Anthony Weiner sexting scandal
Encyclopedia
The Anthony Weiner sexting scandal, also dubbed Weinergate, began when Democratic
U.S. Congressman
Anthony Weiner used the social media
website Twitter
to send a link to a sexually suggestive picture to a 21-year-old Washington State woman. After several days of denying media reports he had posted the image, he admitted to having sent a link to the photo, and also other sexually explicit photos and messages
to women both before and during his marriage. He denied ever having met, or having had a physical relationship with any of the women. On June 16, 2011, Weiner announced his intention to resign from Congress.
of his erect penis concealed by boxer briefs to Gennette Cordova, a 21-year-old female college student from Seattle, Washington, who was following him on the social media
website. Though the link was quickly removed from Weiner's Twitter account, screen shots of Weiner’s original message and of the photo were captured by a user identified as "Dan Wolfe" on Twitter and subsequently sent to conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart
who published them on his BigJournalism website the following day.
On June 1, Weiner gave a series of interviews in which he denied sending the photo and suggested that someone, perhaps a political opponent, had hacked into his accounts and published the photo. Weiner also said he could not say "with certitude" that the photo was not of him. He suggested that the image might be doctored, saying, "maybe it did start being a photo of mine and now looks something different or maybe it is from another account". He did not ask the FBI
or U.S. Capitol Police
to investigate the incident but said he had retained a private security firm to look into this matter because he felt it was a prank, not a crime.
Liberal bloggers then accused Wolfe and Brietbart of planting the photo and message to defame Weiner; however, Wolfe and Breitbart were later vindicated in their claims by Weiner's admission. Evidence later revealed that a group of self-described conservatives had been monitoring Weiner's Twitter communications with women for at least three months. Two false identities of underage girls had been created by unknown parties to solicit communication with Weiner and the women he was contacting, one of whom Weiner followed until he was tipped off that it was a false account.
Answering questions, he said he had the continuing support of his wife Huma Abedin
, a long-time aide to Hillary Clinton whom he had married in July 2010, in a ceremony officiated by Bill Clinton
, and did not intend to resign his congressional seat. Prior to his marriage, Weiner was known for his "bachelor exploits with some of New York's most eligible women," detailed in a 2011 Moment
profile of the Congressman. Following the revelations of his inappropriate communications, his reportedly emotional apology to the former president was referred to in the press as highly ironic. Asked about an allegation that he had engaged in phone sex with a woman in Nevada, Weiner neither confirmed nor denied the statement, saying that though he did not want to impinge the privacy of any of the women, neither would he contradict any of their statements. At his press conference, Weiner did admit that he had exchanged the reported sexting messages
with Broussard.
a photograph of what he claimed to be Weiner's nude genitalia. One of the cameras in the room caught the cell phone's display, and the hosts subsequently leaked the photo by publishing it on Twitter. Breitbart stated that the photo was published without his permission, and later told KFI
radio, "These people have admitted that they did this surreptitiously and illicitly and they lied in the process saying that they didn't even have a camera in the place". Weiner's spokesperson issued the following statement: "As Representative Weiner said on Monday when he took responsibility for his actions, he has sent explicit photos."
News media also reported the identity of other Weiner's social media contacts, Lisa Weiss, a 40-year-old blackjack dealer in Las Vegas, and 24-year-old porn actress Ginger Lee who had exchanged sexually oriented messages with Weiner. On June 15, Ginger Lee held a press conference during which she said that when she requested advice from Weiner on how to respond to the media, he had advised her on June 2 that if they both stayed quiet the scandal would die down. Traci Nobles, a cheerleading coach who had exchanged messages with him, appeared on the Today Show and also released a book about the affair.
called for an investigation by the House Ethics Committee to determine "whether any official resources were used or any other violation of House rules occurred". A number of Democratic and Republican congressmen called for Weiner's resignation. On June 7, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus
called for him to resign, and challenged Pelosi to suggest the same. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor
(R, VA) said he should resign, opining: "The last thing we need is to be immersed in discussion about Congressman Weiner and his Twitter activities". House Democrats who called for him to resign on June 8 included Representatives Allyson Schwartz
(PA), Mike Ross (AR), Mike Michaud
(ME), Niki Tsongas
(MA), Larry Kissell
(NC) and Joe Donnelly
(IN). On June 11, Nancy Pelosi, DCCC
Steve Israel
, and DNC
Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz
called for Weiner's resignation. Weiner requested and was granted a short leave of absence from the House to obtain professional treatment of an unspecified nature.
