), as well as Hillary's lawyerly enabling of it, by sanctimoniously throwing Senator Franken under the bus for far less?
5
I think Franken did the right thing. I also think he should run again, duly contrite, on the basis that he paid the price for his misconduct, and returning to the Senate would best enable him to advocate for women's rights. And let the voters of Minnesota decide.
5
He didn't do the right thing. He did what he was forced into by his own cannibals. His crimes do not fit this level of punishment. Shame on the Democrats and especially Gillibrand.
3
This is not a case of a conflict of interest where the appearance is critical. Jeff Sessions and Elena Kagan have recused themselves in their respective situations for their to be confidence in the process and outcome. Mueller just removed a member of his team because of the appearance of a bias that could appear to influence his work. These are all examples of ethical behavior (even if Sessions had to be cornered into it).
That’s not what’s happening here. Franken has been accused, but the appearance isn’t the paramount issue. He’s handled it as ethically as anyone possibly could. He offered apologies and called for an investigation of himself that he’s willing to cooperate with. This validates the women by giving them a voice, and also the system and the fight underway which he supports. What else could we possibly ask of anyone in his position?
This is in stark contrast to how Trump, Moore, and a number of others have chosen to respond to their accusers, which is to deny and counterattack. Franken, unlike those others, also has a small army of women and supporters who are defending him, not because they agree with his politics, but because they know him well and believe there’s an injustice occurring.
Franken’s been asked to fall on his sword because of assumed guilt and “optics.” I understand the impulse to force this resolution, but I don’t see how this solves anything or sets the right course.
3
Treating Al Franken the same as far more egregious offenders doesn't advance the cause, it trivializes it.
9
As a Democratic woman and one who has suffered more than a few incidents of sexual harassment during her career, I find myself ambivalent over Franken's announcement of his apparent resignation in the coming weeks. I am confused, angry, frustrated and worried about the future of the Democratic party and for our chances of success in mid-term elections and in 2020. I am surprised at my disappointment and anger with the Dem women. After reading comments over the past 12 hours or so, I see that I am not alone. Gillibrand and perhaps others have found an opportunity for political gain and power and they are acting at lightning speed. Of course I want to see women in power, but why this way? Without due process, Al Franken has been forced to sacrifice himself. In the process, Dems are self destructing. Again. The Republicans are all too happy at the thought of being rid of one of their most powerful critics and they didn't have to lift a finger. Perhaps, there is a plan and strategy here that I just don't see at the moment. We have lost a powerful advocate and voice and I am not at all convinced this was necessary.
5
It would have been much better to give Me Franken the investigation he requested instead of railroading him out on grounds he contests. A fair hearing would provide truth and also set an example that might encourage future fair accusations. Right now, the situation is Democrats have to resign if accused, while Republicans only have to go if they confess and agree it’s a quitting offense
4
If you read the thousands of comments regarding Al Franken's decision to resign, you will see that most of the participants in those discussions believe that a handful of Democratic women with an ambition to be the Democratic nominee for president or a part of such an administration took advantage of the #MeToo movement to force out a strong progressive challenger. Then the rest of the Democratic establishment piled on to save their grasp of power within the party instead of doing what it takes to expand the party and its power.
This editorial seems to me to be nothing but a whitewash of a craven and opportunistic move by establishment Democrats to protect themselves from the inspiration and changes that Bernie Sanders ignited last year. Al Franken deserved to be subjected to an Ethics Committee investigation, plodding or not. Such due process would have set an important precedent for the likes of Roy Moore, who will probably be spared such a trial now that Democrats have set an example of each party policing its own without regard to due process or any objective standards of behavior.
This was not a principled, egalitarian move. It was just another example of establishment Democrats manipulating power within the party for their advantage while losing another level of support among voters who are tired of their shenanigans and ineptitude. It may well and properly cost the Democrats what would have been a safe senate seat next year, and lower support nationally for years.
8
If the pendulum swings too far in the opposite direction, there is nothing to be alarmed about. The worst that can happen it that entrenched Senators and members of Congress will have to find new sources of employment. The best that can happen is that more women will replace those who leave. Being female is no formula for being a good politician. Each person running for office will have to be judged on their own merits.
2
Al Franken abused his power, as a male, an established comedian, and - sadly - as a senator. The abuse of power cannot be parsed.
3
Summary of Sen Franken's speech. He was excited that women were exposing sexual misconduct & harassment since he's a champion of women. However, the women accusing him were mistaken &/or liars. Some champion.
I'm no fan of Franken, but this was politics & Franken was cannon fodder. If Franken had been a senator in a state with a Republican governor - say neighboring WI - Democrats wouldn't have been so aggressive in pushing for his resignation.
2
The real question is, how large will the Welcome Roy sign be in the Republican senate? The day of atonement is less than a year away... VOTE!
I'm disappointed in the NY Times, Kirsten Gillebrand, Chuck Schumer and everyone else who piled on Franken and forced him to resign. For the first time in my life I'm questioning my allegiance to the Democratic party.
There was nothing to be gained and much to be lost by lumping Franken in with people like Roy Moore or Harvey Weinstein.
I hope Franken reconsiders, or runs for his seat again in 2018.
5
Clearly no, others will not be held to the standard that my senator has been held. Trump is still in office, a child molester is running for the senate in Alabama with Republican Party support and Clarence Thomas is on the Supreme Court for life.
4
Can you believe how out of sync this editorial is with it's readership? I've never seen such an overwhelming majority of commenters (looks like upwards of 90%) in direct opposition to a statement from The NYTimes Editorial Board. This paper, like the establishment Dems, looks to be on the wrong side of history.
9
I suggest he sit back and run for the Senate in 4 years.
5
Republicans have set a low bar in Congress. Why do Democrats have to rise above it? What point does it prove? Republican voters don't care a bit about the accusations against Trump and they're probably going to elect Roy Moore, in spite the allegations against him. So, why do Democrats have to resign? I'm sick of Democrats being the party of weaklings. The reason Republicans are in power is because they are ruthless and will put up with anything (including accusations of child sexual abuse) to maintain their power. Nothing is off the table for Republicans. They just keep going lower and lower. Meanwhile, Democrats are trying to prove they are the party of nice people who won't stand for shenanigans. What for? This whole MeToo movement will fade away soon enough, Trump will still be in the White House, Moore will be in the Senate, their accusers will remain without justice, and Democrats will have proven nothing by forcing the resignations of men like Franken.
2
Franken is a fool. His actions while boarrish do not justify taking away the electorates right to make the decision on his ability to serve. We have now placed the testimony of women on a pedestal without allowing the due process of thorough examination of their accusations to go forward. This is dangerous.
1
Can we look at what is going on? Someone or something is generating the energy behind this. Why? Who benefits without media and democrats?
1
The Dems have accepted the Mikadoish sentence, whereby they can’t cut off anyone else’s head until they’ve cut their own off.
The ousting of Franken by his colleagues was not only a travesty, it was incredibly stupid. It doesn't prove that the Democrats are taking the high road. Instead, it's showing that in an effort to prove a point, they steamrolled any attempt at fairness. They should have at least given Franken an ethics hearing to answer these allegations of fondling, half from anonymous accusers, but no. Instead it was "off with his head" immediately. Gillibrand and her cronies became the judge, jury and executionesr with no trial even allowed. Please tell me how that is taking a high road.
That alone makes me furious, but what is even worse was just how politically tone deaf it was. Yes, the Democrat governor of Minnesota will replace Franken with another Democrat, but that will be for only one year. Then there will be a general election to vote in a new senator. What makes these Democrats think that the new senator will be another Democrat. If I were a Democrat in Minnesota I would be furious with the Democrats for removing my choice of senator. Why would I necessarily vote in another Democrat, knowing that my choice could once again be superseded by the other Democrats in Congress? The Democrats may very well lose Franken's seat next November, just to prove a point that made no sense to begin with.
8
Franken never abused his power and you should stop with the headlines that insinuate he did, and he can still decide to stay in the senate, it's perfectly in his right to stay.
Women Have been in a new era since I was a teenager 60 years ago, so quit kidding yourself with the dramatics.
7
You really don't know anything about Minnesota and the post-Trump climate here. Come 2018, it will be very hard to fill that seat with anyone who is pro-choice. And you thought you were protecting women! Arrogance.
3
As I understand Senator Franken allegedly made his harassment acts prior to be a senator. As bad as these acts were, these should never be part of the deplorable and shameful way this so called "Democratic Party" gets rid of one of their very best people. His statement about Messrs. Trump & Moore are 100++% true.
He will be sorely missed and the so called "Democrats" will rightly suffer the consequences as from now, via 2018 to 2020.
3
You really don't get it. This is vigilantism run amok. I hope that in the cold light of some future morning, some of Franken's critics will awake feeling truly ashamed of their hysteria and vindictiveness. Of course Franken deserves a slapdown from the Senate Ethics Committee if the stories are confirmed. . But oafish sexual advances don't begin to compare to the other cases that you describe.
Franken's critics seem not only incapable of distinguishing between degrees of wrongful behavior, but they flatly refuse to do so. With a fanaticism reminiscent of Red Guards in the Chinese Cultural Revolution, they won't let due process stand in the way of their terror, and they have denied Minnesota voters' their right to judge Franken's behavior.
If Gillibrand & Co. are a foretaste of how a girls' club operates, then for G*d's sake lets go back to the Senate being a boy's club.
2
Abuser of power, Al Franken? Who's on this particular editorial board because they've joined the dogs after the fox and are now tearing him apart at the bottom of the tree where they cornered him. What Al Franken is accused of doing not many of us believe rises to the level of power over others. Where's the evidence? Anonymous accusers, a woman Roger Stone used to start the ball rolling? I dare say you are most likely Democrats and I would tell you, once again, you're so eager to look like the good guys in the room, the smart ones, the thoughtful ones, that you have completely fallen under Stone's spell and finished the dirty work he set up for you to finish. A good man has been run out of office for, what, some juvenile comedic jokery? If women can't deal with this kind of thing at this low level, they deserve to be kept out of board rooms and off the top jobs list. Franken never got a chance to defend himself and all you have to do is look at who he's been over his entire lifetime. There's no rape, no push that you can't have this or that job unless you do some favor in return. These are accusations for the most part either have no substance or have been shown to be nothing. Tweeden's own photos of her brand of entertainment say she thinks it's all right for her to engage in public jokery like Franken's but not for him. Are you kidding me? Franken has been run off for these things? Wow. I left the Republican party and I didn't join the Democratic one. Wonder why?
3
The Republicans are not going to change because the majority of white women don't care, and whites are their base. 53% of white women voted for Trump. A recent poll shows that nearly 6 in 10 white women in Alabama intend to vote for Roy Moore. If the majority of white women won't support one of their own against a confessed sexual predator and serial philanderer, and are willing to vote for a man who has said he never dated an underaged girl without their mother's permission ('how traditional') no number of #MeTo's will make a difference in the up coming elections. I say to the women of the #MeTo movement and in the Senate who drove out Franken. (1) Don't be mad at Trump and Moore. And (2) it was a huge mistake take your anger out on Al Franken, an ally who asked for forgiveness. Women, YOU need to get your own house in order. Fix your problem before you attack your friends. Figure out why the majority of white women don't care about the sexual improprieties of powerful men, or at least don't care enough to punish them at the ballot box. And once you figure out why your white sisters don't support their own, FIX IT. Until you do, your current strategy will only hurt your cause.
1
What we have learned from the Democrat Party “lawmakers” in Congress is that mob rule trumps the rule of law.
You know that “inconvenient” thing in our constitution which says a person is innocent until proven guilty.
Like the GOP and Donald Trump, something the Democratic Party also needs to brush up on.
2
You've just thrown the baby out with the bath water.
If Senator Franken resigns, I strongly suspect that come the next election, Minnesota will choose a Republican for Senator.
Then I will write to my fellow Democrats;
You've just cut off your nose to spite your face.
4
Times Board... you are way off on this... this was a witch hunt as evidenced by your own description... democrats paying for past mistakes.... these were accusations and in no way comparable to the parade of horror stories coming out regarding politicians, journalists and other men. Franken and the rest of us were denied the opportunity to understand the evidence and evaluate the claims, which were troubling in several ways..
I am a feminist whose top priority is advancing women's rights, but this was a grave mistake and nothing to be proud of. I am deeply saddened that we have lost this voice and by the hysterical process in which it took place. I am ashamed of the female democratic senators that led the charge and quite frankly feel done with the democractic party. I am sickened.
5
Much irony in the board of the leading publication in an industry rife with the same behavior pontificating in the subject. The hypocrisy is stunning.
1
The Editorial Board isn't listening to its readers at all. Read the comments. You really missed the boat on this one.
8
This tells members of congress that if they are men and if they are Democrats they can lose their jobs based on unproven allegations - guilty until proven . . . well just guilty. It tells me that the Democrats were so giddy over wins in NC and NJ that they thought they didn't need one of their strongest voices on the Hill. Politics is rarely pretty and if you play it like Sunday school teachers you wind up with Republican majorities in every branch of government. The Dems are already finding ways to lose in 2018 and their odds weren't great to begin with. They lost my vote. How could I have confidence in people this stupid, this naive, this self-righteous and this hypocritical. Watch your backs Chuck, Bernie . . .
2
There have been accusations that Senator Franken abused his power - but not while he was a Senator. At this point, these are accusations only - they have not been seriously investigated or proven.
The movement to force male accountability for sexual harassment and assault of women, which could ultimately revolutionize life for women in this country, has now been put at risk because 38 Democratic Senators cynically denied Senator Franken a hearing on these accusations & instead forced his resignation in an atmosphere of mob hysteria.
We are hearing that Franken had to be made a sacrifice for the optics of 'purity' by the Democratic caucus because of the possible election of Roy Moore next week.
This is obscene - to ruin a fine Senator who has championed women's causes to acquire political leverage against a pedophile who has not yet won that election.
Democrats are now the Stupid Party.
The Senate Democrats owe Senator Franken an apology. They do not have the class or courage to admit that this was a mistake.
3
Al Franken didn’t abuse his power. The allegations and the joke photograph happened before he had power.
Gillebrand is a hypocritical opportunist.
4
I do not think Franken will go away. Out of office he may be far more dangerous to the Trumpublicans than he was in Congress. Franken will be replaced by a Democrat who has one vote. Franken on the other hand is now free to speak up without having to worry about constraint. I’m hoping he has been weaponized.
3
Al Franken resigning is one of the saddest days since Trump was ‘elected’. I believe the accusations against Senator Franken are fabricated or grossly exaggerated the last being he ‘squeezed my waist’ to the first from Leeann, a birther and regular Hannity guest. Roger Stone knew about the first accusation hours before it went public. I definitely smell a rat. I’ve called my senators, and Schumer and Gillibrand demanding an investigation into this setup. I encourage all to do the same.
