In a hastily-organized press conference Tuesday, New York City mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner admitted to again being involved in “offensive and salacious” behavior. The admission came in response to a post on a gossip website by an unidentified woman who claimed she and Weiner had sent explicit messages online as far back as 2012. Some sources are indicating that Weiner posted photos of his genetalia.
This latest “sexting” occurred several months after Weiner resigned from Congress because of a similar scandal in 2011 involving lewd photos and messages sent via Twitter.
Standing next to his wife, Weiner addressed the room full of reporters.
“I would like to say that yes, I engaged in behavior that was wrong. I am sorry for that,” Weiner said. “It is not fair to the people of New York nor to my wife, who has always stood by me.”
“But in my defense, I stuck to my word. When I resigned from Congress, I swore to you that more lewd material involving me would be released. And I stand here before you today to say this: I kept my promise.”
“And I want to humbly ask the good people of New York City to give me another chance,” he said, frequently taking his wife’s hand. “Please continue giving me support in my campaign to be your mayor. If elected, I promise that more sexy and embarrassing material will be made available to satiate the public’s bestial hunger for scandal.”
Opinion among political commentators has been mixed. Ed Schultz of MSNBC, a former strong voice of support for the disgraced candidate, said Weiner “would be too busy as mayor to find time to photograph his penis.” Roy Edroso of the Village Voice wrote that he believed Weiner should be the Democrats’ choice, because in any case, “he’ll have dozens of aides — many of them young, hot chicks — who will help Weiner fulfill his promise.”
Preliminary polls are showing that Weiner’s support among his democratic base has dropped significantly, while support among stand-up comedians and late-night talk show hosts has risen.
The public demands an apology, would like to know on which site the photos can be viewed
Across the nation, outrage about this most recent scandal has been growing. From the blogosphere to the nation’s op-ed pages, everyday citizens are voicing their disgust.
“There are three things that guy needs to do,” said Olivia Juhl, who runs a sandwich shop in Utah. “First, he needs to apologize to his wife. Second, he needs to apologize to his supporters.”
“The third thing he needs to do,” she said, “is tell us where we can see the photos. I mean, are they still on that blog or whatever? Is he going to tweet them? Or what? That creep.”
Democratic supporters cite a “conspiracy” against the candidate, google “Weiner penis photos” just to see if allegations are true
“I don’t buy any of it,” said Adeline Kilgo, a Weiner supporter and Manhattan resident. “There’s so much at stake in this mayor’s race. I don’t trust Weiner’s enemies, that Bill de Blasio, and that Catsimatidis guy is shady, if you ask me. I believe this whole thing was a setup. The anonymous woman, the messages and photo of Weiner’s you-know-what. It’s probably all fake.”
“But I’m still sort of curious if the story might be true,” Kilgo added. “I wonder if I could google the photos of his — you know. Just to be sure. I don’t trust his [Weiner’s] opponents.”