And then there is this...re:Franken

[airmid]

Sen. Franken's escort disputes what happened.


[link:

Link to tweet

|

[Achilleaze]

1. k and r

[Lee-Lee]

2. This was on the plane ride home

So the escort wouldn’t have been along at that point.

[Pacifist Patriot]

3. The escort is only saying he doubts the forced kiss could have happened.

He's not addressing the plane photo. That's where the photographers come in.

[liberal_patriot_md]

5. That may be true.

But I guarantee there were others on that plane. At minimum the flight crew. Probably other military. Other USO personnel. Someone else was awake besides Franken and the photographer.

But the story is the key. The story changes a stupid picture into something nefarious. The picture could be misinterpreted. Combining it with a story of awful behavior, now you have something.

If the story is bunk, what are you left with?

[R B Garr]

19. Then there would not have been a need to rehearse

(her word). She is the one who set the story up about rehearsing the kiss. We all see this looks like a joke for the camera, so the kiss seems to be the “assault” that happens later in secret, but he would not have been alone with her on the plane.

I hadn’t heard this was on the way home, but I missed a lot of the initial story.

[lagomorph777]

43. Actually, the kiss would have happened before this photo.

The photo was on the way home. It's clearly staged; no reason to think she's actually asleep there.

[Nevernose]

59. If they were still wearing helmets and bullet proof camo vests

The escort would have definitely still been with them. That’s not “the plane ride home,” hence the protective gear.

Also, she said she didn’t find the photo until weeks after the show was over. She was asleep. How would she know when it was taken?

[oasis]

65. Excellent point.

[Lee-Lee]

73. No, you wear your body armor when you take off from the combat zone

And it stays on until the aircraft has crossed into safe airspace, at which time it can be removed if you want.

Been there, done than on at least a half dozen times. Every plane I’ve taken out of the combat zone was in body armor.

The in-country escorts would have met them when they landed in country and stayed with them until they left for the flight home, but they don’t fly from the states with them or return with them. The logistics of sending extra uniformed people from the states to theater is too expensive and time consuming to do so for a 2 week tour because it requires a 4 week workup where the person goes through all the validation steps required to be deployable.

As for when the picture was taken, when you get a CD of pictures it’s oretty easy to see context and date. How many times where they on that kind of plane? How were they dressed those times? How many times did she sit in the side seat instead of center seats? When I look at a batch of photos from my vacation I can tell what days they were taken, it’s not that hard to figure out.

[7962]

4. "stayed with him even in the bathroom"? I don't think even a President gets THAT coverage.

And "good natured joking" sounds awfully familiar.
But most of us have probably done things that are funny at the time, not so much later.

[dsc]

6. actually the crowded room is the part that is problematic for her account

She claimed they were alone backstage, he is saying that not only was he with Franken, but it was in a crowded room.

[Historic NY]

72. Especially when someone had to take the photo

[HipChick]

16. If he was escorted on a Military facility

I don't doubt this...staying with him even in the bathroom..

[ehrnst]

17. Having worked in sketch and improv comedy, I can tell you that the atmosphere is a party atmosphere

and it is a boy's club, even in rehearsals. Playful "lechery" is common.

I have experienced worse than she did. I wasn't wearing a flak jacket, just a blouse and bra when my boobs were grabbed in a scene that wasn't rehearsed that way - got some big laughs.

Yes, I've had an actor slip me the tongue onstage, and afterwards I told him to never do that again. There were some snickers from other men who heard me. This was in a professional theatre company.

I imagine many comedians, especially who worked on SNL and likely Jon Stewart are nervous right now, because if what Franken did was the worst he ever committed, he would be considered a choirboy by the standards of the comedy boys club.

Women in comedy have been talking amongst each other about this for years. Franken's long response was refreshing in it's honesty, and in calling out other men, and it was good to hear it.

There will be more relevations among our favorite comedians, actors and politicians to come, so we have to be ready to determine what does and does not constitute an ongoing danger of harassment and abuse among them, because it's going to be like using illegal drugs - at some point you will find that anyone with a social life at all at least tried it. The issue will be if what they did constitutes a non-starter for public service.