4
Congress and America can learn the legal definitions of "sexual assault" such as committed by our President, and "sexual harassment" admitted to by Franken............
McConnell letting the people of Alabama make the call is akin to Pilate washing his hands and turning Jesus over to the crowd.
1
Franken did some stupid tasteless things many years ago before he was elected Senator was not even given a chance to defend himself.
Others, with more credible, serious and/or recent accusations remain
Some who used taxpayer funds to pay settlements to abusers remain.
There is a big difference between a witch hunt, and a serious investigation.
Franken's bid for the presidency was already destroyed. Why women Democrats in Congress demanded his head before an ethics investigation is beyond me.
1
Dear Fellow Readers,
Can any of you help me understand the difference between:
1) Flirting and sexual harassment Prey tell, would my overtures be welcome were I younger, better looking or rich? Spare me the feminist outrage. We live in the real world.
2) Is asking out for a date harassment?
3) If workplace romance is a taboo, how will I ever met a suitable mate? I'm there all the time.
4) If I and a co-worker fall in love, do we have to press charges against one another?
Forcible assault, such as trump brags about, is a criminal act. Just the same, the hysteria now surrounding normal male/female, female/male courtship has reached the level of stupidity. If things keep going on in this direction, there will be no more babies.
6
How is a political tactic moral? And, since when should "morality" [i'm not sure which actors are being moral in this whole charade] trample justice. People are not going to vote for Democrats because they forced a Senator--elected by the people of his state--to resign over vague and unproven allegations. The worst things about the election of Trump (groper) and Moore (pederast) are not their sexual misbehavior, but their ignorance, distaste, disregard for constitutional norms. Keep your eye on the ball!
2
What the Dems are going to learn from this lifelong Democrat and native New Yorker is that I have withdrawn my support of both of my senators Gillibrand and Schumer for the utterly despicable thing they and their fellow Democrats did yesterday. They decided it up to them to tell the people of Minnesota who their senator should be. They were terribly wrong. The arrogance they showed yesterday is what lost them the election to Trump and will lose them the election next week in Alabama. Though I am as liberal as they come I have no right in telling the good people of Alabama how to vote, no more than they have in telling me. What Gillibrand and her cabal of righteous females did yesterday was shoot themselves in the foot. They figured wrong. They think this witch hunt of sexual predators in their way into political office. But in their sanctimonious righteousness they have crossed a bridge too far. I will not support one of them for the presidency come 2020. I despise Trump to the high heavens, but what Senate Dems yesterday has broken this camel's back. I am done with them all. And good riddance. Al Franken for President.
DD
Manhattan
4
I believe that Congressmen and Senators are far more likely to be sexual predators that ordinary mortals.
Many Senators/Congressmen have outsized egos with out of control libidos to match, and power is widely recognized as the most effective aphrodisiac
1
Political correctness can work in both directions. New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who led the charge against Franken, was a major proponent of "gun rights" and supporter of the NRA before her position miraculously changed once she got her job as Senator.
Her early and consistent support of gun lunacy in my mind disqualifies her for public office, and because of her indirect complicity in the numerous mass murders that have occurred not only in New York State but nationwide, I am demanding that she resign her position in the Senate immediately.
Gellibrand has seriously betrayed the public trust and supported policies that have led to mass murders, dead children, broken families. She must leave the Senate now!
5
Dear Al,
Run for political office please.
4
Given the choice I would prefer Franken to stay in the Senate and for Gillibrand and Schumer to quit. And those two can take their self-righteous sanctimony with them when they leave.
6
Let's say the governor of Minnesota is a Republican. Would the Gang of 35 be in such an all-fired hurry to force Franken out?
Disgusted by the insinuation that Franken "abused his power".
Simply not the case, even if you believe the accusations.
By the way, the person who abused their power here was the liar Tweeden and the NY Times, who still prop up her lies despite clear photographic evidence proving her wrong.
8
Democratic lawmakers have revealed themselves to be cynically political and cowardly opportunistic. I was unaware that the jealousy of Al Franken ran so deeply — and I'm talking about YOU Kirsten Gillibrand... Like Franken, I feel betrayed. I had held onto the belief that most of our Democratic senators and congressmen were something other than political hacks and frauds whose first priority was to protect themselves. The evidence against Franken is specious; at least two of the "victims" are vociferous political operatives for the hard right, three remain anonymous and one is a evangelical Trump voter and supporter. Every Democrat should be outraged... every women should should recoil at how the profoundly serious issue of sexual harassment and assault has been weaponized, demeaned and now, neutralized, as little more than just another political cudgel. "Whataboutism" and "they do it, too" has ruled the day.
5
I POSTED THIS COMMENT ALMOST 12 HOURS AGO
You really don't get it. This is vigilantism run amok. I hope that in the cold light of some future morning, some of Franken's critics will awake feeling truly ashamed of their hysteria and vindictiveness. Of course Franken deserves a slapdown from the Senate Ethics Committee if the stories are confirmed. . But oafish sexual advances don't begin to compare to the other cases that you describe.
Franken's critics seem not only incapable of distinguishing between degrees of wrongful behavior, but they flatly refuse to do so. With a zealotry reminiscent of Red Guards in the Chinese Cultural Revolution, they won't let due process stand in the way of their terror, and they have denied Minnesota voters' their right to judge Franken's behavior.
If Gillibrand & Co. are a foretaste of how a girls' club operates, then for G*d's sake let's go back to the Senate being a boys' club.
5
Instead of hounding Al Franken out of the Senate, why didn't one of the outraged Democrats give Lauren Greene a job?
3
If there isn't more to the Franken story than we already know, then the puritans who hounded him out of office have done a disservice to the millions of people whom the still-more-empowered Republican Party is doing actual and often mortal harm to. Desire for dominance clothes as Robespierrean morality is much worse, much more appalling than an awkward guy's lame jokes and clumsy passes.
4
The high ground of moral superiority usually features a rather slippery slope that ends in a cliff.
3
Al Franken is one of the good guys. I won't go into detail on my defense of him, others are already. The Democrats sacrificed him because we can't deal with varying degrees of offense. Or draw our line in the sand appropriately. Guillibrand appears to be playing her own political game. I hope she loses it for over playing her hand.
4
Trump must resign -- otherwise this whole thing is a charade.
I will not rest until Congress, Democrats as well as Republicans, do as Senator Franken so poignantly and honestly pointed out today...to address the blatant sexual exploitation inherent in the DNA of this disaster of a president as well as an alleged pedophile from Alabama.
Perhaps there was a long-range reason for our Democratic senators to designate Mr. Franken as the sacrificial lamb. Because that is what he was.
And I fail to see the justice in it.
These recent resignations are meaningless, waisted energy, and mere band aids used to appease us and divert our attention from the worst of the worst...Donald Trump.
This editorial is correct when it states that congress' mind-set needs to change. But will it and when? This group is not exactly a profile in courage.
2
It's instructive to note that Franken has yet to officially resign. I urge him to wait until after the case of Roy Moore is settled. If Moore is defeated or Senate Republicans refuse to seat him, then Franken's leaving would at least have some justification. If Moore is elected and seated, then Franken should reconsider. Fair is fair, especially since Franken's behavior is not tantamount to Moore's pedophilia.
How Moore could take the oath of office to defend the Constitution in good conscience -- or anybody accept such a declaration as sincere -- after twice being removed from the bench for failing to uphold the law beggars credulity.
5
Bottom line:
Gillibrand of New York is toast.
She is up for reelection as Senator in 2018.
Time for Hillary Clinton to return to the political arena and to challenge Gillibrand for the position of Senator as a repeat of her well-regarded earlier performance.
One good job deserves another.
Hillary would never have thrown Senator Franken under the bus.
Also she is needed back in the Senate to hold Trump's feet to the fire and to cause him to stumble over his own ineptitude.
She won all those debates against him because she knew her stuff and Trump was a no nothing then and still is a huge ignoramus.
Sparks will fly and she will truly get under his thin skin like no other person is capable of doing.
Also she can repair the damage he has done on an international basis.
The world will welcome her back with open arms.
Great chance to watch Trump implode ........ I can hardly wait.
5
Hillary rubs too many people the wrong way to be a viable presidential candidate. But we DO need her in the engine room.
What can Congress learn from this?? Nothing. Absolutely Nothing.
Republicans don't care. They. Just. Don't. Care.
They have a pervert in the White House, another in the Supreme Court, and yet another in an endless stream running for Senator of the Cesspool of Alabama.
They encourage Democrats, however, to resign and make it that much easier for the Klepto-theocracy to secure its iron grip.
2
Senator Franken should at least had the opportunity of due process to present his case through the Ethics Committee. Instead, a Democrat lynch mob forced his resignation without the voters of Minnesota having a voice in contrast as we are told that it is up to the voters of Alabama regarding Roy Moore. If Democrats think this will have any impact on the Alabama election or women who support Trump, or the 2018/2020 elections, they are deluded. If anything, the Democrats have given men, especially white men, another reason not to vote Democrat. Senator Franken should have been granted due process!
6
Sorry, the Democratic party deserves nothing but scorn for this. They ousted Franken because his presence was inconvenient to their "we're the good guys" narrative ahead of the 2018 mid-terms. Franken's alleged behaviour is in a whole other league from that of Lauer, Moore or Weinstein. Worthy of rebuke, censure, public shaming or sackcloth perhaps -- not this.
4
Senator Franken, please run for president. PLEASE.
3
This is precisely the wrong conclusion to draw from Frankin’s resignation. In effect you’re saying that Republicans will be shamed into purging the sleaziest among them or face electoral consequences for being known as the party of hypocritical misogynists. Yeah, sure.
No. This will have two effects, both destructive. First, it will allow Trump to push the claim that precisely because he did not admit to doing anything wrong and he is still in office he must be clean. Absurd and obnoxious but this is the upside down world of 24 hour news. Second, it will ultimately end the #MeToo movement as many well intentioned men and women will begin to second guess whether it’s worth, say, losing Al Frankin over 10-year-old largely anonymous claims that for a few split seconds his hands were 3 inches away from where they should have been.
Bottom line is now is no time for the only people in this country who can check the tide of fascism to take the “we’re above it” high road.
3
What about what the Times can learn from Al Franken, which is this:
If someone says Al Franken was grabbing them while a photo was being taken, and the photo shows that he wasn't, then call that person a LIAR.
The PRESS made this false accusation a legitimate one, and needs to take responsibility for that.
7
Thanks for updating where we stand 're' abuse of power, and explicitly on sexual harassment. Justice, however belated, seems apparent and working unilaterally, for the democratic party...wheras sexual predator Donald J. Trump, 'our' sitting president, continues to abuse his office shamelessly, unscrupulously, incompetent loudmouth as usual, with no apparent consequence. Our morals leave some to be desired, that's for sure. And look at Roy Moore and his enablers that, it seems, have McConnell back as the hypocrite we knew all along, leaving abused women to fend for themselves. The republican party in congress, and perhaps the Alabamian voters, have given up on morals. And this includes the evangelicals, whose faith has abandoned them in the name of political expedience. An outrage and cowardice for all to see.
1
Do Hillary supporters fear Frankin?
Is she "running" Again in 2020?
I'm sorry, but kicking Franken out of the Senate because of his claimed inappropriate sexual behavior, egregious as that may have been, is insane. You should lose your job for doing a bad job, not for something else. This is especially nuts because in the area of women's rights and protections, Franken has been performing magnificently. Note: this is not ‘giving him a pass’ because 'he does good things' or is ‘needed politically’. It's because taking his job away is wrong. Give appropriate and commensurate consequences for his actions -- apology, remorse, restitution, counseling, probation or public service, perhaps even incarceration. But not removal from the Senate.
And let's not forget we now have only accusations, not established facts. It's true abused women are getting short shrift in the courts. But that's not an excuse to accept an accusation at face value just because it 'sounds convincing' in news reports, without at least some sort of formal investigation and adjudication. (And some of the claims -- e.g., the woman who says Franken invited her to the bathroom for sex -- are questionable.) Of course, for merely suggesting the possibility that some of these claims might not be true, I can hear myself now being condemned as 'blaming the victim'.
No one is more delighted than I that sexual assault is now being effectively exposed, confronted and punished. But in our righteous rage let's not be unfair, or shoot ourselves in the foot.
2
Trump has played dirty for his entire, morally bankrupt life, and we shall see more dirty tricks as long as he is in the spotlight. Russia's smearing of Clinton; Trump's pressuring Marvin Roffman's firm to fire him, etc. etc. Unfortunately, a person with no moral standards is influencing the USA - and using others' moral standards against them. Money does buy power, and power buys more money.
1
And the DNC fumbles yet again by falling for Roger Stone’s tricks. As a lifelong Democrat, I’m more than disgusted. I, too, have donated my last dime to the DNC and will no longer knock on doors for their candidates because I believe Al Franken’s constituents should have decided his fate, not the DNC. Moral high ground, my foot.
4
Some Democrats in the Senate have turned into a howling, blood-thirsty mob destroying their own without a semblance. These same senators remain almost silent when it comes to calling out Trump. Perhaps it's time to leave the Party and look elsewhere to resist the GOP - the party of fraud, corruption, lies and evil. Shame on the Democrats, they are doing the work of Faux News and Hate Radio Inc. while America's enemies are passing around the champagne and laughing at them as they engage in self-destruction.
2
Here's what we learned. For Democrats: make a mistake, take responsibility for it, apologize, be willing to go before an ethics committee, and you are outta' here....FAST. For Repubs: make even worse mistakes, deny/deny/deny, go aggressive and bully your accusers, refuse to take responsibility, and your party (as well as the Evangelicals) will support you. Lord, have mercy!
This was stupid move by the Democrats. I think it is another reason why they are in trouble with the voters. Everything is black or white. to make Al Franken their sacrificial lamb will come to no wonderful end. I cannot stand goody two shoes and these women represent that to me. Al Frankin will emerge in ways that we are thankful for. He is super smart, understands people. and can articulate his thoughts better than anyone in the senate. That is a real leader. I can't say that for the leaders of the Democratic party and the Republicans selfishly only understand what is good for their own immediate family's bank account.
2
Fine and dandy. BUT, you are forgetting one small detail. The GOP HAS no rules or standards, for their own. We Dems can be as pure as fresh snow, but we will lose. The GOP has Jesus, therefore all is forgiven, and washed away. We are bringing flowers to a knife fight, repeatedly. Their uneducated base was raised on hypocrisy and FOX News. It's all they know, and understand. I'm very weary of being lectured to about reaching out and understanding. Turning the other cheek is for Church. In the real world, and politics, it's time to fight. Who will fight, and who will be lambs, waiting for slaughter??? That's the real question, AND answer.