Two June 6 surveys of New York City adult residents provided conflicting results. A TV station NY1
and Marist College
poll indicated that 51% believed Weiner should remain in Congress, 30% thought he should step down, and 18% were unsure. A WABC-TV/SurveyUSA automated survey found the city divided, with 46 percent who thought he should resign and 41 percent who thought he should stay in office. On June 9, a NY1-Marist Poll showed that 56% of registered voters in Weiner's Congressional District
wanted him to stay in Congress, and 33% thought he should resign, with 12% uncertain. In the same poll, 73% said he acted unethically, but not illegally.
On June 13, White House
spokesman Jay Carney
said "The president feels... this is a distraction, as Congressman Weiner has said himself, his behavior was inappropriate; dishonesty was inappropriate." President Obama
said in an interview later that day that if he were Weiner, he would resign.
His letter of resignation was read on the floor of the House of Representatives on June 23 and entered into the record.
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
U.S. Congressman
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
Anthony Weiner used the social media
Social media
The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...
website Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
to send a link to a sexually suggestive picture to a 21-year-old Washington State woman. After several days of denying media reports he had posted the image, he admitted to having sent a link to the photo, and also other sexually explicit photos and messages
Sexting
Sexting is the act of sending sexually explicit messages or photographs, primarily between mobile phones. The term was first popularized in early 21st century, and is a portmanteau of sex and texting, where the latter is meant in the wide sense of sending a text possibly with...
to women both before and during his marriage. He denied ever having met, or having had a physical relationship with any of the women. On June 16, 2011, Weiner announced his intention to resign from Congress.
Initial media reports and Weiner's denial
On May 27, 2011, using his public Twitter account, Weiner sent a link to a photo on yfrogYfrog
yfrog is an image hosting service run by ImageShack. It has many things in common with ImageShack, and is designed primarily to allow users to share their photographs and videos as links on the Twitter microblogging platform.-History and features:...
of his erect penis concealed by boxer briefs to Gennette Cordova, a 21-year-old female college student from Seattle, Washington, who was following him on the social media
Social media
The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...
website. Though the link was quickly removed from Weiner's Twitter account, screen shots of Weiner’s original message and of the photo were captured by a user identified as "Dan Wolfe" on Twitter and subsequently sent to conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart
Andrew Breitbart
Andrew Breitbart is an American publisher, commentator for the Washington Times, author, an occasional guest commentator on various news programs who has served as an editor for the Drudge Report website...
who published them on his BigJournalism website the following day.
On June 1, Weiner gave a series of interviews in which he denied sending the photo and suggested that someone, perhaps a political opponent, had hacked into his accounts and published the photo. Weiner also said he could not say "with certitude" that the photo was not of him. He suggested that the image might be doctored, saying, "maybe it did start being a photo of mine and now looks something different or maybe it is from another account". He did not ask the FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
or U.S. Capitol Police
United States Capitol Police
The United States Capitol Police is a federal police force charged with protecting the United States Congress within the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its territories.-History:...
to investigate the incident but said he had retained a private security firm to look into this matter because he felt it was a prank, not a crime.
Liberal bloggers then accused Wolfe and Brietbart of planting the photo and message to defame Weiner; however, Wolfe and Breitbart were later vindicated in their claims by Weiner's admission. Evidence later revealed that a group of self-described conservatives had been monitoring Weiner's Twitter communications with women for at least three months. Two false identities of underage girls had been created by unknown parties to solicit communication with Weiner and the women he was contacting, one of whom Weiner followed until he was tipped off that it was a false account.
Admission
On June 6, Breitbart posted a cropped, shirtless picture of Weiner obtained from a second woman on the Internet identified as 26-year-old Meagan Broussard of Texas, and said Weiner had sent more pictures of himself, including at least one that was sexually graphic. After publication of this information, Weiner held a press conference in New York at which he apologized, saying "I have not been honest with myself, my family, my constituents, my friends and supporters, and the media" and that, "to be clear, the picture was of me, and I sent it." He also said he had "engaged in several inappropriate conversations conducted over Twitter, Facebook, email and occasionally on the phone" and had exchanged "messages and photos of an explicit nature with about six women over the last three years". He added he had never met or had a physical relationship with any of them. He said he was "deeply ashamed" of his "terrible judgment and actions", which he called "very dumb."Answering questions, he said he had the continuing support of his wife Huma Abedin
Huma Abedin
Huma Mahmood Abedin is a deputy chief of staff and aide to US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. She served as traveling chief of staff and "body woman" for Clinton during Clinton's campaign for the Democratic nomination in the 2008 presidential election.-Early life:Abedin was born in...
