Anthony Weiner resignation – live coverage

New York politician Anthony Weiner to resign today after his ‘sexting’ scandal on Twitter – follow the latest developments live 12pm: Nancy Pelosi tweets: Thx followers for telling me cables cut me off – what I said: I’m here to talk about #jobs & this bill-> http://t.co/MOIijaO Here’s the top line: Democratic leaders in the US House of Representatives on Thursday said they would try to force a vote on a China currency bill that House members overwhelmingly approved last year but that died in the Senate. 11.45am ET: Another reason for Weiner to go today may have been the prospect of further fallout from one of Weiner’s sexting targets : a sometime porn star named Ginger Lee, who gave a press conference yesterday: Lee, from La Vergne, Tennessee, said the pair exchanged about 100 emails between March and June, but said she never received photos from Weiner and never sent him any. She said she followed him on Twitter because she liked his stance on Planned Parenthood funding and health care, and that he repeatedly tried to turn the conversation into sexual banter. “My package and I are not going to beg,” Weiner emailed at one point, according to Allred. Another email said “I have wardrobe demands too – I need to highlight my package.” “I did not reciprocate,” Lee said Wednesday. Lee said as Weiner’s Twitter scandal was unfolding, the married lawmaker gave her a statement to put out, which read: “I haven’t met Rep Weiner. I follow him on Twitter because I support him & what he stands for. I have been hounded by his political opponents, but that hasn’t changed my view of him and what he fights for.” Lee said she was happy to talk to the congressional ethics investigation that was underway – and Weiner would have been in trouble because he asked Lee to cover up their epistolary relationship. 11.30am ET: The question is whether Weiner steps down immediately or is not seeking re-election – and thus sticking around until January 2013, the end of his current term. If he does step down as of now, that means another special election in New York state, the third in two years caused by a sex scandal. There was Democrat Eric Massa in 2010 , Republican Chris Lee earlier this year (also over sexy pictures), and now Weiner. A little further back there was Eliot Spitzer . Something in the water? 11.25am ET: “I’d much rather be discussing economic issues … than talking about this,” says Wolf Blitzer on CNN, more in sorrow than in truth. I mean, anger. The next CNN presenter immediately starts talking about “half-nude Weiner pictures” and playing clips of David Letterman makes Weiner gags. 11.20am ET: Local newspaper the New York Times speaks to a “top Democratic official” for more details on the latest developments: The top Democratic official said Mr Weiner called Representative Nancy Pelosi of California and Representative Steve Israel of New York last night while they were at the White House picnic to inform them he had decided to resign on Thursday. Mr. Weiner plans to resign in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, at 2pm, at the spot where he announced his first campaign for City Council in 1992, according to two people told of his plans. The news comes as Democratic leaders prepared to hold a meeting on Thursday to discuss whether to strip the 46-year-old congressman of his committee assignments, a blow that would severely damage his effectiveness. Ms Pelosi had called for an ethics investigation into Mr. Weiner’s actions. Mr Weiner began telling his most trusted advisers about his decision on Wednesday night by phone, informing them that it no longer seemed fair to his constituents and his colleagues for him to remain in office. Mr Weiner, a Democrat, came to the conclusion that he could no longer serve after having long discussions with his wife, Huma Abedin, when she returned home on Tuesday after traveling abroad with her boss, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. 11.14am ET: Oh dear – CNN just briefly mixed up a Weiner story with an on-screen headline about al-Qaida’s new leader. Whoops. 11.05am ET: So after three weeks, why did Weiner decide to go now? Obviously the intense pressure from Democrats, including Obama, Pelosi and the powerful chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Steve Israel, has taken its toll. Weiner himself said that his wife, Huma Abedin, had supported him. But possibly she changed her mind after returning from an overseas trip in her role as an aide to Hillary Clinton. And the news that she was pregnant may have played a part. Top plausible conspiracy theory of the day is the thought that New York City was due to lose a congressional seat due to population changes, and so that Weiner’s seat was in danger of being redistricted into oblivion. 10.55am ET: All eyes are on the Democratic House minority leader Nancy Pelosi, holding a press conference right now on some trivial issue like jobs or something. But as Pelosi steps up to the mike she says: “If you’re here to ask a question about Anthony Weiner, I won’t be answering any.” There’s an old joke about the shortest measurable unit of time is the gap between a Los Angeles traffic light turning green and the car behind you honking. But here’s a record breaker – the light-speed at which cable news channels cut away from a press conference after Nancy Pelosi refuses to answer questions about Anthony Weiner. Pelosi says she’ll answer questions after Weiner makes his statement. But cable news missed that bit. 10.50am ET: Good morning from Washington DC, where Weiner-gate has reached its climax, so to speak. According to local New York television reports, Weiner plans to give a live statement at his congressional office in Brooklyn at 2pm ET – 7pm BST. But according to multiple reports he has told “friends” that he will resign. After three weeks of trying to hang on to his job, Anthony Weiner will today announce that he is stepping down as a Democratic congressman – ending a scandal that began with an errant Twitter message sent by Weiner on 27 May. After first denying responsibility and blaming hackers , Weiner was found to have had bizzare sexual relationships with at least six women via Twitter, Facebook, email and text message, exchanging provocative photographs. At a teary press conference 10 days ago Weiner finally confessed to his behaviour but insisted he would not resign. But under pressure from senior Democrats, Weiner asked for a two-week leave of absence from the House of Representatives in order to seek undisclosed treatment. The final nail may have come on Tuesday morning, when President Obama weighed in during an interview on breakfast television, in which Obama said: “If it was me, I would resign.” As today’s events unfold we’ll be following developments and reaction right here. (You can catch up with our previous live blog of Weiner’s press conference on 6 June here .) Anthony Weiner US politics New York Democrats Social media Twitter United States Richard Adams guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 16, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.