Learn nothing from the 30 year old Al Franklin, learn a lot from Senator Franklin.
He was man enough to admit he was wrong, if only all politicians would have his moral compass.
Don? Roy?
Don't retire Al, we need you.
1
Like Franken, Trump should resign. So should Pence, he doesn't even trust his own self around women, why should we?
2
This column is half right. The Democrats are, belatedly, faces the consequences of their wretched behavior. The Republicans are not.
2
The Democrat Party deserves scorn, not praise. Based on Franken & Conyers, is there a magic # of grabs and tongue assaults that spurs action? Apparently for Franken 6 was the tipping point - as for Conyers I lost count. In the end these were safe seats and the party loses nothing so where is the courage? When NJ Senator Bob Menendez was facing possible conviction of bribe taking in a federal court in October, no democrats said he should resign if convicted because Republican Chris Christie would have appointed his replacement. What a bunch of moral frauds.
1
Why does Al Franken, who did not abuse his power, need to be the sacrificial lamb here? Losing Al Franken in the senate, does absolutely nothing for the Democrats in congress, or the voters.
The only people that are happy about this resignation are Republicans.
Once again, the Democrats bring a stick of butter to a knife fight.
3
Liberté, égalité, fraternité!
It has not been established that Al Franken is a predator in power who thinks he can treat women however he wants. This is slanderous. Without so much as a hearing, he was politically executed. No champion of liberal democracy could be so indifferent to justice and due process.
Turning the tables is not moral high ground.
3
If if I was Al Franken, I would refuse to resign until Trump resigns. I would talk about it everyday and at every opportunity. Do we even have to mention Roy Moore? While I do not condone Franken's behavior, if it is indeed true, but it is certainly no worse than Trump's. Another case of Democrats pushing the self destruct button. They are hopeless and clueless. Pathetic.
2
I hold forth Grace for my Senator Franken who intentionally Served the People of Minnesota so well. Meanwhile, I hold Shame for America for a
"President" who, in Self-pronounced Pride, boasts in His Sociopathic Personality Disorder. His Pride is found in his ability, 24/7, to Serve Himself. This 80 year old average man grieves for the state of our State.
I do not disagree with Franken's need to step down; I grieve for our Disparity in Justice Today. Franken's Voice will continue to lend to our Discussion. Trump's Mouth will just Continue.
2
"Providing proof?"
One photo that doesn't even show physical contact - a tasteless, sophomoric joke by a comedian.
Several anonymous accusers.
Al Franken is not perfect, but he doesn't deserve this.
5
Dems need to understand that unlike Trump, Clinton was hounded and undermined for his transgressions, daily. He was impeached even. Men putting their hunt for sexual release ahead of everything is not restricted to powerful men. The current line about it being a power issue is nonsense. The powerful certainly use their power to threaten, but Franken didn't threaten anybody. What he did, I am sure many of those judging him can also be accused of doing. As long as 51% of white women continue to support Republicans, nothing will change. Don't fool yourselves. Steve Bannon and the RNC are laughing at the self-inflicted wounds. Alabama will prove our moral crisis.
1
It starting to look like the Salem Witch hunt. All a woman has to say is she was abused by celebrity, & he’s guilty without due process & removed. I’m sure the greater majority that complained were abused, but a man’s career is at stake, & shouldn’t they be required to submit proof of their complaint ? For most of the population this would go to court, for a verdict.This opens the door to ruin the innocent as well as the guilty. What is to prevent one party to have women call in complaints about a candidate to sully his or her’s reputation & destroy their chances for election.Nothing & nobody is above the Law, including sexual abuse.
3
"This decision is not about me"? Are you kidding? It is 100% about your own decisions and actions. Franken has not yet taken personal responsibility for the damage and harm he alone caused. For him it's being sorry for being caught rather than being sorry for what he did.
1
I'm sorry to see Sen. Franken leave. He did good work as a Senator. But you can't help but admire the man for standing up to take his punishment. Politics is not fair but in a more perfect world I would hope he goes home to Minnesota and sees if he has enough support to run again. I'd vote for him.
As for the party of Liars, Cheaters, and Thieves. They have no morals or principles. They are only in it for greed and selfishness. People should remember that the next time they go to the polls.
Of course Franken's inappropriate behavior was not as egregious as some others', including Trump and Moore. Nevertheless, it was demeaning to women, and it was not limited to just one isolated incident, a joke gone wrong. I agree with the editorial board, it was right for him to resign, helping set the bar high for people in positions who hold the public trust. Let's hope we get it high enough that some of the arrogant jerks we are talking about fail to clear it going forward. Way time. The next generation deserves a more even and fair workplace, a healthier society for both men and women.
1
Think about your first impression of politicians when you were young. Don't allow the current social topic to divert your focus. Stick with the old expression: "Politicians are crooks," and vote for rotation in office.
1
NYT Editorial Board and Ms. Goldberg-
You certainly helped spark this fire and for that you should be ashamed. The degrees of sexual misconduct are not to be passed over in a few flippant sentences. The degrees are stark and their differences are night and day; literally life and death from a legislative standpoint.
Your early call for Franken to resign was the spark that lit the flame for this zero due process circular firing squad. It's this kind of fake purity that got us Trump and will get us many more Trumps. You helped to open the floodgates of weaponized false claims to be used as political tools now and forever. And in the long run, this won't help to end the unwanted advances and assaults by creepy predators, it'll forever put an even bigger question mark next to their claims. Congratulations.
3
Democrats have not move this subject forward, rather they have criminalizes the trivial and the lost my support.
1
A disgraceful editorial by the New York Times. Senator Al Franken was lynched by angry women, especially those Democratic senators. Let's deal with facts not fantasy. Only three accusers came forward, all the other publicized allegations were anonymous. Allow me anonymous allegations and I can prove that the publisher of the NYT is an ax murderer.
None of the named accusers is credible. The first is a woman who career was based on her sexy body who also was an employee of Rupert Murdoch. Her evidence is a comic photograph, in good or bad taste depending on the viewer, of which she was unaware because she was sleeping through the whole thing. The second is a woman from Texas who shows a smiling photograph of her taken with Al Franken at a public event by her husband, while she claims she was being violated. The third is by a "veteran" about an event 14 years ago with a picture that shows nothing. The media, in their usual laziness investigated neither of the latter two women. We do not even know if the "veteran" was honorably discharged, a Republican activist, a gun or anti-abortion fanatic, or even sane.
Franken has an outstanding record as a senator, was an effective critic of the Trump administration, and always supported women's issues. The media and the Democratic establishment, especially the women, are the villains.
4
If the democrats think the 'high road' is good political strategy, I have several bridges I would like to unload. America elected one of the most crass people in the world to occupy the White House and Alabama will elect a guy who liked to date teenagers when he was in his 30's, has insulted women, Muslims, and LGBT people, and believes he is above the law because he calls himself a Christian. The 'high road' only leads to the cliff.
1
Both, the editorial board and the democrats in congress, failed to realize the moment we, the poor and middle class, are going through with the Republicans controlling all branches of government. To disarm yourself in the middle of the war is malpractice and ridiculous. Sad thing is that neither of you will suffer the consequences.
2
I'm afraid we liberals just kissed our chances goodbye in the 2018 and 2020 elections.
It's my understanding that the Whiggs eventually sort of self destructed and only then did the Republicans rise as a major party. Perhaps a similar thing is happening now with the Democrats.
One can hope.
3
What will happen is that the Republicans will use this as a chance for the to pick up another Senate seat and will not change their position on Moore or Trump. They will do, and say, nothing. As long as Democrats are resigning or taking the heat they are perfectly happy to go along. It is clear that their base cares not a bit about sexual harassment unless a Democrat is involved. Then they can watch in glee as the accused Democrat commits ritual political suicide. As for those asking for proof or the ability to face an accuser, please note that this is politics, not a court of law - such things are not required.
2
This is an open comment to those Democratic women (of which I am one).
Do not ever send me a request for money again. You, Senate women are holier than thou for having destroyed a man without a hearing, a trial or any other way of determining his innocence or guilt.
You have destroyed the idea of presumption of innocence until proven guilty by a jury of peers.
I guess you didn't learn anything from the Hillary Clinton situation which gave us trump.
Women have an obligation to come forward when the alleged incidence happened. The perpetrator has a right to confront those charges.
Salem witch hunt.
3
The bigger question is: What can the Democrats learn? Next to nothing seems to be the answer.
NYT, do us a favor and look into who these women are and what happened? I suspect they may be from the Republican dirty tricks machine and that the Dems were rolled.
3
Senator Franken represents MN. Were the residents of his state clamoring for him to resign? As far as I'm concerned, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand orchestrated his resignation for her own political reasons, not in the name of women who have been sexually harassed. When the Democratic Convention comes around again, I fully expect her to demand that President Clinton not be invited. If not, she is a hypocrite.
2
This is not about a "high standard." It's just politics as usual - Dems capitalizing on the MeToo movement. Bad choice though. They've lost a good senator and alienated a lot of male voters with their extremism.
2
Will there be a standard?
No. As long as one side thrives off off a phony and cheap redemption scam -- a form of paying for indulgences -- where as long as you plead fealty to a certain party and a certain political center of that party, there will never be a standard.
There will be what happens to those outside, and that which happens to those inside the whitened sepulcher that US Christianity is fast becoming -- a hiding place for the corrupt.
What about non-sexual abuses of power? What about regular bullying and back-stabbing? When will that get its day in the sun?
Perhaps Al Franken knew that there was enough credible and verifiable evidence against him, and facing the Ethics Committee would have dredged up more unwanted dirt. It's a shame to lose him. I don't think the Dems are caving in. I think they are drawing a stark contrast between cleaning house and protecting perverts. Will voters care? Who knows? It's possible that now -- with Franken and Conyers gone -- the Dems can go on a strong attack against the craven and complicit GOP, including Trump.
2
Democrats are running Al Franken out of the senate, and Republicans and their propaganda machine are supporting a serial sexual predator as President and a child molester for Senate, and going after Robert Mueller with ridiculous claims to try to discredit his investigation. If they can't get rid of him, they will try to discredit his findings when Trump and his entourage are revealed as the traitors they are. If you don't believe it, spend 5 minutes on Fox News watching Hannity, and listen to Republicans in Congressional committees. As a lifelong liberal Democrat, I think my party is surrendering.
2
New York Times Editorial Board - please write an editorial addressing the fact that thousands of people in your comment sections have said they believe that Senator Franken is being railroaded, denied due process, should have received an ethics hearing and should not resign from the Senate.
Address popular opinion on this issue: that Al Franken has been treated unjustly by Senate Democrats.
We're waiting for you to coverage this.
3
Of a Republican than probably will will not be held to the same standard. Having standards assume morality and ethics. We have seen lately that most Republicans have none of these qualities. They are rapidly supporting a pedophile in Alabama! That alone disqualifies all of them who are involved. They still support Trump with all the accusations against him and are afraid of Steve Bannon. So let us add "cowardly" to the one of the traits they do possess.
Al Franken made important sexual conduct mistakes. But in their rush to lynch him politically, fellow Democrats left out that crucial step in American equality and fairness - an opportunity for the accused to confront accusers, challenge their assertions, sort through fact versus fiction using fair evidence standards. Democrats are too anxious to eat their own, while sitting silently about Trump as he shames the White House and nation as our president and current groper in chief.
Would the Democrats have demanded his resignation if there was a Republican
Governor in Minnesota? I doubt it.
1
"Speaker Ryan demurred". Speaker Ryan will not call on Farenthold to resign. I wish the public would just rise up—across the board—and say, "We want these Farenthold types out, just like we want these Conyers types out!"
[And Speaker Ryan is next in line for the presidency, if Trump and the joined-at-the-hip Pence are removed. Oh no! And after Ryan is, unbelievably, Trump point-man Orrin Hatch, Senate Pro Tempore.]
But the problem with "learning from Al Franken" is that Al Franken hedged and hemmed and hawed even as he resigned—and would really only take responsibility when there was photographic documentation. [Thank heaven for the photograph with him looking like a goofball.]
1
If I developed the vaccine to cure cancers but then was exposed for constantly grabbing the behinds of my lab assistance...would you still take the shot?
2
I disagree with the supposition that what Franken may (or may not) have done was an abuse of power. His troubles started with a celebrity telling a tawdy tale about a USO skit rehearsal. And, one stupid, sophomoric photo. Thanks to citizen sleuths some of details in the original story have been shown to be false. Even, Roger Stone, Republican operative, tweeted in advance about the eminent allegation against the Senator. And, several of the accusers have remained anonymous. Anyone who remains anonymous shouldn't be included in the victim's count in the headlines. Someone has successfully weaponized the #metoo movement to take down the Senator. This is an affront to all people that have been victimized by someone in a position of power.
I am not aware of any mainstream media conducting any investigative journalism to corroborate or refute the allegations. Compare this instance with the Washington Post's thorough investigation of Roy Moore and the credibility of his accusers.
At this point Al Franken looks like the victim to me.
P.S. I too have experienced sexual harrassment, including assault, several times. But, that doesn't mean I will blindly believe every accuser. Remember Emmet Till. That child was lynched, and his accuser revealed decades later that she fabricated much of her story.
5
Considering that the Republicans nominated and elected a self-confessed sexual predator as president, and have pledged their party's money and influence to a child molester, it boggles the mind that you could believe that "both parties" will be "rejecting the mechanisms and mind-set that keeps predators in power".
So, maybe this editorial is satire?
2
My senators Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton voted to let George W. Bush go to war in Iraq. That war was based on lies, and cost at least 150,000 lives.
I overlooked those flaws and voted for them.
Al Franken put his hand on the behinds of some women who took a picture with him.
You can forgive Clinton and Schumer for the deaths of 150,000 Iraqis, but you can't forgive Franken for putting his hand on a woman's behind.
3
It's a sad day in our country when a decent man is forced to resign his seat in the Senate for mistakes he made even though there has never been a hearing, nothing has been proven and those mistakes occurred before he assumed office.
It is even sadder when he is lumped in with men who used their position to impose themselves on women, as if some stupid sexual misconduct is equivalent to forcible rape. Not all crimes are deserving of equal punishment.
Finally it is even sadder when this good man is forced to resign while a serial sexual predator is president and an alleged pedophile is running for the Senate with the support of his party and the endorsement of the same president.
Senate Democrats have made a huge mistake and they will pay for it in 2028 and 2020.
4
Near 60 years old, life-long voting Democrat, feminist-this is it. Dems lose my vote. Kristen Gillibrand you have lost my vote.
Yes, Al Franken is a dork. Yes, his initial responses were lacking in gravitas and feminist sophistication, but sorry, Democratic leadership, you have lost this supporter, and donater.
