{"id":5037,"date":"2011-06-07T01:54:24","date_gmt":"2011-06-07T08:54:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=5037"},"modified":"2011-06-07T01:54:24","modified_gmt":"2011-06-07T08:54:24","slug":"about-that-weiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2011\/06\/07\/about-that-weiner\/","title":{"rendered":"About That Weiner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Like many, I was greatly upset, profoundly disappointed and genuinely angry to learn that Anthony Weiner (D-NY) not only admitted to Sexting, but also, has spent the last week lying about it.  In so doing, he has done the progressive cause irreparable damage by depriving himself, one of our most effective spokespeople, of credibility.  I\u2019ve given considerable thought to how he should proceed, so here is a summary, his apology, and my take on where to go from here.<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\"7weiner\"Caught in a maelstrom of his own making, Representative Anthony D. Weiner saw his support on Capitol Hill crumble on Monday. A brash and talented New York politician with many admirers on the left, but few close allies, he suddenly found himself alone on a hostile stage.<\/p>\n

No sooner had Mr. Weiner delivered a startlingly abject admission and apology \u2014 carried live on television from a circuslike news conference in Manhattan \u2014 than top Democrats on Capitol Hill began distancing themselves from him and his behavior<\/strong>. <\/p>\n

Several, including Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the House minority leader, called for an ethics inquiry into whether Mr. Weiner had violated House rules or used official resources to carry on his salacious electronic conversations. <\/p>\n

Representative Steve Israel of Nassau County, the leader of the party\u2019s effort to recapture a majority in Congress, said Mr. Weiner had \u201cembarrassed himself, his family and the House.\u201d <\/p>\n

Others said it would be impossible to support Mr. Weiner given the outrageous things he had admitted, the likelihood that Republicans would make a target of anyone who came to his defense, and the possibility that some of the women he had contacted were minors. <\/p>\n

Then there was the fact that his confession had occurred, in the words of one top Democratic Congressional official, a week too late<\/strong>. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to trust in an individual who already lied,\u201d said the official, who like others interviewed insisted on anonymity because of the sensitivities surrounding the matter. <\/p>\n

As Democratic leaders sought to apply a tourniquet to Mr. Weiner, Republicans sought to use the spectacle he had created against Democrats in general, and in particular against Ms. Pelosi, who once pledged to \u201cdrain the swamp\u201d of corruption involving Republicans in Congress. <\/p>\n

The National Republican Congressional Committee [Republicans delinked] distributed a memo to reporters with a series of quotes from top Democrats in which they gave Mr. Weiner the benefit of the doubt when the scandal first erupted a week ago. <\/p>\n

A spokesman for the committee, Paul Lindsay, said, \u201cIt\u2019s time for Democratic leadership to explain why Congressman Weiner\u2019s actions never aroused any suspicion, and why they rushed to his defense while so many Americans were shocked and confused by his bizarre and disturbing behavior.\u201d\u2026 [emphasis added<\/em>]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Inserted from <NY Times<\/a>><\/p>\n

The reason Democrats were inclined to dismiss the allegations against Weiner is quite simple.  Andrew Breitbart was in the middle of the story, and he is notorious for doctoring evidence to make false charges, such as the bogus ACORN scandal and totally unjust firing of Shirley Sherrod.  Compared to Breitbart, even Faux Noise<\/em> is credible.<\/font><\/p>\n

Here is Weiner\u2019s apology and interview, in case you have not seen it.<\/font><\/p>\n