, a long-time aide to Hillary Clinton whom he had married in July 2010, in a ceremony officiated by Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, and did not intend to resign his congressional seat. Prior to his marriage, Weiner was known for his "bachelor exploits with some of New York's most eligible women," detailed in a 2011 Moment
Moment (magazine)
Moment is an American Jewish magazine. It publishes articles related to Jewish culture, lifestyle, politics, and religion. Moment is not affiliated with any Jewish organization or religious movement, and its articles and columnists represent a diverse range of political views.-History:Nobel Peace...
profile of the Congressman. Following the revelations of his inappropriate communications, his reportedly emotional apology to the former president was referred to in the press as highly ironic. Asked about an allegation that he had engaged in phone sex with a woman in Nevada, Weiner neither confirmed nor denied the statement, saying that though he did not want to impinge the privacy of any of the women, neither would he contradict any of their statements. At his press conference, Weiner did admit that he had exchanged the reported sexting messages
Sexting
Sexting is the act of sending sexually explicit messages or photographs, primarily between mobile phones. The term was first popularized in early 21st century, and is a portmanteau of sex and texting, where the latter is meant in the wide sense of sending a text possibly with...
with Broussard.
Later events
During an appearance on Sirius XM radio on June 8, 2011, Breitbart showed hosts Opie and AnthonyOpie and Anthony
Opie and Anthony are the hosts of The Opie & Anthony Show, a talk radio program airing in the United States and Canada on XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Since the merger of the two satellite companies, this is now called Sirius/XM...
a photograph of what he claimed to be Weiner's nude genitalia. One of the cameras in the room caught the cell phone's display, and the hosts subsequently leaked the photo by publishing it on Twitter. Breitbart stated that the photo was published without his permission, and later told KFI
KFI
KFI is an AM radio station in Los Angeles, California. It received its license to operate on March 31, 1922 and began operating on April 16, 1922 as one of the United States' first high-powered, "clear-channel" stations...
radio, "These people have admitted that they did this surreptitiously and illicitly and they lied in the process saying that they didn't even have a camera in the place". Weiner's spokesperson issued the following statement: "As Representative Weiner said on Monday when he took responsibility for his actions, he has sent explicit photos."
News media also reported the identity of other Weiner's social media contacts, Lisa Weiss, a 40-year-old blackjack dealer in Las Vegas, and 24-year-old porn actress Ginger Lee who had exchanged sexually oriented messages with Weiner. On June 15, Ginger Lee held a press conference during which she said that when she requested advice from Weiner on how to respond to the media, he had advised her on June 2 that if they both stayed quiet the scandal would die down. Traci Nobles, a cheerleading coach who had exchanged messages with him, appeared on the Today Show and also released a book about the affair.
Political and constituent reaction
On the afternoon of June 6, 2011, House Minority Leader Nancy PelosiNancy Pelosi
Nancy Patricia D'Alesandro Pelosi is the Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives and served as the 60th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011...
called for an investigation by the House Ethics Committee to determine "whether any official resources were used or any other violation of House rules occurred". A number of Democratic and Republican congressmen called for Weiner's resignation. On June 7, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus
Reince Priebus
Reinhold Reince Priebus is the chairman of the Republican National Committee. He is also a previous chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin....
called for him to resign, and challenged Pelosi to suggest the same. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor
Eric Cantor
Eric Ivan Cantor is the U.S. Representative for Virginia's 7th congressional district, serving since 2001. A member of the Republican Party, he became House Majority Leader when the 112th Congress convened on January 3, 2011...
(R, VA) said he should resign, opining: "The last thing we need is to be immersed in discussion about Congressman Weiner and his Twitter activities". House Democrats who called for him to resign on June 8 included Representatives Allyson Schwartz
Allyson Schwartz
Allyson Young Schwartz is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes parts of Montgomery County and Northeast Philadelphia...