[rocktivity]

22. Yes, they do -- that's standard procedure in the military

I decided to lay back until more facts came out, and it's paid off.

I real Al's statement last night, and his not remembering the kiss but calling for an ethics inquiry means only one thing -- he KNOWS it would clear him. All he has to do now is say he'll resign if Trump and Moore do.


rocktivity

[obamanut2012]

44. SOP in combat zones and military installations

Not odd at all.

[7962]

47. I've done work on several military installations, in some highly restricted areas,

No cell phones, tool bag search, prior clearance, etc, and I've never had an escort INSIDE a bathroom with me.

[burrowowl]

62. They take you to the bathroom. If there are stalls you stay outside the

stall but you are in the room. If you don't have clearance you are accompanied.
If you didn't have clearance and weren't accompanied to the bathroom, the security was lax.

[Big_K]

50. I've has such escorts...

Taught IT classes at Pratt & Whitney in Florida. I had to be escorted everywhere on site and there were some areas I could not go into, since I guess I might have stolen a jet engine. Yeah, bathroom included.

[Bucky]

55. Ha ha. They weren't in Disneyland

It was a dangerous place to be. I assume there was a considerable loss of privacy during that USO tour.

[Lee-Lee]

74. Its more for his protection and so he doesnt get harrassed too much

There are a lot of local citizens working on the bigger bases, and while they do security screenings nothing is perfect. The chance to kill an American celebrity would be a great opportunity for them.

At the same time if he didn’t have an escort with some authority to keep people away from him he would be mobbed by people looking for autographs, pictures etc 24/7. He needed someone to make sure they didn’t overwhelm him all the time so he could keep moving on schedule.

[Hortensis]

7. Franken's and Dem colleagues's call for ethics investigation

has a few purposes that I can see.

1. It differentiates Democrats' response from Repubs' to Moore.
2. It would present the facts developed on this incident to America.
3. It would keep the Moore story alive.
4. It could delay any possible need to resign for the results of investigation.

Unfortunately, it would also distract from the incredible actions of the GOP that are finally exposing who they serve, and who they are betraying.

Btw, while the news was focused on this yesterday, the Republican congress moved ahead with plans for what is literally the biggest theft in all of history. Trillions of dollars to be taken from the American people and given to Republican dark-money donors.

[marble falls]

11. I think Franken has forced other real predators to have to submit to investigation ....

predators like a potential Sen Roy Moore and maybe bubble buddah follower Sen Rand Paul. Maybe even President Orange Blob.

[lark]

21. You arae assuming that repugs actually give a damn.

They don't! Drumpf and Moore did far, far, far worse and neither ofd them is OK with an investigation and both will never do anything but lie because at it's base, they hate women and Moore especially hates teens because they won't give him the illegal sex he craved. They think they have the right to do whatever they want whenever they want with whoever they want, It's all about them.

[Demit]

12. Plus witnesses would be testifying under oath.

That way we'd be more likely to get the truth of what happened.

[Hortensis]

18. Maybe, but facts would be presented. Marble Falls

I think is onto another, biggie. Of course. Shoulda thought of that one.

This whole thing is likely to scare hostile knuckledraggers into keeping their hands in their pockets.

[riversedge]

75. Isn't the congressional ethics committee rather secretive?? I have not read about one

or heard of one in LONG time. I can't remember much

[Hortensis]

78. Me either, but surely the whole point of this one would be noise?

Spin from the right, exculpatory facts from the left, and tussles over who owns virtue from both?

[Timmygoat]

8. I have a question

Aside of the Franken issue, the news networks should be playing the access hollywood video again and again, it is like a tutorial for gropers, and we should get Trump in front of a committee.

[Lee-Lee]

9. They played it again this morning on GMA

So this at least has brought that back out.

[Alice11111]

79. Yep, but it is really Fox viewers who need to see it.

Otherwise, it is preaching to tbe choir.

[blueinredohio]

10. This needs to be posted every time Tweeden goes on t.v.

[spanone]

13. K&R...

[Squinch]

15. The forced kiss was the element that still troubled. Franken's open request for an inquiry

made me suspect there was someone out there like this who was there.

