Weiner Resignation Up to Constituents, Not Democratic Party (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | After a week of denials followed by a tearful news conference admission that he sent lewd pictures over twitter to a woman in Seattle, Rep. Weiner is not resigning nor his constituents wants him to. He is and has been the front and center of the liberal cause, defending it, pushing it and exposing the GOP agenda the way he should.

He is better known for his passionate speeches in the floor of the house and his television appearances where he is not afraid to present the issues the way the democratic base wants to hear it, that is why he is one of a kind and shouldn't resign.

The congressman has been a rising star and is married to a long time Hillary Clinton aide, Huma Abedin. He is passionate in the causes he supports, which included the health care act and the recently passed bill for 9/11 first responders. He is a voice to many on left who felt that the president had compromised too much and under achieved his signature Health Care Act, the Financial reform Act, and extended the Bush tax cuts to the rich.

Thus, his resignation, if it ever arrives, will deprive the Democratic base someone who did not abandon the liberal cause, and energizes them to coalesce against the Republicans whom they feel too much was ceded to.

New pictures emerged Sunday and were posted on the TMZ gossip news website. These pictures, which appear to have been taken in the House of Representatives gymnasium, could be harmful and might bring more pressure for him to resign. AFP reported Sunday that Democrats stepped up their call for him to resign in light of the new photos that emerged, which might serve as a proof that he used Congressional resources to send lewd pictures online.

Rep. Weiner announced Saturday he was taking a short leave of absence to seek treatment. The announcement came after the emergence of yet another text messages he sent to a 17-year-old girl. Police in New Castle, Del., confirmed that they interviewed the teenager and deemed no harm was done. Parents of the teenager expressed concern that the congressman sent private messages to their daughter.

"It seems to me extraordinarily difficult that he can proceed to represent his constituents in an effective way given the circumstances this bizarre behavior has led to" the number two House Democratic leader Hoyer told CBS's "Face the Nation" program this morning. Democratic leaders jumped on the band wagon to call for his resignation at the end of the week.

It remains to be seen if Rep. Weiner will be able to hold on to his office and his aspirations to become the next mayor of New York. A lot will also depend on how his constituents' opinion shifts in the coming days. If his constituents want him to serve that is what he should do and not crack under the pressure. It is up to the people of the 9th congressional district of New York to make the call for him to resign if they choose so, and not the leaders of the Democratic Party.

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Democrat Leaders Join Forces and Finally Call for Weiner's Resignation (ContributorNetwork)

NBC has reported that, despite the response on Friday by Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Anthony Weiner's scandalous behavior and the initial efforts of DNC Chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz to downplay the significance of Weiner, Wasserman Shultz, Pelosi and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Steve Israel released statements within minutes of each other today calling for the disgraced congressman's resignation.

Where Democratic leaders had previously ridden the Weiner fence, revelations that a 17-year old girl was among the many females who have been receiving personal communications from the congressman has officially inspired enough panic to motivate a hasty, unified decision.

According to an exclusive report by Fox News, police in New Castle, Del., are investigating their discovery of direct online communications between Weiner and a 17-year-old girl.

According to the report by Jana Winter, two New Castle County police officers arrived at the high school junior's home on Friday while foxnews.com was speaking with a family member. After being asked to step outside, the 17-year old was seen walking up the driveway. Because she is a minor, her name is being withheld. However, when fox.com inquired, the 17-year old said, "I'm doing OK."

According to Jennifer Preston of the New York Times, Weiner's spokeswoman, Risa Heller said, "According to Congressman Weiner, his communications with this person were neither explicit nor indecent." However, Heller did not provide copies of the messages.

Of course, that Weiner first denied the "bulging underwear" photo was him then lied to say his Twitter account was hacked, any denials from Weiner or those in his camp would understandably be considered suspect.

Preston also reported that a family member, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, characterized the messages as "harmless" but did express concern. While the family was aware of the exchanges between Weiner and the girl before the scandal erupted, they assumed all of their conversations had taken place on a public Twitter feed.

However, according to the New York Times, Weiner started following the girl's personal profile page two days after she signed up for his Twitter feed. After seeing her profile message that she hopes to be president someday, "How hip am I talking to a future president?" Weiner responded directly.

A group of conservatives who had been following Weiner's Twitter feed became concerned, firing off public Twitter warnings and even contacting the 17-year-old girl directly. Only after the minor told Weiner she was being bothered did he apologize and stopped following her on Twitter. But a month later, after an online shout-out by Weiner for more followers, the girl reminded him she used to follow him. On May 16, fully aware that the girl was a minor, he started following her again and a relative told the Times that Weiner exchanged messages with the girl for almost two weeks after that.

After being caught sending shirtless photos to a woman he met on Craigslist, Republican Rep. Chris Lee stepped down. Democrat, Kathy Hochul won a special election in New York's 26th congressional district to replace Lee. In the wake of the historic drubbing in the 2010 midterm elections, Democrats like Wasserman Schultz hailed the victory as a turning point for their party.

As quoted by ABC, "The reason that we believe that this is an indicator that we will continue to make progress and retake majority of the House and re-elect the president is that the voters got a glimpse of what it would be like under Republican control," Schultz said last month . "And they don't like it."

Today's frenzied response by Democrat leaders reveals their final grasp that, on top of President Barack Obama's tanking poll numbers, the sexcapades of Weiner may have given their "hailed turning point" a seriously official 180.

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