lol

good stuff at ~2:30

I would consider a reporter mimicking grabbing a catchers junk on camera the same poor joke.

NY Post described her in their headline as a playmate, which seems really inappropriate. Like, how is her previous job relevant here? Is the implication that playboy models aren’t human and thus you can just assault one whenever you feel without need for remorse?

Full statement

I was just making the poker connection, but I can see news organizations on either side elevating or lowering her profession to make her seem more/less credible.

Read her statement on him having her “practice” a kissing scene he wrote for her to do. It’s totally believable and if true totally assault.

Decent attempt at an apology, but he needs to resign.

Full statement as text, because pictures of words annoy me.

“The first thing I want to do is apologize: to Leeann, to everyone else who was part of that tour, to everyone who has worked for me, to everyone I represent, and to everyone who counts on me to be an ally and supporter and champion of women. There's more I want to say, but the first and most important thing—and if it's the only thing you care to hear, that's fine—is: I'm sorry.

“I respect women. I don't respect men who don't. And the fact that my own actions have given people a good reason to doubt that makes me feel ashamed.

“But I want to say something else, too. Over the last few months, all of us—including and especially men who respect women—have been forced to take a good, hard look at our own actions and think (perhaps, shamefully, for the first time) about how those actions have affected women.

“For instance, that picture. I don't know what was in my head when I took that picture, and it doesn't matter. There's no excuse. I look at it now and I feel disgusted with myself. It isn't funny. It's completely inappropriate. It's obvious how Leeann would feel violated by that picture. And, what's more, I can see how millions of other women would feel violated by it—women who have had similar experiences in their own lives, women who fear having those experiences, women who look up to me, women who have counted on me.

“Coming from the world of comedy, I've told and written a lot of jokes that I once thought were funny but later came to realize were just plain offensive. But the intentions behind my actions aren't the point at all. It's the impact these jokes had on others that matters. And I'm sorry it's taken me so long to come to terms with that.

“While I don't remember the rehearsal for the skit as Leeann does, I understand why we need to listen to and believe women’s experiences.

“I am asking that an ethics investigation be undertaken, and I will gladly cooperate.

“And the truth is, what people think of me in light of this is far less important than what people think of women who continue to come forward to tell their stories. They deserve to be heard, and believed. And they deserve to know that I am their ally and supporter. I have let them down and am committed to making it up to them.”

Could someone act out the text of that apology as an interpretive dance and post it to YouTube? That’s how I prefer to consume apologies.

Ah! That's why the name seemed familiar to me!

Definitely hot.

#rightwinghitjob #shewasobvinonit@thetime #bribedbyhannity #etc

I think if the kissing scene is legit he should resign, but he does support a full ethics investigation and there is a good chance there are witnesses to confirm/deny whether that force practice kissing scene is legit or not.

Should we wait to see how that plays out, or should he resign regardless?

The old Kevin "I don't remember doing anything wrong but if you think I did, then yeah, sorry I guess if that's what you want to hear" Spacey line works every time.

Franken says he doesn't remember but takes Leeann at her word and women need to be believed. Then why the need for an investigation? "Women should be believed" is not a pointless pretentious exhortation, it's meant to inform how to behave in light of these accusations: don't investigate, believe the woman.

Maybe there's some esoteric Congressional rule(s) that call for this, necessarily, but I doubt it. If he "understand(s) why we need to listen to and believe women’s experiences" then there's no need for an investigation and he should resign.

Probably doesn’t hurt to wait. If there were witnesses who can reliably say it went down the way Franken said it did, then it’s iffy that he should resign.

If no witnesses, just resign.

Well him not flat out calling her a liar/denying it is encouraging women to be believed imo, doesn't mean they shouldn't investigate the matter in case she is grossly exaggerating or straight lying. Also he says he doesn't remember it the way she remembers it, not just that he doesn't remember anything.

Snap believing all accounts of women would be just ridiculous, as sometimes this stuff IS made up.

He is encouraging women to tell their side by not calling her a liar, denying it, attacking her, and letting an investigation happen independent of himself.

Stepping back and letting the facts speak encourages women to come out to tell the truth, but no investigation also encourages women to make stuff up.

This wordy segment is the giveaway. He's basically downplaying the much more serious accusations as acting practice when its a ****ing USO show.

So yeah, he's guilty, should resign, best that can come of this is that it makes Republicans look bad if Moore is staying on while acting much worse.

uh why would you not also bold " as leean does "

he isn't saying he doesn't remember, he's saying he remembers the events differently. I say we wait to see if any witnesses can confirm eithers side before we ask him to resign.

Kissing is the worst

"Women should be believed after we stage an investigation to prove it" is some Orwellian definition of "women should be believed." The attempt at building a norm ("women should be believed") is to spare women from a potentially painful and embarrassing investigation that deters people from reporting sexual harassment and abuse. The norm assumes, on its face, that women wouldn't just make it up.

If Franken wants to insist on an investigation -- that's clearly a legal right if he's facing prosecution for a crime, it goes without saying.

In these sorts of contexts, "women need to believed...once we spend the time and money to conclusively prove it" is a canard. What Franken means, as you say, is: don't pile on and call her a liar, we need an investigation. That's fine, it's better than "pile on and call her a liar" but it's a pretty low bar to cross. Hardly champion of women stuff.

Since the picture exists, he lost the benefit of the doubt by his own admission and so "women need to be believed" in spite of what you can see and his calls for an investigation is really, deeply Orwellian, not just the sort of pedestrian poor use of language.

What if he remembers events differently than her and knows there are witnesses to back him? Should he come out and call her a liar, or do what he's doing?

He doesn't explain what he remembers differently. He's keeping it vague to keep his options after he consults with lawyers. Same as Roy Moore.

Look, he's toast. There's a beautiful young woman, asleep, wearing the uniform of your country's armed forces, and you think it's amusing to be photographed pretending to go 'honk honk' on her (body armour notwithstanding). In those circumstances, when that picture can be used against you at any time, you're just toast.

Option 1 -- calling her a liar. That's the worst.
Option 2 -- what he's doing -- that's 2nd worst.
Option 3 -- don't do the whole "I'm a champion of women, we should really believe them, PS - I support an investigation." Simply say "I'm sorry for the picture, I don't remember it like this, I support an investigation into the allegation about the skit" but spare the self-aggrandizement about how he's a champion of women and they look up to him and he thinks they should be believed. That's basically qualitatively the same as Option 2 in the end since the practical outcomes are seemingly the same. But it's more consistent, less bull****
Option 4 -- best option. If he thinks sincerely women should be believed, resign.