Glad to see this.

Bring on the inquiry, let both parties have their say.

[ehrnst]

20. Yes, it was troubling, but quite common especially in rehearsing comedy and improv. (nt)

[Squinch]

23. I suspect it won't be going forward. So there's one good thing to come of this.

Really, I am thinking that more good things will come during the inquiry.

[ehrnst]

34. I fear that there will be backlash as well.

I think that there will be men who will use it as an excuse not to hire women to work with them closely, along the lines of Mike Pence refusing to eat alone with women. Men who don't think that what Franken did was out of line will assume that women are unreasonable enough to turn even a compliment into something that they can use to bring them down...

"The vice president—and other powerful men—regularly avoid one-on-one meetings with women in the name of protecting their families. In the end, what suffers is women’s progress.”

For every step forward, there is a backlash. This dam breaking is huge, and I fear that the backlash will be as well.

I heard this sort of thing from men in a workplace that did harrassment training. A man who was a superior let me know what he thought of that by saying, "I would tell you that you look nice today, but it would probably get me fired for harassment."

[Squinch]

37. Yes. As you say there always is. The Trump "presidency" itself is one big

steaming pile of backlash.

[lagomorph777]

45. Just don't hire RW women. Dems are too decent to pull the shit she did.

For that matter, don't hire RW men either.

[Egnever]

60. I think you are right

The glass ceiling just got a lot thicker.

[Dem2]

24. Yeah, I'm moving on

This story doesn't have a lot of meat on the bones since Franken dealt with it promptly. I have a feeling a LOT of conservative men Franken's age can recall a story similar to what happened in this case. I doubt they want to delve too deep into this lest they get sucked into it.

[Phentex]

25. Why didn't Franken say she was in on it?

I am talking about the photograph. His statement does not say he believed she was in on it.

[mucifer]

27. His statement was vague. He acknowledged the photo was disgusting. He didn't want to attack her

It would be bad in my opinion if he attacked her, especially if there are witnesses like his escort.

If nothing else the photo says "groping someone who is sleeping is funny". No denying that was at the time his intent to get people to laugh. Now it's not so funny.

The rest of what went happen we don't know for sure. Let the investigation happen. I'm glad he is asking for it.

[Phentex]

31. The photo part of his statement seems to be the least vague part...

"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."

Yes, was can assume his intent at the time was not to be hurtful or harmful. But he does not say anywhere that it was a joke that she was in on. He could have said it was a joke at the time and we all thought it was funny but looking back it's not funny. Why does he say it's obvious how Leeann would feel violated if he and everyone around him knew it was a joke she was in on?

[Kirk Lover]

28. Because even if she was in on he's taking responsibility for the inappropriateness

of the photograph.

All I can say is that there are many fellow Dem Politician's saying off with head. This massive OVER REACTION needs to stop.

[Phentex]

32. Yes he is because he is a decent human being...

but this tweet in the OP is all about how obvious it was that this was a joke. It would have been easy for Al to say it was a joke at the time and Leeann was in on it, however in poor taste it might seem now.

[SunSeeker]

54. Exactly. nt

[Madam45for2923]

26. Everything that Franken is accused of- Donald bragged about doing himself. Kissing & grabbing w/o

without any consent. This is also what all his accusers accuse him of.

Plus he is also on record bragging about walking in Ms Teen Universe contestants locker rooms.

[Madam45for2923]