(PA), Mike Ross (AR), Mike Michaud
Mike Michaud
Michael Herman Michaud is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district comprises nearly 80% of the state by area and includes the cities of Lewiston, Auburn, Bangor, and Presque Isle...
(ME), Niki Tsongas
Niki Tsongas
Nicola Dickson "Niki" Sauvage Tsongas is the U.S. Representative for , serving since a special election in 2007. She is a member of the Democratic Party.She is the widow of U.S. Senator Paul Tsongas, who represented the 5th district in the 1970s...
(MA), Larry Kissell
Larry Kissell
Lawrence Webb "Larry" Kissell is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2009. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district stretches from Charlotte to Fayetteville.-Early life, education, and early career:...
(NC) and Joe Donnelly
Joe Donnelly
Joseph Simon "Joe" Donnelly, Sr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Donnelly announced Monday May 9 that he would run for the United States Senate seat that is held by Republican Richard Lugar.-Early life, education and career:Joe Donnelly...
(IN). On June 11, Nancy Pelosi, DCCC
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is the Democratic Hill committee for the United States House of Representatives, working to elect Democrats to that body. They play a critical role in recruiting candidates, raising funds, and organizing races in districts that are expected to yield...
Steve Israel
Steve Israel
Steve J. Israel is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2001. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district is located on Long Island and includes the towns of Huntington, Babylon, Islip, and Smithtown in Suffolk County, part of the town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, and the...
, and DNC
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...
Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Debbie Wasserman Schultz is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Democratic Party and the Chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. She previously served in the Florida House of Representatives and the Florida Senate...
called for Weiner's resignation. Weiner requested and was granted a short leave of absence from the House to obtain professional treatment of an unspecified nature.
Two June 6 surveys of New York City adult residents provided conflicting results. A TV station NY1
NY1
NY1, New York One, is a 24-hour cable-news television channel focusing on the five boroughs of New York City. In addition to news and weather forecasts, the channel also features human-interest segments such as the "New Yorker of the Week" and the "Scholar Athlete of the Week", and specialty...
and Marist College
Marist College
Marist College is a private liberal arts college on the east bank of the Hudson River near Poughkeepsie, New York. The site was established in 1905 by Marist Brothers, and the college was chartered in 1929...
poll indicated that 51% believed Weiner should remain in Congress, 30% thought he should step down, and 18% were unsure. A WABC-TV/SurveyUSA automated survey found the city divided, with 46 percent who thought he should resign and 41 percent who thought he should stay in office. On June 9, a NY1-Marist Poll showed that 56% of registered voters in Weiner's Congressional District
New York's 9th congressional district
New York's 9th Congressional District is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in New York City. It includes parts of southern Brooklyn and south central Queens...
wanted him to stay in Congress, and 33% thought he should resign, with 12% uncertain. In the same poll, 73% said he acted unethically, but not illegally.
On June 13, White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
spokesman Jay Carney
Jay Carney
James "Jay" Carney is an American journalist and President Barack Obama's second White House Press Secretary. Prior to his appointment as Press Secretary, replacing Robert Gibbs, he was director of communications to Vice President Joe Biden...
said "The president feels... this is a distraction, as Congressman Weiner has said himself, his behavior was inappropriate; dishonesty was inappropriate." President Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
said in an interview later that day that if he were Weiner, he would resign.
Resignation
On June 16, Weiner announced he would resign his seat in Congress. He made the announcement at a news conference in Brooklyn, at the same location where he announced his first campaign for New York City Council in 1992. His announcement was met with heckling derision from some in the audience, while others admonished these hecklers to be quiet. On June 20, Weiner formally submitted his letter of resignation from the U.S. House of Representatives, effective at midnight on June 21.His letter of resignation was read on the floor of the House of Representatives on June 23 and entered into the record.
Special election
In a special election held on September 13, 2011 to fill the vacant seat, the Republican candidate, businessman Bob Turner, defeated the Democratic candidate, State Assemblyman David Weprin.See also
- List of federal political sex scandals in the United States
- List of scandals with "-gate" suffix
External links
- Video of Weiner's June 6, 2011 Press conference (CBS NewsCBS NewsCBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
), with transcript (New York PostNew York PostThe New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
), June 6, 2011