Frustrated Franken reluctantly resigns

WASHINGTON—Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., announced Thursday he will resign in the coming weeks but still maintains his innocence. “Some of the allegations against me are simply not true,” a visibly frustrated Franken said from the Senate floor. “Others I remember very differently.” Eight women have accused Franken of inappropriate touching, and some said the senator attempted to kiss them against their will. Last month, Franken apologized to Leeann Tweeden, a Los Angeles radio news anchor, after she said he forcibly kissed her. She also shared a photo of him groping her while she slept on an airplane returning from a 2006 USO tour. In the following weeks, other women came forward with stories of Franken groping them while they posed for photos with him. On Wednesday, two more women added their names to the growing list, and Democrats quickly organized to demand his resignation. Franken joined the Senate in 2009 after winning election by just 312 votes. Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, will appoint a successor to fill the seat until he can schedule a special election. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported Thursday that Dayton likely will pick Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith, also a Democrat, to replace Franken. While announcing his resignation, Franken jabbed at President Donald Trump and Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore of Alabama, who also have denied accusations of sexual harassment: “I, of all people, am aware that there is some irony in the fact that I am leaving while a man who has bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the Oval Office and a man who has repeatedly preyed on young girls campaigns for the Senate with the full support of his party.”