35. Yep! Google it: The allegations about Donald Trump and Miss Teen USA contestants ... www.politifact

The allegations about Donald Trump and Miss Teen USA contestants ...
www.politifact.com/wisconsin/.../allegations-about-donald-trump-and-miss-teen-usa-c...
Oct 18, 2016 - Four women who competed in the 1997 Miss Teen USA beauty pageant said Donald Trump walked into the dressing room while contestants ...
Teen Beauty Queens Say Trump Walked In On Them Changing
https://www.buzzfeed.com/.../teen-beauty-queens-say-trump-walked-in-on-them-chan...
Oct 12, 2016 - Donald Trump with winners of his beauty pageants in 2014. ... in the 1997 Miss Teen USA beauty pageant said Donald Trump walked into the ... Trump dismissed his comments on the tape as “locker room talk,” but it has put ...
Trump Walked in on Teen Pageant Contestants Changing | PEOPLE ...
people.com/politics/donald-trump-walks-in-miss-teen-usa-contestants-changing/
Oct 12, 2016 - At least four women who competed in a Miss Teen USA beauty pageant told BuzzFeed News that Donald Trump walked into their dressing ...
Former teen beauty queens: Trump barged in on us changing | New ...
nypost.com/.../former-teen-beauty-queens-say-trump-barged-into-their-dressing-roo...
Oct 12, 2016 - Donald Trump barged in on Miss Teen USA contestants while they were ... He has repeatedly said those comments were simply benign “locker room banter. ... he had walked into a changing room packed with naked women.
A Timeline of Donald Trump's Creepiness While He Owned Miss
www.rollingstone.com/.../timeline-of-trumps-creepiness-while-he-owned-miss-univers...
Oct 12, 2016 - From walking into a teen dressing room to joking about his obligation to sleep with contestants, Donald Trump is a storied pageant creep.
Former Miss Teen USA Contestants Say Trump Walked in on Them ...
https://www.vice.com/.../former-miss-teen-usa-contestants-say-trump-walked-in-on-th...
Oct 12, 2016 - Four contestants from Donald Trump's 1997 Miss Teen USA pageant and ... assault, Trump continues to brush them off as just "locker room talk.
Donald Trump walked in on half-dressed teen girls in the dressing ...
www.slate.com/.../donald_trump_walked_in_on_half_dressed_teen_girls_in_the_dres...
Oct 12, 2016 - Four former contestants in the Donald Trump–owned Miss Teen USA pageant told BuzzFeed that Trump walked in on them while they were ...
Trump bragged that he walked in on naked beauty pageant ...
https://thinkprogress.org/trump-beauty-pageants-naked-2dc4b6c6d507/
Oct 12, 2016 - Donald Trump with Erin Brady, winner of the 2013 Miss USA pageant. ... conducted with former Miss Teen USA contestants, Trump did just that in 1997. ... the comments as “locker room banter” that doesn't “reflect who I am.”.
Donald Trump boasted about meeting semi-naked teenagers in ...
www.independent.co.uk › News › World › Americas
Oct 12, 2016 - Donald Trump used to “stroll right in” to the dressing room of beauty pageants ... away' with walking into the dressing room to 'inspect' beautiful women ... Four women who competed in the 1997 Miss Teen USA beauty ... He released an apology within hours but defended the remarks as “locker room talk”.
Donald Trump's Creepy Stewardship Of The Miss Teen USA Pageant ...
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/.../donald-trump-miss-teen-usa_us_57fe2cd3e4b0d5...
Oct 12, 2016 - While running the Miss Teen USA beauty pageant, Donald Trump reportedly walked in on contestants as they changed in their dressing room, ...
Searches related to Donald Trump walked in Miss Teen locker

[Kirk Lover]

30. Dotard tRUMP is accused of doing much much worse.

[Madam45for2923]

36. Yep! yep! yep, that too!

[moriah]

33. I've asked that Twitter person if they would seek out the media to give their story.

I said I didn't doubt him, but Twitter is Twitter and this is serious if he had legitimate exculpatory evidence.

He didn't respond. And so until he talks to a reporter or an investigative committee... it's still Twitter.

[ramblin_dave]

46. Are you talking about TheTabbasco?

I can't even find the tweets mentioned in the OP.

[moriah]

49. Yeah. The escort. He seems like if he had exculpatory evidence he'd give it.

But it could be simply a "Nothing inappropriate happened in front of me, but I wasn't there at those specific dates/times".

And a responsible news agency would fact-check if his story did seemingly exculpate.

The identity of the photographer and all rumors about that Tweet are still up in the air. The user, apparently not realizing that just changing your Twitter ID doesn't change the links to your tweets, changed his Twitter ID to AidanHagi, but that ID still scores a 7/10 on Make Adverbs Great Again. After someone said something about his Twitter ID and the Politifact article.

