Senator Al Franken (D-Minn) has just announced his resignation from the US Senate
in light of multiple allegations of inappropriate behavior during his career as a
comedian.
It seemed to me the calls for his resignation came fast and furiously only in
recent days — calls led primarily by his female contemporaries on the same side
of the aisle.
This makes me wonder whether Democrats, and Democrat Congresswomen in particular,
are making a statement by leading this charge. In a sense, it wasn't about Sen. Franken
as much as perhaps sending a message to the nation that the Democrats, unlike the
Republicans, are willing to deal with these issues swiftly, and that the Congresswomen
in particular have the support of the party.
Certainly the Democrats must take every opportunity to stand out against the
Republicans who have been steamrolling them on issue after issue that has come up
for vote the Senate floor. They must anticipate the move will curry favor with
female voters in particular. In this sense, Sen. Franken's political career (well,
probably any career he might choose to pursue at this point) has become sacrificed
for the good of the party.
By stepping down at the close of the year, Sen. Franken is doing something really
big for the Democratic Party by showing that the Democrats are strong on women, hold
their leadership to a higher standard, and will not tolerate inappropriate behavior.
Contrast with the Republicans have thrown their full support behind Judge Roy Moore
of Alabama, who has infamously been accused by multiple women of preying on teenage
girls when he was in his 30s,
1 and of course, the
President's now infamous "hot mic" Access Hollywood interview audio from 2005
2 and the multiple
allegations of sexual misconduct.
3
Image credit: Melina Mara/The Washington Post