5
I hope he runs again.
3
Where you see a welcome cultural shift I see the trampling of due process and the ugly presence of false equivalency (which the NY Times excels at.) A group of senators deciding among themselves that they will force the resignation of a fellow senator based on allegations and without investigation is no cause to celebrate.
2
I'm in mourning at losing Al Franken. I supported Hillary and even had a lawn sign on display. She barely won Minnesota. Rural area voters were generally Hillary haters. Political correctness was an effective theme for the haters.
Another woman Dem Pres. candidate will have as many or more haters around Minnesota. This travesty will just grow their numbers. Suburban women are not guaranteed to outweigh all of the haters. Next election will be a bloodbath for the Democrats (DFL) in Minnesota. Much will be lost.
1
When is Trump resigning-- oh, right, never, because he just denies the allegations. Whatever! And the planet is warming, life is over, enjoy your blood money folks. You won't have anywhere left to spend it.
What we can learn from Franken is that the Democratic Party is a party of no loyalty, purging its best brain for hearsay.
1
What can Congress learn from Al Franken? It will learn that a Congressman can safely practice sexual abuse as long as he is a Republican.
1
Welcome as the growing outrage over sexual predation by the powerful and shaming and naming them, there is a danger tht those taking up some progressive issues (like al franken on silicon giant trio's monopolistic behaviour) may by thus targeted and the cause they take up gets shelved
1
He’s not gone yet.
2
I once thought I would welcome the chance to vote for Al Franken or Kirsten Gillibrand for president. I'd still welcome the chance to vote for Franken. Gillibrand, not so much...
3
I want Senator Gillibrand to resign now.
Kirsten Gillibrand proved yesterday that she doesn't have the character to be a Senator. She cynically & recklessly attempted to railroad Senator Franken into resigning, knowing her demand would create a media circus he couldn't withstand. By instigating a witch hunt atmosphere against Al Franken & demanding his immediate resignation without a hearing, she failed miserably at her job & damaged an esteemed colleague. After Franken asked for due process in a Senate Ethics Investigation into unproven allegations against him, Gillibrand - a lawyer - chose to destroy the political career of this esteemed Senator without due process in an media atmosphere of hysteria she instigated.
Gillibrand knew the media would turn her demand into a circus that would drown out Franken's request for a hearing.
There's reason to believe Franken may be innocent - that dirty trickster Roger Stone orchestrated the accusations against Franken as revenge for his political courage shredding Trump's cabinet nominees. Why didn't this give Gillibrand pause?
Gillibrand instigated a Joe McCarthy style takedown of Franken to promote HERSELF in this hot political moment. She cynically & recklessly destroyed Senator Franken's career. She should resign now. Senators who fell in behind her to railroad their colleague - without any proof Franken is guilty - should hang their heads in shame.
Senator Gillibrand - Have you no sense of decency?
6
"When they go low, we go high."
..............and then we lose anyway.
Some strategy. Harrumph.
1
By expelling their own, Democrats are "acting on the right side of history." History is irrelevant if the world is allowed to burn.
2
We forced a good man to resign today who's transgressions are minor in the grand scheme of things. We destroyed his professional life without giving him the courtesy of a ethics hearing that he asked for. Of course the hypocrisy of the #MeToo militants leaves no room for due process, facts or for Franken’s own constituents to consider their choice. These zealots in some respects are more powerful than the truth. That's scary. Lets be clear Franken's case isn't about power, violence, or illegal acts. It's about the left's obsession with policing all sexual misconduct as they & they alone define it. This follows on the heels of progressive extremists trying to redefine free speech, assembly, & other constitutionally protected rights on our college campuses. While the far left fanatics are popping champagne corks I'd like to point out some inconvenient truths. Franken's departure is a nightmare for Dems, exposing another seat in a midterm election that already had them defending 24 incumbents. The GOP is eager to recapture the seat that Franken won in 2008 by a tiny margin & only after a months long recount. They believe the left's sexual zealots will saddle Dems with enough baggage to help the GOP break through in 2018. They're right. We can’t allow moral activists to destroy people’s lives by retroactively imposing today’s sexual standards on past actions. There will be a fierce backlash. Unfortunately by that point these political purists will have torn our country apart.
4
TODAY, if he had no shame or self-awareness, Al Franken could have stayed on as a US Senator. TODAY, likewise, if he had no shame and was willing to blow the dog whistles of white supremacist America, Al Franken could not only be a US Senator, but the President of the USA.
It is shameful that those in our midst who cast shadows are pushed aside while those who brag about their molestations are elected to the highest office in the land, and that those who prey on underaged teens are on the doorstep to the US Senate.
Al Franken may have made mistakes. Trump and Moore should be in jail.
1
We don't know whether Franken abused his power or not - because political expediency robbed us and Franken of due process. What this teaches people is, don't apologize, don't call for an investigation of yourself and don't compete with other senators for the limelight - if you are a Democrat. If you are a Republican, it doesn't matter because you can actually abuse people and your base doesn't give a darn.
1
How utterly absurd.
I can tell you exactly how many members of congress will be held to the same standard.
Zero. Zero is the number of people who will be held to the same standard.
We lose a key team player. The republicans win again. The democrats prove once more they are their own worst enemy.
2
Nice job of wishful thinking. Moral shaming of the shameless is also a good strategy.
2
What Congress can learn from Al Franken's case is surely not what this editorial so hypocritically asserts. A cleanup of the culture of sexual harassment is long overdue. But by exhorting others to follow Franken's example, you are in fact slyly eliding and begging the real question, and the real scandal about how this was handled by the Democrats, who cannibalized this great senator. You are slyly implying that widely different behaviors are morally equivalent, not to mention that you are implicitly endorsing this vigilante mentality of "shoot first, ask questions later." What happened to the presumption of innocence? What happened to due process? Even your suggestion that "in a different era" Franken would "probably [have] kept his job" thanks to the "notoriously plodding Senate Ethics Committee" is a transparently underhanded way of slandering this man's character and reputation, and assuming for yourselves the mantle of judge, jury, and executioner all in one. I am outraged and disgusted by how the Times has handled this story.
3
Back to another first page subject ; Trump's announcement on moving US embassy to Jerusalem .I have read many erudite , well articulated explanations.. except the obvious.By so doing The MAster MAnipulator, has succeeded in shifting the press/country attention away from the elephant in Oval Office: Mullers"s Russia probe. How gullible can we all be?
probe.How gullible can we be?
This opinion piece say's "we are in a welcome cultural shift" when a man is forced out of a job or career without due process. No, this is not a welcome cultural shift. Two wrongs do not make a right. The end does not justify the means. The anger is justified but the strategy is pathetic.
3
“Men, their rights and nothing more. Women, their rights and nothing less.” — Susan B. Anthony
1
I hope Al Franken runs to regain his seat in 2018 or else is written in by the people of Minnesota. The Minnesotans I know are furious at this miscarriage of justice!
2
At least Moore got tried in the press. The Washington Post conducted a detailed investigation and reported the incidents in what seemed to be a balanced and fair manner. It is more likely than not that Moore committed a felony in his relations with a 14 yr old girl.
Franken never even got a trial in the press. The first complainant told her story in detail and with the photograph left no doubt as to what happened, as Franken admitted. But she also said that he should not lose his job over the incident involving her. The other "incidents" required more attention to rule out accidental contact, as in the hands on the buttocks, or dishonest reporting. But, even if all true, expulsion would have been too severe a punishment.
Make no mistake about it, Franken's railroading by a majority of Senate Democrats is not universally welcomed by your readership. To the contrary, this is yet another example of the Democrats snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. I will not vote for your senators, if they run for president, or my current Democratic Senator, who is up for reelection--all of whom were among those pushing Franken out, and yesterday I reregistered independent from Democrat. And I don't know anyone among my liberal friends who is celebrating this moment as the NYT editorial is. I'm afraid, once again, Democrats are playing to their true believers the same way that Trump does. Shame on you all.
This whole incident brings to mind the phrase, "liberals would rather be embracing a righteous loss than celebrating a dirty win". The leftist establishment hasn't been this out of touch since they declared Hillary had the election in the bag.
I have yet to see or read anything about Gillibrand or the other women of congress demanding that trump resign immediately! Where did those spines go or maybe women don't have spines -- they just have an extra rib. What about the other members of congress who have abused women? Why are they still there? And where is Feinstein in all this? She'll support a war or a bombing at the drop of a hat. Might women in congress be just as hypocritical as the men?
"In demanding Mr. Franken’s resignation, the Democratic Party seized an opportunity to" ... destroy the reputation of a DEM Senator for political gain.
Note to DEMS: get use to being the Minority.
Note to NYT: another example of many false equivalencies.
Note to Self: change Party affiliation today.
3
Republicans have no obligation to keep their word. They serve a higher purpose in Congress. They keep Democrats out of power, reward the Rich and punish the Poor. Democrats, since they are all "closet socialists", are obligated to be consistent in word and deed. Republicans accept hypocrisy as part of being an adult.
Democrats will now be forced out of office sooner for any moral failures, no matter how small. Republicans will persist. Anything and everything is okay, as long as no wealthy White American man is killed.
1
What we can learn is that while the right sharpens their swords, the left uses their swords to stab each other.
The NYT has shown no such rush to "eject" its own hireling (Mr. Thrush), who has been accused of sexual misconduct. And the Democrats have not yet "atoned" for their years-long shielding of Bill Clinton. Their hypocrisy is typified by the posturing of officials like Ms Gillibrand, who now find it politically expedient to retroactively condemn those she had long shielded. Franken effectively called his accusers liars, and further polluted his situation by pointing figures at his political enemies. He deserves no praise.
1
What the deocratic female senators should have said is "We want Franken to resign but not until there is an investigation into Trump's harassment behavior and - if Moore comes to DC - an ethics investigation is held on him. Once those two things happen, and Franken's ethics investigation is finished, then we think he should resign - not because he is necessarily guilty but because his effectiveness haas been diminished". Well, they did not do that - the true moral highground was lost! Shame on them!
The irony is that with all the sexual misconduct getting exposed the only people to suffer are Democrats , those who in reality care much more for women’s Rights and Equality and the Republicans including their leader that have no limits in sexual predatory behavior are ruling the country.
Nope. Until now, I could look to my democratic party and think that at least they abhor pedophiles and reject the copious lying from the White House.
Now I just feel dispirited and weary as this horrible, horrible 2017 draws to a close. The democrats have sacrificed an effective public servant (one of their very few) for political ambition masquerading as virtue signaling.
Say what you will about republicans - at least they are loyal. I honestly don't have a political party anymore. It's going to be a long 2018. Sigh.
2
Now that the Democrats have unilaterally destroyed one of their most effective elected officials, what are you going to do, Republicans?
I mean, besides laughing uproariously.
2
It should always be Congresses job to tell the truth. News media tells a story, pictures need context, accusations do not become true until the truth is known. What is the truth about Franken? Are his accuses believable? The principle accuser's might appear less convincing in the context of her resume, as model, actress, a single women at that time of the alleged incident and since then, a sometimes employee of the Fox News Organization. Is this a case of wrongful harassment of an accused by employer (Congress) and Media? An investigation should always precede judgement when an allegation is made against an employee, especially in Congress. Media (including the NY Times, Washington Post, MSNBC and others) spread bias by reporting only a fraction of the story, and wrongly influence opinion. It is immoral. Can Congress move forward without fear of false accusations flamed by media hype? Has mainstream media used ethical principles in reporting? Is this V2.0 of the Clinton Campaign? Moore is not an elected government employee and he does not enjoy employee protection. The public needs to know more about his resume and that is the job of media. Does the Times get this difference? Does it care about truth, or only Monday Morning Quarterbacking? I hope that Franken, as a public citizen, exposes how the foolish Democrats were manipulated by the media. This is not a case of "high morals", but of stupidity. Congressional Democrats need to learn this.
1
Donald Trump is on tape boasting about his own sexual impropriety. Roy Moore said when he dated he asked for the girls' mothers' permissions.
Clarence Thomas remains on the Supreme Court. Thomas's wife gave an award to a man trying to damage the Post by having a woman falsely pose as a Moore rape victim. He's affiliated with conservative outlets that support Republicans.
Democrats get rid of their best senator, who in fact apologized profusely as to mostly anonymous allegations. Roy Moore's accusers are known, and Republicans still plan to seat him. And Donald Trump is funding him.
Nothing about their own Blake Farenthold until it was exposed taxpayers funded his settlement. When Trump said better a molester from Alabama than a democrat, did Republicans spoke up to criticize that? Democrats will learn the higher ground is not always best, and Republicans will destroy Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.
1
ll very pat. nice rhetorically.
here is more, tho:
start with the headline, and change that--
What can Congress learn from Clarence Thomas (question mark).
see, the thing is, anyone can jump on the preachy and moralizing bandwagon, and leave their own participation in events over a course of history, more or less mute, or tacit,
in any case to no effect but a seasonal bellyache.
or is Thomas exempt, sirs? because he is not a lawmaker, but a mrere Judge.
if you're to pull skeletons outta the closet,
lets reach in pretty far, dudes.
1
Franken's stepping down has met with expected blowback from the Republicans who are calling it a political stunt. At least he owned up to his sexual misconduct and did the right thing, which is more than can be said for Trump and Moore. Denial is not vindication.
Gentlemen,
I submit that you are no better than those you censure. Mr. Franken (and Roy Moore) have been convicted of nothing
This is a witch hunt not unlike that of McCarthy.
You should be ashamed of yourselves.
1
The subheading reads "Will other lawmakers who abuse their power be held to the same standard?" Franken has not even been accused of abusing his power as a lawmaker. Implying he was is an abuse of your immense power as NYT editors.
3
Al Franken resigning is a wasted, honorable gesture. You're dealing with an evil entity, the Republican party of today. There's a malicious, pathological liar in the White House, Donald Trump has seventeen women accusing him of sexual harassment, and they're on the record, not anonymous like some of Franken's. Roy Moore was notorious in his predilection for under age girls, and has numerous accusers, on the record, yet he, will more than likely, be in the senate. Evil is winning in present day United States.
1
I hate the sound of Republicans laughing.
1
If the spineless Bill Clinton had had an ounce of the courgae and matruity Al Franken possesses in owning up to his " mistakes" we would not be in the mess are are now!
It is a shame Al Franken had to resign, but being a mature, responsible individual, he put the needs of his constituents and his country ahead of his own.
That is something Bill (and Hillary to a lesser extent) Clinton was NEVER able to do
1
Until we know who the anonymous accusers are the dem's just got punked by Bannon, no less... a most reprehensible "human"... if they had just stopped and wondered what was happening they might have had a logical reaction...politics is theater and this turned out to be a very bad play on the dem's side
In the House, Representative Trent Franks, Republican of Arizona, under pressure from leadership, said late Thursday he will resign after two women, both former staff members, said he discussed his efforts to find a surrogate mother with them.