That tells me they're FOS.

[Denzil_DC]

63. I'm very skeptical of the "escort", IIRC he said he might have been the pilot of the plane

where the infamous "grope" pic was taken as well, but who knows at this stage?

I'm not sure what you mean by "The user, apparently not realizing that just changing your Twitter ID doesn't change the links to your tweets, changed his Twitter ID to AidanHagi, but that ID still scores a 7/10 on Make Adverbs Great Again."

Aiden Benjamin's still there under that name, with the Twitter handle @AidanHagi. Do you mean he changed his handle at some earlier point, because nothing seems to have changed since around August according to the Politifact and Snopes rebuttals I found.

BTW, "Aiden" is trying to double down:

Link to tweet

Aiden Benjamin @AidenHagi

.@snopes my reporting is real, the photographer in question plans to make his name public in the coming days and is willing to testify.
9:04 PM - Nov 17, 2017

Link to tweet

Aiden Benjamin @AidenHagi

BREAKING NOW:

Al Franken photo staged according to photographer who took the photo.

Photographer: [S]he was playing dead and SHE wanted him to ‘revive’ her. I took the picture it was a funny moment everyone was smiling having a good time

Leeann Tweeden is a trump supporter. pic.twitter.com/DXAnp18XbW

Aiden Benjamin @AidenHagi

The photographer is going to make his name public in the coming days

Stay tuned!
9:09 PM - Nov 17, 2017

[moriah]

66. The Kos article captured the original Twitter ID.

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2017/11/16/1716247/-Heads-up-Russians-boosting-Franken-story-per-Hamilton-68

The main tweet people are quoting comes from “Aiden Benjamin” whose twitter handle is “@Feisal_Hagi.” (Tweet Archived here: archive.is/...) Checking their twitter feed, they had no real political commentary until February, they just reblogged a bunch of random sports clips. So no comments during the election, the Women’s March, etc. After that there’s some poorly-written tweets about politics, none of which attract much attention. One of which calls for firing Colbert over something I don’t remember. The account has slowly ramped up its political posts.

Also here's the mirror of the tweet on the original Twitter ID:

http://archive.is/4IZ8b

http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2017/aug/28/blog-posting/outdated-photo-wrongly-suggests-barack-obama-food-/

The Politifact on the original "pro-lib but a lie" also references the old handle.

[Denzil_DC]

67. Ah, great.

Thanks. I must be getting word blind! Sorry to have troubled you.

This "Aiden" is both slimy and an idiot, it seems.

[moriah]

68. No problem at all. Nt

[Liberal In Texas]

39. I'm in the "This was a hit job" category.

The jokes may have been juvenile and in poor taste, but it doesn't look like harassment.
I think old Leeanne has embellished what happened to impress her pals in the RW and was probably encouraged by them.

[trueblue2007]

58. i have a feeling she embellished too. She makes it sound like he asked for that kiss a dozen times

and that just really sounds fishy. of course i wasn't there but her voice telling the story just sounds so false.
i would like her voice to be hooked up to a machine to see if she is telling the truth.

[FBaggins]

64. It's almost certainly a hit job... but that doesn't mean that it isn't true.

The timing of the Moore allegations are a hit job too (meaning that political operatives learned about it and intentionally waited until it could win us a Senate seat).

That doesn't mean that the allegations aren't true.

The jokes may have been juvenile and in poor taste, but it doesn't look like harassment.

There's no question that it was harassment. It doesn't look like it was assault (though the alleged kiss may have been).

[womanofthehills]

70. I am with you - Randi Rhodes worked with Al for yrs at Air America

She said the Daily Beast is calling everyone who ever worked with Al and so far on one else ever said anything about Al. Randi says Al is the most un-sexual man she knows.

[bedazzled]

40. they should buy some Saturday Night Live dvds

I am sure he did something to offend someone on there. Cheez.

[Initech]

41. Just remember that facts don't matter to the MAGATs.

They'll see this and scream fake news at the drop of a hat like the good sheep that they are. It's like they're in a cult.

