Did Huma Abedin play a part in Weiner's decision to resign?

[riderinthestorm]

It's telling that Weiner has been saying all along that he won't resign and now that his wife is home, he's made the announcement. While we can't know if Huma Abedin cared about Weiner's sexting (I'm guessing she did), I suspect she played her own part in "forcing" Weiner to leave the stage. Why? Based upon my own experience as a wife with two children.

1. Regardless of whether she knew or cared about the sexting, I'm dead cert that she cared about the media spectacle and lying. Bald faced lying. That would piss me off big time if my husband were caught doing that shit.

2. She's pregnant. It's such a scary, exciting, private time with your husband/partner. Those joyful trips to the doctor for check-ups, the first ultrasounds, watching your tummy "kick" as the baby kicks. Huma's first pregnancy would have been severely impacted by the media following her around asking for her input, following her and Anthony Weiner to the doctor harassing him, questioning them. While some celebrities THRIVE on that kind of media attention, everything about this woman so far seems to indicate that she's quite private. Every time a new pic surfaced, the media circus would have started up again. What a shitty way to spend your first (maybe only) pregnancy.

3. If Anthony Weiner really DOES have a disorder that needs therapy, trying to "fix" it is very, very difficult in the middle of a media firestorm. If I were his wife, and I loved him, I'd insist he did whatever needed to be done to get well primarily. I'd want my husband back - sound and healthy. Honestly, I believe Weiner will be back. And if I believe that, his wife does. Which means he can afford to take this hiatus and work on repairing himself, repairing his marriage, and focusing in on the most important event coming up in their life: the birth of their child.

[cbdo2007]

1. oops sorry!

[MineralMan]

3. Please don't call out other DUers. Thanks.

[MineralMan]

2. I don't know. I don't care.

Further, it's none of my business. Weiner has resigned. That is an end to it. Why continue to speculate?

I'm serious.

[hobbit709]

4. +1

[riderinthestorm]

7. If we're going to "blame" everyone else for "forcing" Weiner out

I've seen Pelosi, Obama, the DLC, hell even Weiner himself all "blamed" for "forcing" him out, but pointing out that this actually may have been a family decision is somehow crossing some boundary?

The power, or lack thereof, of the DLC to actually participate in that kind of forced action DOES matter in politics. Honestly, I don't believe for one moment that the DLC leadership played any role in Weiner's decision. If Vitter can stick it out, I believe Weiner could/should have done so as well - his constituents wanted him to stay. My point was that I believe this was a family decision and I backed that up with how I would have approached the situation as a wife/pregnant wife.

Trying to make this a simple DLC power play move against a progressive voice isn't accurate.

[MineralMan]

12. It is mere speculation about someone. We do not and cannot

know what, if any role Weiner's wife played. Speculation is akin to gossip, in my opinion, especially when it involves family members of individuals. I just don't see it as an appropriate part of the discussion on DU. If Huma Abedin makes a public statement of some kind regarding her husband's resignation, then that's a different matter. I do not believe she has done so. So, it's speculation.

[inna]

8. hey, the function of discussion boards is discussion and 'speculation".

If you don't want to discuss and "speculate", then don't.

But please do NOT tell others what to do, or what discuss or not discuss.


"I'm serious."

Great. Stay out of the damn thread then, or alert mods if you have a problem. (Although clearly, it's a perfectly valid thread.)

[MineralMan]

9. My dear inna,

I did not tell anyone what to do. I said what I would do and how I felt about it. Please reread my post. I said I did not care. I said that I though it was irrelevant. I asked a question. I didn't tell anyone to do or not do anything. It was my opinion.

I do note that you did tell me what to do, and more than once. You'll forgive me if I don't follow your command, I'm sure.

[MineralMan]

10. Dupe

dupe

[riderinthestorm]

14. As I type this, there are 13 threads "blaming" the DLC leadership, Pelosi, Obama

or any number of other factors in Weiner's departure.

ONE thread saying that perhaps this was a family decision, and it's a major slam.

DU's current population has a very, very strong anti-DLC slant at the moment. Okay, I'm not a fan of the DLC either. But! It's beyond bizarre how anything outside of the current thought-du-jour isn't allowed to even be whispered, let alone discussed or debated. It's only okay to speculate on the role that some factors played in Weiner's decision, but not look at anything else?