Come on NYT -- Why have we not heard more about this??? Over the past weeks I have been wondering why it is just (or primarily) Dems we've been hearing about. I knew it couldn't just be Dems who are guilty. But now it looks like it's just lopsided reporting.
1
I have a hard time seeing Al Franken's situation as an abuse of power. IF the fan photo-taking accusations are true (and it is hard to believe that they are, with third-party photographers right there observing), where is he exerting power? He is not their employer nor does influence their career or life, or even hound them repeatedly. His behavior (e.g.,mugging for the photographer in the Tweeden photo, not leering or touching) is that of churlish school-boy antics , not a predator. The latest accuser is the weirdest, conveniently paraphrasing words of the current president in regard to an incident that occurred 11 years ago. If politics is bringing forth false accusations just because we now have a #METOO movement where the women are to believed, shame on those who misuse this for political gain. They will end up hurting the cause. We need to consider each case: the actions, the evidence, and the motivations.
1
Wow. So when do we expel the racists? Not holding my breath
1
According to this editorial, it was "female Democratic senators" who started the campaign against Franken. Well, maybe, but it's awfully hard to say exactly where the insanity began. Personally, I put much of the blame on Times columnist Michelle Goldberg. Her "Franken Should Go" column was the first prominent piece in the MSM to call for his resignation.
I won't read Goldberg again.
3
what Congress can learn from Al Franken,et al, is to stop violating women.
1
Republicans cannot learn anything from Senator Franken. They know nothing of ethics, morality of bravery. All They can learn is that Democrats have no stomach for a fight. Franken given his "wrong doing" is the equivalent of a small fish being caught in a large net, a dolphin being caught with the tuna. Do Democrats now claim the higher ground? So what, this assumes that it means anything most Republicans. They have flocked around Roy Moore, pedophile from Alabama. They are afraid of Trump and Steve Bannon,as a nation we have lost our moral center and it will be decades before we can claim it. I have little faith that Moore will not be elected and even less faith that Democrats will exert themselves to get out the black vote in an effort to not have him seated.
What Congress can learn from Al Franken's case is surely not what this editorial so hypocritically asserts. A cleanup of the culture of sexual harassment is long overdue. But by exhorting others to follow Franken's example, you are in fact slyly eliding and begging the real question, and the real scandal about how this was handled by the Democrats, who cannibalized this great senator.
You are slyly implying that widely different behaviors are morally equivalent, not to mention that you are implicitly endorsing this lynch mob mentality of "shoot first, ask questions later." What happened to the presumption of innocence? What happened to due process? Even your suggestion that "in a different era" Franken would "probably [have] kept his job" thanks to the "notoriously plodding Senate Ethics Committee" is a transparently underhanded way of slandering this man's character and reputation, and assuming for yourselves the mantle of judge, jury, and executioner all in one. I am outraged and deeply offended by how the Times has handled this story.
The clear message to men is as long as you are a Republican deny, deny, attack. You can hide behind other men and complicit women as long as you will vote the right right way
1
Perhaps the barrier to renewing the CHIP program is entirely captured in your phrase, “simple decency.” It’s too bad the Republican concern for the unborn is not matched by concern for those born!
1
You lost me with your teaser for this editorial: "will other lawmakers who abuse their power...". Are you KIDDING me? I haven't heard any suggestion whatsoever that Al Franken abused his power, even if you believe the ridiculous allegation made by the most recent woman that he put his hand on her waist when posing for a photo. I guess I have been a serial abuser as I have put my hand on the waist of about 3 dozen people over the course of my adulthood when taking a photograph. I would like to encourage you to stop being so quick to jump on this bandwagon--it's a witch hunt, a sham, a travesty and it has GOT TO STOP. Otherwise the republicans will accuse every single Democrat, male or female, of some vague long ago 'abuse' and I guess they will all resign en masse. Fools.
3
Franken did not abuse his power. The sophomoric events that he is accused of occurred before he was a senator. The inability to see nuance by americans in general and the press foreshadow the end of this empire. It was a good run, but when stupid is in charge and stupid reports on those in charge then stupid is what happens and that means an end to our nation. Trump and Putin has won. Goodbye democracy, hello fascism. The Christians will love the torture.
1
Really? You REALLY think the Dems' sacrifice of a contrite, apologetic Franken for comparatively minor and unproven accusations, without allowing him due process, will actually teach Congress something? You don't think it will just empower the Republicans to keep steamrolling over the hapless, "high road" Dems, until they've taken everything they want and can, especially women's rights? The Dems have been remarkably silent during Trump's reign, and the first loud "stand" they make is this overreach on the very legitimate issue of sexual harassment, in which they eat only their own, to no effect or benefit of anyone not a diehard Republican. To try and put lipstick on that pig is beneath the Times. Shame.
There is more than a little cultural hysteria, lemmings over the cliff in this. Franken's situation is in noway similar to Moore's or Weinstein's and yet they are made falsele equivalent by the media, the politically motivated, and assorted dunderheads who will jump on any movement, no matter its merits.
There should be no toleration for the behavior of pedophiles and predators like Moore and Weinstein where there is clear and convincing indication of their actions. This isn't the case with Franken and while the claims of his accusers should be fully investigated it is a mistake--unjust--to treat all these situations as the same.
The Democrats clearly believe they are taking the moral high ground here, but they aren't, they engaging in a kind of tawrdy politics. Leave that stuff to the Groper-in Chief and his Republican enablers.
As a lifelong Democrat, I am shocked, disturbed, and saddened by the apparent
willingness of Dems, to be so dismissive of Al Frankens misconduct.
Republicans are virtually all hypocrites, but alas, so are Democrats on the hill
and in this newspaper.
1
So we have a situation where the perfect is the enemy of the good, but no oone is the enemy of the bad.
Contrary to his statement, Pres Trump did NOT "brag(ged)" about assaulting women. As a female pediatrician told me at the time...this is about what WOMEN would do in the face of a star. The NY Times editorial here also gets it wrong...intentionally?...Pres Trump did NOT "boast"on tape...he spoke to the willingness of women, just as the female pediatrician explained, from her female point of view, to me.
Furthermore, the dishonesty of Franken was evident at his first "election," which he stole from Norm Coleman as several hundred Democrat ballots were "found" in a car trunk two weeks after the election. Franken should never have been in the Senate in the first place.
Resign? Later? No, immediately. What subterfuge does he have planned during his projected future time in office?
What I have learned from this sorry episode is to ask if there is any woman I've ever encountered in my life who feels that that she has been sexually harassed by me before I decide to run as a Democrat or a Republican.
1
The one thing you can be virtually sure of is the NY Times and many so-called democratic leaders will lack common sense. Franken admitted to boorish behavior but there is no evidence he was a predator or serious abuser.
Why doesn't the editorial board and Gillibrand write down for all of us to see their "purity test". And how they have never had the slightest transgression of it anytime in their lives.
Then everyone will know what the standard is to hold office, who will be executed by accusation and for what "offense". Every democrat that is, the rule of law will no longer apply to them.
And their brand of identity politics will lose again. Look at us, we find sacrificial lambs that most democratic voters do not want removed, and we stab them in the back and destroy them. All democratic officials better look out, because due process is gone and so will you if we find you aren't perfect and pure.
The repubs of course, where most of the truly vile reside will simply lie, deny, claim it's fake news or a conspiracy. etc ... and stay in power.
It's a given the GOP will never demand anything from their officials but loyalty to greed and the aristocracy. But any feeble accusation will bring down a dem by party cannibalism. There is complexity in human behavior and there should be due process to sort it out. Current dem leadership seems oblivious.
"we are in the middle of a stunning and welcome cultural shift"
The great lie of the progressive left: Claiming not only that morality is relative, but also pretending to moral authority - the right to determine what is moral and immoral.
No, NYT, immoral sexual attractions have not become immoral recently because of cultural shifts.
Morality is objective: Immoral sexual attractions have always been immoral. Yes, even for Presidents Kennedy and Clinton.
Immoral sexual attractions have not been newly defined to be immoral by "cultural shifts".
Understanding that objective morality exists is step number one. Understanding that an external moral law must have an external law-maker, namely God, is step number two.
Step three is realising we all violate that moral law and are dependent upon Jesus for salvation from judgement for our fallen state.
"Democrats are also drawing a bright moral contrast with the Republican Party and President Trump..." Really? Tell that to the 62 percent of white women voters who chose a sexual predator to sit in the White House.
1
The Democrats took the bait (the ten-year old story of Leeann Sweeden and gag photograph) out of context, as the press characterized her as a “journalist”. At the time, she was the sex object for the touring show for troops in the field, and was a model for racy and nude photographs. Just Google or Bing her name and call up images. With the impact of this phony story, others chipped in, with such terrible acts as putting his arm around a female military member for a photograph, where his hand touched the right side of her breast for five or ten seconds.
The formation of a lynch mob led by female senators, including one of my own, eventually claimed the support of the Democratic Leader, who called for Senator Franken’s resignation.
The naivety of the Democratic Party on this matter creates a profound sense of depression, along with rage at the injustice and undeserved harm done to a good man.
3
Are you serious? This is an example not of Democratic moral superiority but of Democratic foolishness and naivete about getting, using and losing power. This silly coven of self righteous, self appointed guardians of virtue led by Senator Gillibrand has just succeeded in triggering a special election in a purple state, which is likely to cost them a valuable Senate seat. Do the math, ladies. You're in the minority, and at the rate you're going, you will be for a long time.
4
Franken did not abuse his power. I have not heard one woman say he subjected them to a pattern of harassment, retaliation, threats, etc. Best as I can tell, the worst thing he did was try to kiss women, one-time clumsy nothing burgers. We run a real risk her of minimizing serious sexual crimes, rape, actual sexual harassment - intimidation, retaliation, threats, pattern of hostility - with benign obnoxious behavior, of which we are all guilty at one time or another.
All I've learned from Franken is that telling the truth, admitting to wrongdoing, and apologizing for it is stupid, while lying, trashing your accusers, and further harassing them by threatening sue them, is wise. I've also learned that women are actually harming other women by declaring that all offenses are equal.
1
He called for an investigation into himself, and the Dems wouldn't even give him that much. At this point, the party is a circular firing squad.
1
What has been learned is how easy it is to topple a Democrat. Roger Store is gleeful, and with good reason: he got the Democrats to do his dirty work for him.
1
What can America learn from Al Franken?
If men grope, then women lie. It's just a fact of human nature. We all have proof in the photo presented by Franken's accuser. She said unequivocally that Franken groped her breasts and she offered a photo, BUT the photo clearly shows that Franken did not grope her breasts but was only clowning for the camera. It's plain as day for those who know the difference between day and night. If the accuser, I forget her name, was asleep then she can't really say what happened. At least she isn't claiming she was drugged. Is she?
It's curious how she, and others, play this rhetorical game of using a person's denial of the accusations as just another sign of their guilt.
The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I see the NYT doesn't do that. Propaganda is their game. They don't know anything else. It's in their blood. But they might win a Pulitzer Prize.
I take issue with the tone of this article which presumes Franken's guilt. The first accusation in particular holds no water: no grope in the picture and a kiss which she admitted in her own first statement that she agreed to do (she said that Franken convinced her that it was funny) and agreed to rehearse (her real complaint appears to be that she felt bullied into agreeing to rehears the kiss and then shocked by the ferocity of it). She then says in her first statement that she is speaking up to encourage other women with similar incidents with Franken to come forth, but then in a later statement says that she does not want him to step down - the 2 statements are inconcruous. The other allegations are vague and many anonymous but a dim light is cast on them by the first accusation and by the activities of project veritas. Finally, I don't recall that any of the accusations were while Mr. Franken was in office, and prior to that, I don't believe that he had a lot of power even in his industry - he didn't have the fame of Eddie Murphy, Billy Murray or other former SNL members, no movies or specials that I recall - so no abuse of power as a senator or before. Let the ethics committee investigate. None of what he is even accused of includes suggestions of a prelude to forced sex, just antics reminiscent of crude humor like a wedgie, goose, pinch.
2
Do NOT forget Clarence Thomas. He should be forced off the Supreme Court.
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I would like to know what went on behind the scenes to make Franken's accusers come forward. The whole situation reminds me of the GOP's history of "dirty tricks" and the great lengths they will travel to set up successful lawmakers who stand in the way of their agenda. The 1st was Leeann Tweeden- is it a coincident that she works for Fox? This seems all too plausible to me.
1
Hope preening moralists like Gillibrand are as pure as they assert, or democrats are really in trouble. Never did anything impure, senator? Never offended anyone with callous behavior? No dirty jokes that didn't go over?
Perhaps dems should run Senator Calvin of Geneva to fill Franken's seat or someone else whose purity is predetermined and unassailable.
1
The Franken case is extremely unfortunate. It sends the wrong message to young men: you can be ruined for doing next to nothing if powerful women gang up against you. It's open season on dudes so keep your guard up.
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to heck with due process. If you get enough people saying you done it, you must have done it. I really have never cared for big Al, but he should have fought to save his name if he knew he was innocent. Of course, the cynical dem leadership sees this as a smart political move so they can take the moral high ground (despite the fact that almost all the big name harassers are dems) -- II mean you are merely trading one fuzzy headed Minnesota prog for another. And if they can use it as an angle to get at Trump or other Repubs going forward then small price to pay right? But that dog won't hunt. Voters are smart enough to sniff out a political ploy when they see one.
And going forward I want women to speak out when something happens, not wait years. And I want men to defend themselves if they are innocent.
Al Franken is 'going to' resign. He hasn't resigned yet. I hope there will be a groundswell of people emailing Senator Franken and calling his office and asking him to hold off while the Ethics Committee investigates and holds hearings on him. He has a right to a hearing. It seems obvious that a huge number of people do not think Franken should have be forced to resign without a hearing. We may learn that Roger Stone and GOP dirty tricksters are behind the accusations against Al Franken. Stones tweet about Franken before Leeann Tweeden accused him reminds me of Stone tweeting John Podesta was about to be on the firing line before Podesta's emails were dumped. Does Roger Stone get to decide if Franken is forced from office? Because that seems to be what's happening.
Don't let Roger Stone put an end to Senator Franken's career without an investigation to see who made these accusations against Franken and whether they have any credible evidence. And let Senator Franken defend himself in the Senate.
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Pardon my cynicism, but this, too, shall pass. If killing 6-year old school children doesn’t change our culture, molesting women will return to its former status as white male privilege.
1
At the end of the day, Democrats will get credit alright . . . for stupidity. Trump will remain in the White House, Moore will serve in the Senate and average Americans will lose a strong advocate with the departure of Franken.