[Pepsidog]

42. Why does she have helmet & jacket on in airplane?

I don’t believe a word she says.

[ramblin_dave]

48. What kind of source is this in the OP? Possible disinformation?

Can anyone find the tweets from TheTabbasco that are shown? Maybe this is disinformation?

[airmid]

52. He has a twitter feed and from the look of it, he is the real deal.

[ramblin_dave]

53. That's odd

I found the feed when I first looked but the the tweets mentioned in the OP were not there. Now they are. Still, if this person is who he says he is (Franken's escort), then why has no major media picked up on this?

[Egnever]

61. Because it screws the narative

[LiberalLovinLug]

51. I hate how they use our own fringe wing of PC police against us

That Al could not, as a Democrat, simply scoff off the charges. Say he was hamming it up for the camera and she was in on it for a staged photo, with lots of other people there. And say that there was no forced kissing from what he remembers.

That's what a Republican would do. Because Republicans do not have a fringe PC police force in their party to deal with. In fact they have the bizarro opposite force that will defend their rep even from much more serious actions, even serious crimes. And so you'd have to have concrete indisputable proof to ever have them ever apologize or resign. And after a few weeks its all forgotten.

But Al, as a Democrat, is required to walk an almost impossibly careful line. He must make the humblest of apologies even if he deep down doesn't think he did anything wrong, at least at the time, and taking in context of the situation. And in so doing, gives even greater ammunition to the enemy. "where's there's smoke there's fire" they'll say. If he didn't do anything wrong, why is he grovelling about it?

But grovel he must. Not for Republicans, or more specifically Republican voters, who voted into the Presidency a self admitted sexual predatory abuser, but for our own fringe PC police who's predictability is being used to the maximum by Republicans to silence one of their biggest advisory.

[warmfeet]

57. My thoughts are also along these lines.

It's a tough gig these days.

[crosinski]

69. Well said. They really know how to pit our own PC Squad against the rest of us.

[bluestateboomer]

56. KKK&R

N/T

[aeromanKC]

71. Franken knows her story is BS. Note his quick request for hearing.

Also note how quick she was to backtrack once he called her Bluff.

[LisaM]

76. If the photo was staged and that's what she elected to go with...

then this whole thing is ridiculous. She should have just told the other story, and I am not saying I don't believe her, but her visual is completely misleading and that pisses me off.

[rsong71]

77. who sleeps with a kevlar helmet on???

Based upon my own experience as a woman who served as a medic in a medical unit for 7 years in the Army National Guard, My basic question is “Who sleeps wearing a Kevlar helmet, with the chin strap snapped into place?” I don’t believe she really was asleep. These helmets are UNCOMFORTABLE. They are not designed for comfort; they are designed to protect your head from a bullet. If I were on a plane and I wanted to take a nap, the last thing I would have on my head is a snapped into place Kevlar helmet.

[MFM008]

80. My point all along.

This is a grossly exaggerated episode for POLITICAL gain.
Period.
He apologized to any and everyone including the USO, whom I presume he did not assault.
By taking the attention off the troops and the mission.
End of story.

[tnbadger]

81. there's a ton of evidence waiting out there

we need to wait until the ethics investigation is complete.... i am a fan of AF and am not convinced that leeann made her claims at the behest of fox/hannity. i have watched the uso shows, starting with bob hope years ago and they are noted for being somewhat randy/raunchy with the troops loving every minute because the comedy and raunchy antics let them temporarily remember sex and laughs while forgetting about the possibility of imminent death. the women on the uso tours have always seemed to go along with comedians. i'm not saying she was asking for it because of her occupation as bunny but it is hard for me to imagine that she was so disgusted with AF in 2006 with a simple kiss but had no problem playing along with robin williams (Approx 1:20, uso with robin williams, bagram air base, 2005 {

}. it is the only video i have had time to watch but shows her jumping onto Robin with legs around his waist... then after a comedic pause, he steps away and does a pelvic thrust that gets the troops laughing.... and i am sure there are a ton more clips out there to show simulation of sexual acts that would have been far worse than that displayed by AF....