Democratic Sen. Al Franken reportedly won’t resign amid a furor over a woman’s accusation that the Minnesota Democrat groped and kissed her without her consent.
A spokesman for Franken told the Minneapolis Star Tribune on Saturday that the senator will be in Washington, D.C., with his family through the Thanksgiving holiday.
“No,” the spokesman texted a Star Tribune reporter who asked if he’d resign in the wake of Los Angeles radio host Leeann Tweeden’s revelation last Thursday.
“He is spending time with his family in Washington, D.C., and will be through the Thanksgiving holiday, and he’s doing a lot of reflecting,” the spokesman texted, the Star Tribune reported.
The newspaper noted Franken skipped votes in the Senate and canceled several public appearances after the accusation was made public.
Franken suggested an alternative to resignation that would confront his behavior without costing him his career — a Senate Ethics Committee investigation — and said he’d “gladly cooperate,” the Star Tribune noted.
But it’s unclear whether the panel would look into behavior that predates a senator’s election. The Senate hasn’t expelled one of its members in more than 150 years .
Tweeden accepted Franken's apology and hasn't called for him to stepdown.
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