I applaud this extraordinary movement to root out sexual predators, but I'm not seeing anyone of value stepping in to fill the vacancies left by some of the accused nor are many of those accused receiving a fair hearing. Are people like Franken resigning because they are guilty of offenses even more grievous than we know, or are they leaving because they're tired of defending themselves against questionable charges and don't want to put their families through more emotional stress?
All of this is starting to smell of a witch hunt among Democrats while they --and we -- allow Republicans to take this country down a steep slope. There has to be a better way to deal with this issue.
This is nonsense. The Democratic Party is unable to beat Trump on any substantive issue, and has now become a party exclusively of scanda: Russiagate, sexgate, etc. The disgraceful treatment of Franken is just one part of that.
Don't fool yourself by thinking something's been missed all these years. Power swings both ways and always has-- by both men AND women.
1
This is so ridiculous. Democrats are not going to be rewarded with votes in any election held in this country because of what happened to Sen. Al Franken today. The average Joe and Jill Schmoe really don't care. They are much too busy trying to make ends meet, hanging on to lousy health insurance and worrying about their kids futures. Trump won today. And chances are Moore will win next week. So far two Democratic bigwigs have resigned because of this. How many Republicans? This is just a case of liberal guilt. God help us. Maybe Trump is right: Democrats are losers
When is too far toooooo far? I for one am thinking that it’s about time that many men in high positions are called down for their sexual and domineering behavior both in and out of the workplaces.
Having said that, if every man, woman or child who has ever had a sexual desire that was outside of accepted or religious practices, there would be a group of very boring and unnatural human beings.
Sexual experience is part of our animal DNA. It’s natural to have these feelings and desires and act on them. The difference between humans and animals is that humans can decide NOT to take advantage of every natural desire.
Now back to reality. The human Pendulum swings back and forth and rarely stays in the middle for very long. If every Senator or Congress Person resigned because of sexual misbehavior, I’m afraid we just wouldn’t a government. The same goes in the Corporate World. In fact, it goes to our entire present world.
So– What is the answer? Make this a learning experience. Stop making excuses for past behavior and don’t stop acting on a higher level just because you’re afraid of being fired or caught. Do I think that will happen? Not as long as you have a so-called President like Trump who’s life is centered around this and someone like Roy Moore who is going to win the election next week throwing it back in our face.
I believe that many of these people that have now been banished are actually good people who have just made some very stupid decisions. Baby and Bathwater.
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Senator Franken is not a sexual predator. Pure and simple but he is being treated as one for political gain. That is sickening. Americans see through this and and see that Senator Gillibran is a modern day Robespierre.
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If the comments sections of the NYT and Washington Post are any indication, a large majority of rank-and-file Democrats and even some self-described Republicans and independents, disagree with the cabal that ousted Franken from office.
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In 2002 th NYT published a piece entitled "Mean Girls." It might do whoever wrote this editorial and a lot of others a great deal of good to dig it out and read it. How many of these women testified under oath to their alleged "assaults. and how many were just fabricating?
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I think your rationale for Franken's resignation is pure casuistry. First, I don't condone his sexual behavior. But the way democrats treated him was hypocritical and seemed more of a blatant power grab by Senator Gillebrand vis-a-vis Franken's ethics. It smacked of political opportunism at the expense of Franken. He was used as a scapegoat by her. She seems to want national exposure. This scenario played right into the disgusting Republicans hand. The Democrats could have handled in a better way. I don't like how he treated women, but his actions are not the same as Trump's or Moore's. Ironically, it will probably backfire, and the Democrats lost a smart man who had a chance to redeem himself, as opposed to Trump. The move was more of a P.R. stunt. At the end of the day I will still vote for the Democrats but they are woefully in need of some new, dynamic leaders. The Republicans are an anachronistic, greedy, dumb, immoral group of fossilized, win at any cost, losers. We need a real party. Time for a sea change.
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"Letting the people of Alabama make the call" - such weasel's words from McConnell - re the yuge cultural swing away from male sexual harassment of females in our skewed American culture. Not a ghost of a chance for justice. If Alabama puts Roy Moore in the Senate, accompanhying our ladies-parts grabbing president, we are already so down the drain. Only another catastrophe wrought by Mother Nature or Father Time will bring down our experiment in democracy. Al Franken was the scapegoat yesterday, while the worst miscreants are given a pass and kudos by Sara Huckabee Sanders - a patriot NOT - Trump's chunky press secretary who doesn't know Shinola about Washington inside the Beltway. How many more below the belt punches are we Americans going to endure from the Republican Party and their unfit, demented, ignorant leader in the Christmasly dolled up the ying-yang White House?
I was disheartened by the Franken resignation. He was a talented comedian and an effective senator. Intelligent and eloquent. But, he brought this situation on himself. It reminds me of what my mother used to say to me when I did something stupid. "What were you thinking? You should know better."
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ManhattanWilliam New York, NY Pending Approval
LET'S GET SMART PEOPLE, POLITICS is dirty, to win you gotta hold your nose sometimes but don't bite it off! (to spite your face). His voting record is impeccable. I don't believe the accusations rise to the level of CRIMINAL misconduct. NO ONE goes into politics for altruistic reasons and never have no matter what some might claim. I don't like the accusations, their tawdry and unseemly but our government has degenerated to a state of near total defilement and it's not because of conduct such as that which Franken has been accused. Rather, the GOP have debased our federal government to an unrecognizable state and I'm willing to bend my level of tolerance in a situation like Franken's to be assured of a RELIABLE and ADMIRABLE VOTE reflecting the basic values that I hold dear. These are NOT normal times and liberals have to learn to play the game and to WIN in order to secure our general liberties which are being attacked in a calamitous way by our vile leaders in Congress, the Supreme Court and most of all THE WHITE HOUSE.
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I am furious that Al Franken was pressured to resign. His first accuser, Leeann Tweeden - a former Playboy nude model & self promoting Hollywood starlet - was upset that Franken, a comedian & member of the Saturday Night Live cast, would do something comedic on a USO tour for GI's. The photo of Franken smiling like a lunatic while pretending to grope the breasts of a woman in a kevlar vest & helmet was obviously a staged gag shot. It may have been in extremely poor taste, but it was not sexual assault.
Doesn't anyone remember the old televised Bob Hope USO tours, with Hope making crude remarks & leering lasciviously at Jane Mansfield, Joey Heatherton, Raquel Welsh et al? It may have been crude, but the GI's loved it. That's why those women were there; it wasn't because of their talent.
Franken should have stayed & let the ethics committee do its job. He was a valuable voice in the Senate for women's rights, & we will miss him.
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Your sub-headline misses the entire point - he was NOT accused of abuse of power. He was not in charge of the woman who is complaining. He was accused of behaving in a sexist and obnoxious manner, creating a toxic work environment. That is a very different thing. Bad, but not the same - and not as bad.
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So now the New York Times is sanctioning justice by mob rule?
There is significant variation of opinion in the American culture as to what constitutes "proper" sexual behavior. Some transgressions are clear (e.g. forced rape, requiring sexual favors for career advancement, repeated physical contact after being told to cease and desist), others are much less clear (e.g. a single kiss on the cheek, fanny pat) and very subjective and context dependent.
What exactly did Mr. Frankin do, how often, in what context and was there malicious intent? Was a crime committed? These questions must be answered and made available for public scrutiny so that the people of Minnesota understand why the person that they duly elected is unworthy of being their Senator. If there is no clear evidence that a crime was committed, then the people of Minnesota should be the ones removing him from office (via either regular election or recall), not a cabal whose motives and allegations have not been fairly and publicly scrutinized. How do we know that this is not a miscarriage of justice and that Democracy has not been subverted?
Mr. Frankin may or may not be guilty as alleged. However, the procedures for due process, however plodding, must be followed before Mr. Frankin is expelled. We cannot allow vigilante justice to prevail in the United States Government.
The frivolous manner in which this serious matter was handled is odious, disgusting and unworthy of the American people.
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Other leaders will only be held accountable if they are democrats. The right will use the left's morality against it. Of course if we can't stand against sexual abuse then what are we doing?
No it was all politics. If Minnesota's current governor was a republican, the democrats would not have pushed Franken out. Franken was just the sacrificial lamb for the democrats. Lets hope they don't go overboard and create some idiotic process to clear out the deck. Its all about politics and sometimes its not fair.
Al Franken should run to regain his seat in the next election, he would probably win. Then the NYTs and the grandstanding Gillibrand can eat crow after their hypocritical reactionary puritan disproportional beat down on Franken.
Seriously, what kind of women ruins someone's career over this stuff? If he did it he was wrong and should be reprimanded. But to be forced to leave the senate, this is beyond irony and it is certainly not justice.
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Since we do not know the names of Franken's accusers, how do we know these anonymous women were not working for a right-wing group, like the one that tried to pull a sting on the Wastington Post recently, to discredit a senator who held them accountable? What evidence do you have that this is not thecase? Surely, it cannot be that you don't think the GOP would stoop to such tactics?
Your moral high ground is laughably short-sighted and naive. Gillibrand did what was convenient for her ambitions. Whoever set this up (I am thinking Bannon) could have predicted the outcome. The Republicans circle the wagons around their miscreants; the Democrats toss them to the wolves without any evidence. And pat themselves on the back for having done so!
Please, will a real leader stand up? These clueless, so-called leadersip group of the Democratic Party are so out of touch with reality it is time for them to go. Franken's hounding out of office has made you look even stupider and more easily rolled than ever.
Meanwhile, the Republicans are hoping to seat a child molester, and the good people of Alabama may just help them do that. They are not interested in the cold comfort of moral superiority. They want power.
Gillibrand, sic'em! Oh, wait, you prefer a tiny little knife to wedge in between the shoulder blades.
The Democratic party has one possible constituency left so it is hardly commendable that they now acknowledge the party is full of sexual predators and enablers. The problem with the accusations against Moore us that the allegations have fallen apart as the two accusers are shown to be serial liars. As for President Trump, Billy Bush supported his claim of “locker room” talk. Yes, impolite and certainly unpresidential but long before Trump was a candidate. President Clinton’s WhiteHouse antics far outweigh men chatting on a bus and the Democrats have been promoting him and his parasitic enabling wife forever.
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As a 74 year old female, it enrages me every time I see an article from supposedly thoughtful people, and in this case an entire board, claim that Al Franken's behavior in any way matches what is truly vile and should be stopped, those committing these awful acts for decades of my life, should be banished into the wilderness, the Matt Lauers, the Harvey Weinsteins, the Conyers, and most of all the bragging blowhard misogynist Donald Trump, who at least has done us the favor of outing the Godlessness of the Evangelical/Fundamentalists who embrace him, gave him pass enough to enter the White House and now cover for his ignorance and putridity and offer up on the "Godly" platform their own worst offer, a child molester with so much evidence of the truth of it you wonder they don't all turn to salt proclaiming his innocence and his, yes, that word they love to toss around so freely and meaninglessly, Godliness.
What Al Franken has been accused of, with no chance to ever defend himself because who can defend public and anonymous, in some cases, accusations, but his "crimes" were all done in public, often with the husband standing there taking the photo, and he walked away afterward. No follow-up whatsoever from Franken. What's wrong with you people? The man never got a chance to defend himself. I believe him when he says some of this simply never happened. Democrats, you handed your honor and your brains over to the disgusting Roger Stone once again. The winner is Roger Stone.
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The plain answer is no. Not when the storm surge sweeps up "jerk" behavior and felonious assaults in one swoop. Is the message getting to the masses that we need cultural change about sexual harassment? Or, are we a nation of TV and social media nuts obsessed with taking down and hearing salacious stories about celebrities? One party tries to take a moral high ground on the wrong type of case. The other party continues it's end justifies the means power plays. Alabama voters will tell you how effective this ethic cleansing is. Personally, until we take money out of politics the ethic arguments are scratching a filthy surface.
Doesn’t there have to be a woman who has been harassed in one way or another by Mitch McConnell or Paul Ryan? Please come forth!
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Al Franken a predator? Oh come on.
Maybe we learned that Pelosi and Schumer are even worse than we thought?
A typical Lighting-Bolt-From-The-Clouds statement by the NY Times.
I am proud that the Democratic Party is willing to make a distinction between itself and the T#ump/Moore/Farenthold Republican Party.
But for the Times to hope, even expect, that "...both parties reject the mechanisms and mind-set that keeps predators in power" is more proof, not required, that the Times lives in blissful ignorance atop Mount Olympus.
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Just like any two species of animals in the animal kingdom the male sex drive leads to inevitable problems and violence. So to do religious texts refer to the male sex drive as sin. In fact they referred to itRepeatedly that way.
The staggering hypocrisy of the republicans continues. No moral fiber let in that lot of louts.
"In demanding Mr. Franken's resignation..." Democrats involved play directly into the hands of Republicans propagandizing what can't be called sexual abuse. To think that demanding the resignation of one of the best Democrats in the Senate, perhaps the one most feared by Republicans, to establish being on a high moral ground as an example to Republican's who don't care about treason, Social Security, the fact of a real serial sexual abuser in the oval office, or sexual abuser pedophile running for the senate now, is irrational at best.
Franken's apology for inappropriate behavior was sincere. However for the 35 Democrats to use Franken as their personal scapegoat to wash away past, and probable present, sins of real sexual abusers is an idiotic attempt to be "squeaky clean" and clearly hypocritical as well as dysfunctional. To not establish a modicum of due process and sacrifice Franken is self-evident self defeating behavior when taking into consideration the Republican's 4 decades of war against the public good in behalf of their sociopathic greedy benefactors.
The vast majority of Democrats including hoards of women, like my wife and daughters, who have suffered actual sexual abuse are vehemently against Franken's resignation; and have lost considerable respect for these Congressional Democrats. So what does this Democrat (undemocratic) public lynching of a Democrat warrior for the common good, who introduced legislation for victims of rape, prove or achieve?
No, the Democratic Party does not deserve credit for railroading a man into resigning before he's had the chance to defend himself. The Democratic Party does not deserve credit for behaving like lemmings and following the lead of a female senator who thinks she can ride this wave to the Presidency. (I'm looking at you, Kirsten Gillibrand.). And, no, Senator Franken is not a predator like certain Republican politicians. False equivalency by the NYT and other MSM caused the current political mess we now find ourselves in. Too bad the NYT didn't learn its lesson.
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If Al can do it - The Donald can.
Please resign.
Franken denies the allegations against him. It would have been right for this paper to allow the process of an ethics investigation to go forward, or do a little work yourself.
By far, the most serious allegation was the initial one. It was raised by a right wing radio host, who has appeared on Sean Hannity’s program on FOX more than a couple dozen times. That doesn’t seemed to have mattered.