Sucks but clearly that's where this issue is right now.

I wish he hadn't stepped down. What a can of worms.

[MineralMan]

16. What does that have to do with Weiner's

wife and her role, if any, in his resignation? You do not know if she had anything to do with it. I do not know, either. I doubt there will be any public announcement. What is the point?

As for the DLC, I know nothing about the DLC's role in any of this. Last I heard, the organization had dissolved itself.

Bottom line: Weiner has resigned. The business of government goes on.

[riderinthestorm]

17. You know, you can just hide this thread, or alert on it if you think its too much

Since DUers NEVER speculate, theorize or posit opinions here...

You and I both know that NOBODY is going to issue any statements on how this decision was made: not Pelosi, Obama, any of the Dem (or Rethug) leadership, nor the Weiner/Abedin family. But that hasn't stopped a slew of other OP's theorizing on who is responsible for "pressuring" Weiner to resign.

Go ahead and ignore them all, or alert on the rest as well. Clearly this thread irks you. Fine.


:eyes:

[MineralMan]

18. I'm not going to alert on it. I just posted my opinion.

You can take it or leave it or comment on it. It's up to you. I will post my opinion, though.

[hedgehog]

21. +1

[murielm99]

5. She is a top aide to Hillary Clinton.

I hope she got some advice from her boss.

From here on out, this is a private matter.

FWIW, this is my only post on this situation.

[orion007]

20. lol Hillary advising on men and other woman is hilarious. n/t

[murielm99]

24. No, it is not.

She has been through this very public humiliation herself. She may have some good advice.

Your dismissal is hilarious.

[orion007]

26. Her first piece of advice could be to blame it on a RW

conspiracy,or blame the other woman(en),
It is hilarious, and hopefully Huma will never become an enabler like Hillary and make excuse after excuse for her man.

[DURHAM D]

6. Why do you care?

Oh, and please don't answer.

just leave it alone

[inna]

11. I have a feeling that the marriage may not survive...

Frankly, I'm a little worried that he might commit suicide, or something; he's completely ruined, destroyed, humiliated and politically assassinated.


Btw, thanks for writing this thoughtful post (from a humanistic perspective, so to speak); I can't imagine why some people are being so rude. :shrug:

[lilyin]

13. Probably

As a woman, I agree with everything you said and hope they can work out their marriage. After all, he didn't physically cheat on her, which is a plus. The lying is the worst because it destroys trust.

[orion007]

19. I don't know which would be the less of 2 evils if it was my husband,

I think it might be a hell of a lot easier to end an affair and concentrate on ones marriage,if both people wanted to, then begin to deal with the causes of what makes Weiner do what he did and the treatments to stop it.

[murielm99]

27. Oh, dear.

Wouldn't that make you an enabler?

[orion007]

28. Hell no, an enabler is a mutually dependent person who makes excuses and lies

for the other person, in Hillary's case her husband, which enables the pattern to continue.

Got it????

[murielm99]

29. Oh yes ma'am.

I got it.

And you go on ignore, ms. sanctimonious.

[jberryhill]

15. None of my business /nt

[hedgehog]

22. +1

[Cleita]

23. You are probably right, but she wouldn't have had

to ask him to do so, if there hadn't been such a media shit storm and if the House Democrats had stood behind him while he took a leave of absence to sort all this out. Just sayin'.

[riderinthestorm]

25. I agree. I really wish he hadn't stepped down. I'd like to think the top Dem

leaders weren't trying to "silence" a progressive voice. While I wouldn't discount the reality that other factors like conserva-Dem leadership pressure probably played a hand in his decision, my OP was really that the final decision probably came down to her.

[Odin2005]

30. How do we know that she is not the "Open Marriage" type?

[riderinthestorm]

32. Yes and I stipulated that in my OP if you read it.... nt

[JI7]

31. no, she wanted him to stay in Congress, it was because his committee positions were going to be

taken away and many in the party wanted him to resign to get rid of the issue.

[riderinthestorm]

33. Link? I'd be really interested in any definitive statement by Huma Abedin

(not just suppositions or gossip).

Because I haven't seen anything FROM HER specifically that indicates SHE wanted him to stay in Congress.