LOUISA — House Majority Leader Eric I. Cantor called on embattled Rep. Anthony Weiner to resign Tuesday in the wake of a scandal sparked by a risqué photo the New Yorker sent via Twitter.
“I don’t condone his activity. And I think he should resign,” Cantor said after a Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Louisa.
Cantor made the remarks a day after Weiner, D-N.Y., held a tearful news conference to admit that he had indeed sent a lewd photograph to a female Twitter user, and had similar online flirtations with other women. Weiner last week denied sending the photo and claimed his Twitter account was hacked, both of which turned out to be lies.
“Last Friday night, I tweeted a photograph of myself that I intended to send as a direct message as part of a joke to a woman in Seattle. Once I realized I had posted it to Twitter, I panicked. I took it down and said that I had been hacked,” Weiner said Monday. “I then continued with that story — to stick to that story … To be clear, the picture was of me, and I sent it.”
Despite his call for Weiner’s resignation, Cantor said Congress has better things to focus on.
“We’ve got a lot of serious challenges in this country and a lot of work for Congress to do,” Cantor said. “The last thing we need to do is get enmeshed in a discussion about Congressman Weiner and his Twitter activities.”
Though Cantor said he believes Weiner should resign, he said the decision is ultimately up to Weiner and his constituents.
It’s unclear whether Weiner will survive long enough to face the will of the voters in his New York district.
High-ranking Democrats have been unwilling to defend him, and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called for an ethics investigation shortly after Weiner’s confession.
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LOUISA -- House Majority Leader Eric Cantor today called on embattled U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner of New York to resign.
"I don't condone his activity. And I think he should resign," Cantor said after a Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Louisa.
Cantor made the remarks a day after Weiner held a tearful press conference to admit that he had indeed sent a lewd photograph to a female Twitter user, and had similar online flirtations with other women. Weiner last week denied sending the photo and claimed his Twitter account was hacked, both of which turned out to be lies.
Though Cantor said he believes Weiner should resign, he said the decision is ultimately up to Weiner and his constituents.
"We've got a lot of serious challenges in this country and a lot of work for Congress to do," Cantor said. "The last thing we need to do is get enmeshed in a discussion about Congressman Weiner and his Twitter activities."
Pick up Wednesday's Daily Progress for more on this story and for Cantor's latest comments about efforts to address the federal deficit and debt.
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