The fact that dirty trickster Roger Stone knew Tweeden was coming out as a “me too” days before her announcing it, just as he knew about the Podesta emails coming out weeks before they did, should have raised eyebrows in your editorial department, but obviously didn’t. Strange.
The obvious fact there were people present when Franken mimed the groping of Tweeden, while mugging for the person with the camera, should have informed editors that the charges made by Tweeden could be verified or dismissed. That doesn’t seemed to have mattered to the truth seekers at your paper.
I am a subscriber. I don’t consider the Times a liberal paper, haven’t since the aluminum tubes story. Unfortunately, it appears you are still tubing the public on important issues.
>
"Will other lawmakers who abuse their power be held to the same standard?" (NYTs)
This is a question a young child might ask. Why it's emanating from the NYTs Editorial board is my question.
Grow up
And I still don't know what Al Franken did WHILE he held office.
Moreover, the only victim to really suffer from Al Franken's debacle is due process.
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before describing Bill Clinton's sexual misconduct as a fact the NYT needs to atone for its own misconduct in concocting Whitewater and other imaginary scandals, there appears to be an attempt to de legitimize Clinton Presidency. A newspaper should at least pretend to rely on facts. Clinton, like many other Americans ( most likely many other presidents) ad extramarital affairs. Paula Jones was found by a Judge.not to have a case for harassment even if her allegations were truthful. Most of us remember the genesis of the so called scandals - large amount of money passed to troopers to lie, Juanita Roderick was not credible then she is not credible now. She had ample opportunity to make a credible case to a sympathetic prosecutor- she failed .
perhaps i'm stupid or just hopelessly out of the loop, but could/would the Times explain to me why senator franken's (publicly known) misdeeds require him to resign?
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So a bevy of Senate ewes brought down a ram over a few peccadilloes. So I won't be voting for Sen. Baldwin next year. I'll either abstain or find an independent candidate who won't join a mob before the verdict is in.
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The Salem witch trials - the McCarthy hearings - here we go again. A great Senator has been thrown away by many of the people in Congress he's spent years supporting. It is sickening, especially for us Minnesotans.
It's strange that the New York Times and the Washington Post have not bothered to do a little research on the first accuser, Tweeden, whose right-wing views could well have and probably did motivate her attack on Franken.
What we've witnessed since has been a piling on by the media, always titillated by a scandal, blowing up minor complaints and labelling them sexual harrassment. Worst of all, Democrats who should know better, finished the hit job. These are sad days for America.
1
Maybe Al Franken should have pretended to pray everyday just like the holier than thou GOP
1
An editorial is one thing. Moralizing is another. The Times stayed as safe as Hollywood as long as it could too.
Good to know that you see this as a 'stunning and welcome cultural shift'. Although, it may well turn out to be as much of a mirage as Francis Fukuyama's nonsense about 'the end of history' and all the facile talk of a 'post-racial America' after Barack Obama's victory in 2008.
I wonder how you managed to misplace this admirable concern for the welfare of women when you covered the elections of 2016 - in which every item of news concerning Trump's latest offence against the truth or decency had to be balanced by some spurious piece about Hillary Clinton's e-mail villainies.
The demands for Francken's resignation were overreach, pure and simple. When the Democrats have trouble recruiting good candidates for office, may this moment come back to haunt them. Francken's actions do not reach the standard for any arrest nor would he be sued in court. Everybody is a jerk some days ... it should not disqualify. Francken's resignation was political and nothing to do with morality. Color me disgusted.
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The irony is not lost on me and clearly Franken has been sacrificed upon the alter of the moral high ground. Feel for the guy, but not too much, he is a groper after all. I am hopeful that a sea change is taking place and the world will be a more just place for my daughter and yours. Look forward to seeing what the GOP does when Moore wins in Alabama.
it took 3 minutes on the voter registration site to give up 24 years of being a registered Democrat. I never thought the day would come when supporting democrats would feel so upsetting. Schumer, Harris and gang, calling on Al Franken to resign is more witch hunt than I'm willing to be a part of. Greens, what ya got?
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Franken should have stayed until the ethics committee had done its part, especially since we have a “groper in charge” in the WH who the majority of women 53% voted for and because women in the house and senate have not gone far enough to push trump out for his sexual misconduct. Further, trump will be campaigning for an accused child molester Moore, this Friday.
If Moore can continue to say it’s a liberal media witch hunt, the Dem leadership, men & women should have, at the very least, given Franken the benefit of waiting for the ethics committee outcome. Whatever the moral high ground the Dems think they will get from this, the GOP will keep rolling all over them with Moore as the new Sen from Alabama and they will do nothing to censure him, as we have already seen the flip flop of McConnell and his ilk
No, what we have is the undressing of a party leadership's timidity, weakness, and anemic influence. It is a small wonder the working class and middle class has turned its back on such pathetic creatures.
The purge of Al Franke is a disgrace. He was entitled to his appointment with the ethics committee. He has been cast out on the basis of complaints by four women who "came forward" anonymously. If The Times has evidence of their credibility, or their existence, please share it. A victim who did identify herself was in a rage because Franken squeezed her waist. Come again? That's all you got?
A good man got trampled in the rush to judgment.
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The Democrats played beautifully into Trump’s hands. In their rush to purify their holier than thou selves they sacrificed a decent Senator and will soon be viewed as the anti-men party. There’s difference between being a sexual predator and being a sophomoric jerk. Wise folks know the difference.
As I am typing this I am reading the NYT op-ed title, "Can Steve Bannon Realign American Politics?" The answer is if course, he can. Who will stop him? The Democrats only know to quit. An unfit man won the presidency in 2016, now Democrats are about to hand him a second term – just as he is getting ready to welcome a serial abuser into the Senate.
Senator Franken's name does not belong in the same sentence as Trump, Moore, Weinstein, O'Reilly, Ailes, Conyers et al, et nauseum. He is collateral damage. The US Senate and the Democrats will live to regret his ouster and we will be the losers for all that.
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Jim Cricket writes, "What happened to Al Franken is NOT a welcome cultural shift. It's an age old problem of minnows getting swept up in a net meant for sharks."
You are partly right, Mr. Cricket. However, get back to us when a woman brags about grabbing a man by the penis and gets elected as President of the United States.
Yes, there is a welcome cultural shift happening. Sexual misconduct starts with small transgressions and grows with supposed "man power". No sexual misconduct is acceptable.
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The only lesson I have learned from this situation: Those who play dirty win, and those who play by the rules lose. If that is progress, we are in deep doo-doo.
6
Just when I thought I couldn't possibly sink to another new low in disgust, the sun rises again.
Politicians are scum.
1
Did Franken act like a drunken frat boy?? Why yes he did! Did he assault anyone?? Well, I'm sure some of his butt pats were unwelcome (if they occurred - no investigation has taken place), but a hand on a waist during a photo op may be stretching it. Was anyone physically harmed? No. Was anyone's job or future career threatened? No. Did he expose himself? No. Did any of the alleged incidents take place in private? No, all public venues. Most importantly, did he abuse the power of his office?? From what I've read, no - everything occurred before he was in office. Does that mean that his behavior was OK? No, but if you're looking for absolute, politically correct purity, you're going to be looking for a long time. Like some middle eastern guy said a while back: "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone".
9
I feel like I am missing something when it comes to the Al Franken story. OK, so there was that bad-idea of a photo with him posing leacherously with his hands over a woman's breast. Very bad taste. Not good. And I heard something about him putting his hand on a woman's butt or something? Again, definitely not good. And now I hear mention of other women. What are their accusations? Have there been paid settlements? Assaults? Explicit photos? Videos? Underage women? Drugs in drinks? Do the Congresswomen and top-ranking Democrats who pushed Franken out know things about this that the general public does not know?
There seems to be much talk of how all these scandals mean the world is changing and things are going to get better from now on. Maybe there is something to that. But I'm not so sure. After Nixon was forced out (a very good thing by the way), did we begin to have fewer corrupt politicians in office? I don't think so. Scandals are good at forcing immediate change, but I don't know that they really do much for long-term change. I don't think it is that likely that the behavior of ordinary men will change much. This does not mean that Congress could not see fit to implement new rules to deal with misbehavior in a more consistent and transparent way.
It remains to be seen whether history will look back at the Great Purge of 2017 as some kind of progress, like Truman's exposing war profiteers (though we still have war profiteers), or more like Salem and McCarthy.
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I must admit that your ed gives some ground to this difficult situation, but still, it seems to me that you would approve of taking these people, one by one, and just say that they have always been scum and site how they have abused people and their positions anon.
I'm all fr that. Who will we lose? A few future Presidents? Some women who were not afraid of intimidation? Granted they are the few and some in the net 6 - 8 years could still run creditable campaigns. I might vote for them.
We already have sufficient evidence that POTUS is a probable criminal (think about RICO). How unikely is it that most everyone elected to high public office is a past criminal? Not very unlikely.
FFS the Times still thinks it's about Bill Clinton
the times war on the cintons continues apace
In order for this movement to be successful in addressing gender irregularities it must take hold and be enforced across the board. Instantly dismissing all men who have been accused as serious offenders and predators just because they are men may be just as gender one sided as what women see as the problem.
I do fully agree that the male obsession with looking at women as subservient sex objects is totally wrongheaded and should have no accepted place in modern society.
All that said persecuting a few good men without allowing them the option to present their case, to weigh the severity of their offenses against who they are now and who they were then is hardly fair and certainly just as gender lopsided as the issue at hand.
At the rate and direction this effort is moving all that might be left when all is said and done are the true scum who no doubt are the very serious serial offenders who see no wrong in what they do or have done.
2
"Welcome cultural shift?" That an accusation without due process is a bonafide crime? That so long as the accused is a man - then justice be damned? This is despicable! UnAmerican!! Immoral! It smacks of Stalinism! And you have the nerve to criticize Trump?
My, what depths the editorial board has sunk to! You should be ashamed!
5
Ah, yes... as Bush43 almost said, "Is our Congresspeople learning?".
And the answer is still a resounding "NO!".
The CBC (Congressional Boys Club) is only one of the regressive cliques which infect The Hill. Let's not forget the Supply Side Sanatorium (a real laffer there), the Perpetual War Society, and the Days Of Our Lies Coalition. It's traditional that these groups have been on the ineptly-named "right" side of the aisle, but there's some encroachment from the left (out) wing, too, at least in the CBC.
What America needs to remedy these things is a good old-fashioned infusion of donor money. Yup, that's the ticket. This "democracy" stuff is so last administration. Damn the Constitution, full speed ahead, and all that. The only question remaining is, dollars or rubles? Oh, life is so full of hard decisions. Perhaps an expert can help. Can someone check Mike Pence's calendar to see if he has some free time today? What? It's all free? Except for this one reminder... "Stand behind President Trump during speeches and imitate Chris Christie." Oh, how exquisite.
Alrighty then. On to the next charade.
1
Um...no abuse of power, no sexual assault, no threats, no infidelity, not even any pedophilia! If the Democrats continue to fall for this phony equivalency nonsense, Roger Stone deserves to be elected to the Senate and the Orange Jackass deserves to be President of the United States.
3
"two women, both former staff members, said he discussed his efforts to find a surrogate mother with them."
Seriously?
If you're saying: "tried to pressure them into being surrogate mothers for his kids by using his position of authority", then say that.
If it's literally what you wrote, what the hell is wrong with that? You can't ask a woman for advice anymore? This is only wrong if there was some pressure based on his position of power.
There is the risk that this will go from a very healthy movement to a point where men will be afraid to communicate with women in any work environment ... and since most of the power still lies with men, the result of this will be that women's careers will suffer, office morale will suffer - it won't help anyone.
3
I'm glad Franken is out. If you disrespect my body by groping me, if you disrespect my physical space by forcing a kiss on me, if you disrespect my professionalism by making inappropriate comments to me, and if you continue to believe a butt grab is tolerable compared to what Harvey Weinstein did, then you cannot effectively serve as my representative in my community, in my country. And if you can't effectively represent half of your constituents then you don't deserve the privilege of being a Senator.
...of course this is quite different if you're a Republican, but Franken's a Dem.
What was the name of the senator or congressman from Idaho caught in the bathroom in the airport soliciting a young man who lived a secret gay life, wanted to quit after being caught, but then made to deny it and keep his job? Roy? Trump? Justice Thomas? The Democrats are forced to resign their positions from conscience again, the Republicans are forced to keep theirs from lack of one. Again.
4
Wide stance....
If every member of Congress who ever took sexual advantage of someone in his power were outed, I suspect there wouldn't be a quorum in either house. I hope every woman or man who has been so abused will now come forward. Drain the swamp, indeed.
Moreover, if every person who has ever been subjected to the abuse of a sexual predator in the business and media worlds comes forward now, our economy will collapse due to mass resignations. That's a business trend I could get behind.
If not now, when?
1
Franken's alleged transgressions did not occur during his time in the Senate.
The cynical, hypocritical attack on Franken from his own party was not about eithics or morality. Some of his accusers remain anonymous, making it impossible to defend against such charges. There is no evidence to support the women's accusations. If what Franken did was inappropriate, what Democrats did to Franken was even more wrongful because it was a lynching that denied the target a fair chance to defend himself. To claim the Democrats took the High Road is a sick joke, something even the comedian in Franken would not wish on anyone. The lesson from Franken's demise: Politics is as corrupt as it has ever been. The precedent has been set, fair procedures can be discarded. No legislator or potential candidate is safe from being sacrificed to hypocritical expediency. Franken should change his mind (his right) and demand fair procedures. If politics "ain't beanbag," then what does he have to lose by taking the real High Road?
Doug Giebel, Big Sandy, Montana
6
Leave Bill Clinton alone. He's paid a severe price. Degraded plenty by Republicans. Impeached by a GOP-led House of Representatives during his presidency for lying about a consensual affair. Dogged relentlessly about a real estate deal in Arkansas. The Senate did not impeach.
This Rhodes Scholar was one of the best presidents we've had.
The worst president we've had, Donald Trump, is on target for 2000 lies by the year's end, probably 6-8 per day for 365 days in 2017. Trump had the nerve to drag Clinton's accusers to a candidate event where Bill Clinton was present in the audience with his daughter.
Trump-- over 13 female accusers--- and facing a lawsuit right now.
Admitted his aggressive proclivities right on audio tape. Last year. And he looks like he's medically not well. He talked weirdly to boy scouts about hot NY parties.
3
The Democratic Party has the unique ability to shoot itself in the foot. He was a warrior who was pushed from his position for the expediency of appearing to take the “high ground “.What offenses he committed occurred when he was burlesque comedian and did not reflect the man he really is. He was a sacrifice for some Ill thought political gain. Shame. Trump is still here.
