Senator Al Franken Announces His Resignation: Reactions From Celebrities And Politicians

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

Senator Al Franken formally announced on Thursday his plans to resign his post and, unsurprisingly, there were mixed reactions.

Patton Oswalt recommended Franken his resignation after the politician was accused of sexual misconduct, while Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick) joked that now "the United States Government was free of sexual predators." (Roy Moore, the Alabama judge running for the senate, has been accused of sexual misconduct with minors, while President Trump has been accused by more than a dozen women of sexual harassment and assault.)

Along with Franken's announcement is the tweet from Donald Trump Jr., who wrote: “… because I'm good enough, I'm smart enough and damn it, people love me. #Franken”. Governor Mike Huckabee, in turn, called Franken's speech "astonishing" for his "lack of repentance or apology."

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"Today I announce that in the coming weeks I will resign as a member of the United States Senate," Franken said Thursday in a speech to members of the Senate.

Referring to Trump and Moore, he continued: I, of all people, am aware of the underlying irony in the fact that I have to leave while a man who was recorded bragging about his history of sexual assaults is sitting on the Oval Office and a man who has repeatedly abused young girls is running for the senate with the full support of his party. But this decision is not about me, it is about the people of Minnesota and it has become clear that I cannot continue the ethics committee process and at the same time continue to be an effective senator for them.”

The senator, who has been accused by several women of sexual misconduct, said that "some of the accusations against me are simply a lie and others I remember very differently."

Radio host Leeann Tweeden, who claimed Franken touched her and forced her to kiss him during a USO tour, read aloud from The View a letter of apology from the senator. "I remember that essay differently, but what is important is that [sic] the impact it had on you and you felt attacked by my actions, and for that I apologize," she said in part.

Franken wrote a new apology in November saying: “I feel terrible for making so many women feel bad and I apologize. I want to make sure it never happens again.”

Watch the announcement of his resignation below, via PBS News Hour.

Before Franken announced her impending resignation, celebrities like Alyssa Milano, Amber Tamblyn, and Maggie Gyllenhaal also highlighted the hypocrisy of the situation.

While we are asking Franken to resign from the Senate we are allowing a defendant child molester to apply to the Senate. At the same time that 'those who broke the silence' are #TimePersonOfTheYear, an outspoken p-s grabber was the finalist,”Milano wrote in a tweet.

"If someone has made the effort to demand Franken's resignation and Roy Moore still wins the Alabama election, that someone is part of the problem," Tamblyn noted. While Gyllenhaal demanded a "legislative hearing" for Trump's alleged sexual misconduct.

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tatuses/938606459146915842 More reactions below.

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Translated by Carmen Orozco

This article originally appeared on Ew.com