5
The best way forward for Democrats in the upcoming elections is to replace the leadership of the party. Their stubborn clinging to power is a liability. The leadership's lack of judgement in this matter will cripple the party in the upcoming elections. They will be seen as fools, incapable of using common sense in formulating a vision for the future of the country. Their actions will be portrayed as political expediency, a rush to judgement simply to obtain a short term political advantage. And as Roy Moore is sworn into office, it will be clear that the strategy failed. Time for a change to begin gathering momentum for 2018. The sooner the better.
5
I'm sorry to see Al Franken leave the Senate. He has been an outstanding Senator and he has represented the people of Minnesota effectively.
As a Democrat, I am ashamed of my party's role in forcing Sen. Franken out of the Senate. The editors observe that "the Democratic Party seized an opportunity to atone for its own bad history". That's textbook spin. Al Franken has been accused of misdemeanor sexual misconduct worthy of censure and my party's leaders have chosen to impose the death penalty. That does not claim a moral high ground. That's a rush to injustice that raises serious questions about the wisdom and judgement of my party's leaders that can only be answered by voters.
11
Are you kidding? The GOP recognizes only one standard these days- winning at any cost.
6
The caption on the Times's (web) front page linking to this editorial reads, "What Congress Can Learn from Al Franken -
Will other lawmakers who abuse their power be held to the same standard?"
Among the several allegations made against Sen. Franken, none asserted he "abused his power." What has happened to him in recent days is regrettable, and what he is alleged to have done is regrettable, but it was not, and did not involve, abuse of power. For the Times to suggest that he abused his power is simply unfair and incorrect.
8
Too bad Franken forgot to mention Clarence Thomas' sitting on the Supreme Court. How quickly people forget. Or sweep things under the rug. The notion (as one poster put it) that "people don't care" about this sort of thing as long as we get "results" speaks to the Machiavellianism that seems to have taken hold in certain quarters. For them, morality and principle is convenient when it is weaponized for political gain; otherwise, it's terribly inconvenient. That is about as cowardly as it gets.
1
The truly sad part about these recent events is that no matter if every member of Congress who ever denigrated women resigned, the culture won't change. Men will still want women and they will grab what they can when they can.
Maybe someday, in some distant future, things will be different. But there will have to be a sea change in attitudes toward sex, gender, morality, all that has to do with the body and interactions among people. Now, there is way too much repression of those ideas and feelings. We can blame religion for this.
Someday people will stop being so afraid of the unknown and begin to believe in themselves and others. Then the world will be saved. Until then, it seems like the oppressors will remain in power. Franken resigns and Trump toots his own horn. Our country is in peril.
Al Franken is the only one that said he wanted the ethics committee to investigate. He should have been allowed that before the dems asking for his resignation. We should give weight to accusations but we need to hear both sides. Women can be evil too.
4
I hope Kirsten Gillibrand pays a big price for leading the charge. She should be ashamed of herself. If this wrong isn't righted this active voter will never vote again. Democrats aren't going to go to the polls if this is what the party has been reduced to.
3
I may not understand how offensive Franken's improper behavior might be to women, but isn't there something inherently wrong about the Democratic Party demonizing progressive male democrats who have served their constituents well while Republicans who have been accused of far worse remain in power. Shouldn't the punishment fit the crime? Shouldn't the rights of the voters to retain their chosen elected officials have some weight? Otherwise the end result might be worse than we have today with sexist and racist Republicans replacing very good and dedicated democratic public citizens. It all has the appearance of a purge.
3
People can sense hypocrisy the way sharks sense blood in the water. Democrats suddenly can't abide Franken's presence over bad photo shoot skills, but are happy to do the bidding of banks and insurance companies, vote for unending wars, and keep people like Bob Menendez around.
Morality isn't selective. You can't claim the high ground in this but not that. People just think you're cynically playing to what you can get away with, because that's exactly what you're doing. The Republican party will roast for their actions these days, but you can't argue with this critique of the Democrats.
I have no doubt that Al Franken is a person with an unsavory sense of humor. I was appalled at what he considered to be appropriate SNL humor regarding sexually assaulting Leslie Stahl. But all of that pornographic humor stuff was on full display when he ran for the Senate, and was used liberally by his opponents to defeat him. It did not work. With open eyes, Minnesotans elected Mr. Franken, fully aware of his transgressions and capable of assigning those transgressions a place of relative unimportance--he had a gross sense of humor, so what. The USO tour photo is from the same period before he was elected and of the same ilk of sexist humor. That speaks volumes for why railroading him out now makes no sense. The only way it all makes sense is that Democrats' calls to oust Moore and ultimately Trump for their qualitatively different behaviors rely on consistency on the most obvious level, which does not allow for fine tuning the details of the differences in unacceptable sexist behaviors.
1
I would like to point out that when you say in your headline "other lawmakers who abuse their power" you are wrong already. Every single accusation toward Mr Franken occurred well before he even ran for office.
Details matter.
3
What stands out for me in this article is the comment on Paul Ryan. Putting politics aside, how long will it take his constituents and his colleagues to recognize, admit, and act on the fact that he is a soulless, craven, doe-eyed, intellectually bankrupt servant of darkness? The man is best suited for a direct-to-DVD horror movie, and should be kept has far away from any corridor of power, and Congress most of all, as any (alleged) human in history.
1
Yes, reject the mechanisms and mind-set that keeps predators in power! Senator Franken was a predator? Whatever poor judgement he exercised has not been vetted, but on the surface pales in comparison with rest of this group. It certainly does not appear to have reached the level of being a predator.
2
This whole matter with Franken is shameful. A Democratic lynch mob fueled by political notoriety. Due process replaced by a trial by innuendo and a big publicity splash. How will the Democrats vet new Senate candidates? Run a private security check on each one back to the age of 16? A kiss rebuffed at 19? A changed mind after consensual sex at 25? This is political hypocrisy at its worst. I consider Sen Gillibrand's 100% NRA rating when she was a New York upstate congresswomen more revealing of who she is, and what moral high ground she stands upon, than her new found sense of justice and the American way. She has the Democratic nomination for president in her sites. That's what this "enough is enough" is all about. In the meantime, the Republicans are busy gutting the poor and middle class, while the Democratic Party is seeking the "high ground." I wish they would focus on the GOP's dismantling of America rather than running fellow Democrats out of town and acting like frightened lemmings, in the clutches of panic and groupthink.
5
I always had curiosity about the Salem witch trials, and how it could have possibly come about....
1
Now you know.
The Republican Party has made it clear by allowing Trump to be its nominee and supporting Roy Moore that it really doesn't care about women unless they're pregnant and want an abortion. Other than that, women are just toys for Republican men to play with. Republicans will never expel one of their own for anything. The Republican Party motto is party above anything and everything.
Exactly how did Al Franken commit an "abuse of power" in the Senate? Or as a comedian? All I know that has been proven is the clownish and boorish behavior in the photograph. It's time for someone to launch a revival of Arthur Miller's The Crucible, which is about the Salem witch trials and which contains the line (I quote from memory), Is the accuser always holy? I'm annoyed--angry may be a better word--at the scapegoating of the man who as I write this is still Senator Franken.
3
Please. The Democrats aren't to be credited for jumping on this frenzied bandwagon. They are still part of the problem of abuse of power and corruption. As is the Times. You stood with Hillary over Bernie because she (apparently) was the one with the power and money.
Driving Franken out isn't at all the equivalent of ejecting all the powerful men who abuse their power vis-a-vis women. Abuse of a sexual nature gets attention but it's not the only abuse of women happening on Capitol Hill. Or the WHite House.
This is not at all cutting-edge opinionating.
1
If this is the editorial board's true opinion of what's happened to Franken, I may have to stop reading the NYT for my sanity. There's no place for a young man with my concerns in either political realm right now. David Brooks says the GOP is rotting, but I'm convinced it's not just them. How can the Democrats claim to be the party for justice and then continuously spit on and undermine the process that makes justice possible?
I'm sick to death of justice by hashtag. Even worse seems to be the transparent machinations to set up Gillibrand as some sort of heroine for leading the charge. I'd probably have voted for her before yesterday's celebratory article. It'll be hard to vote for any Democrat now that it's clear this is the party's direction.
Those who compromise principles to achieve results will be sorely disappointed, and end up with neither. Trump has driven everyone mad.
3
Once the current media hype settles down, I do not believe that anything will change. Through my work I deal with males and females of all ages. The sexist comments and jokes that I heard fifty plus years ago from men of my generation, are no different than the sexist jokes and comments that I hear from men in the millennial generation. It is those comments and beliefs that drive these inappropriate behaviors from men.
The world is unfortunately a good old boys network. Women are still second class citizens as businesses will not allow that to change. As an example, how many of your female friends of child bearing age will not have kids for fear of losing their jobs? Having a child is not a disability, so there is no job protection.
So, just as people thought when Obama was elected that racism was dead in this country(not true), so too will they unfortunately learn that we will remain a good old boy sexist society. What the country needs is an equal rights amendment to our Constitution. Unfortunately such an amendment was defeated due to exaggerations and untruths. The same exaggerations and untruths that elected our current President.
This feels more like political opportunists trying to profit from the derision and abuse of women, more than it feels like genuine efforts to reform the standards to which we must hold our elected officials. I mean, is this really about women’s civil rights? Or is it about crafting a means by which to force Trump, just one of several dirty old men, out of office?
1
Nobody with any sense supports the sexual exploitation of women, but the fact remains that Al Franken is the victim of an aggressive and calculated effort to give complete supremacy in the Democratic Party to its feminist wing. This branch of the party also expects its voters to support its outrageous insistence on its abortion politics into the bargain. I have ALWAYS supported Democrats who insist on the political outcome of the New Deal, including especially the economic and social safety network. But this new "culturall shift" is a foolish dream. It is only going to polarize American political life even more and continue the narrowing of the party's base to women and minorities who despite their disagreement with abortion politics have given Democrats a default vote. To me this is NOT the way to confront the economic cruelty of Trump and extremist Republicanism, still less to develop a governing agenda for this country.
1
Here's what this conservative has to say about the situation...
Every person in Congress who has allowed the public treasury to pay off claims of sexual harassment should immediately resign.
Every person who in Congress who has been accused of sexual harassment should immediately recuse themselves from any and all committee assignments, forward the complaint to the Ethics Committee, and FULLY COOPERATE with the deliberations on his future. Anyone who is found to by the Ethics Committee to be in violation of common standards of behavior should immediately resign.
Any incoming member of Congress against whom allegations have been or at made should not be assigned to any committee and should immediately place the matter for consideration by the Ethics Committee. cooperate fully, and resign if found to be in violation.
It has long been known that senators and congressmen have been engaged in the sex business, and given the groupie nature of most of their followers and hangers-on, it is not surprising. But it being not surprising doesn't make it proper.
2
So Al Franken is being sacrificed for Bill Clinton's sins so as to purify the Democratic party? Did anything Al Franken reportedly do rise to the level of Harvey Weinstein, John Conyers, Brett Farenhold, Donald Trump, Bill O'Reilly, Roger Ails, Roy Moore or Kevin Spacey? I suspect he was forced out because Democrats can't do anything about Donald Trump and the Republican party so they decided to politically execute one of their own.
Which brings me to another point. Do voters really care? Based upon the available evidence, no, they don't. Remember that when Roy Moore is sitting in the Senate and Donald Trump is reelected. The Democrats will have the moral high ground but nothing else.
1
The #metoo movement speaks truth to power. It is the power that corrupts, not the sex. When the powerful flout the rule of law and engage in moral excesses, they get away with it. Unwanted sexual behavior is just one of the more poignant examples of what they get away with.
Nate Silver of 538 was right in his political calculus that the Democrats missed a chance to claim the moral high ground by not immediately insisting that Franken should resign. And now that they have dithered, the pressure they brought looks as much like clumsy damage control as anything else.
Al Franken was right to resign. He was also right to point out the obvious irony of his circumstances. I would also point out another Irony. The Constitution of this country was written by barbarians who held slaves, oppressed women, and stood by during the genocide of Native Americans. And yet they produced an effective document designed to prevent too much concentration of power and laid the groundwork for us to hope for a truly multicultural, egalitarian society. Al Franken looks flawed right now. Be he too has worked to stem the disparities of power and to give us hope for the future.
But let us not forget that the powerful can speak truth as well. Trump has said repeatedly that he can, in so many words, “get away with murder.” So far, he’s right. Then there’s, “I’m Harvey Weinstein. You know what I can do.”
So, lest we get out into the weeds about sex, remember that #metoo is about power.
2
Once again the NYTimes mentions "Bill Clinton's sexual misconduct" in an off-hand way as if it were established fact. Wrong. Bill Clinton had sex with someone who desired and pursued having sex with him. In the NYTimes universe, an adult woman's consent is impossible, because if she consents then she must desire, and "taking advantage" of the woman's desire to have sex is unethical. (Men desire to have sex too, because women are beautiful, but somehow it's NOT unethical for WOMEN to take advantage of that fact.) A woman who wants to have sex with a male President or Senator very likely wants to have sex with him BECAUSE he is President or Senator. This is obvious to anyone. Consent is not ABSENT but is PRESENT for the very specific reason that he has the position of prestige that he has. When will the NYTimes capitulate on that point? By the way, this is also true going the other way. I certainly would have consented to have sex with Patricia Schroeder when I was 18, and in fact I would have WANTED to have sex with precisely because of the public standing she did have. If it had happened, who among you would be accusing HER of wrongdoing? You people simply don't believe that the same rules should apply to both males and females, and that is wrong.
2
There's a lot of criticism here of Franken's resignation. Well, if he's innocent, why didn't he insist on going through the ethics review? And that picture of him groping a sleeping woman's breasts wasn't exactly innocent. And there are multiple accusers. None of the men--Republican or Democrat--who have resigned fought the charges because they couldn't--there was plenty of public, often graphic, evidence against them. No one's getting railroaded by one anonymous "he said-she said" here. The real crime is that the worst offenders--Moore and Trump--are the ones denying their guilt. So it goes.
3
This editorial might make sense if Franken had abused his power as Senator. But that's not the case.
1
I like Al Franken and I defended him when the first allegations came out. However, we are all going through a learning process and Sen Gillibrand gave a strong lesson yesterday: it is not acceptable to take sexual advantage of women in any way. Groping may not be as serious as raping a child but it is not acceptable and there are consequences. Now that a clear line is drawn, we have to educate men and women. But there is another line to draw. While it is not acceptable to take sexual advantage of women and there are consequences for it, lying about it should have even more serious consequences. Now men in the USA are learning that if you are a sexual predator, lie if caught and you will be fine. This is the defense strategy of Trump, lie and you are fine. Similarly, some women may have falsely accused Franken to take him down. how do we change this? I think lying about this should be a felony punishable with jail time.
1