Second woman accuses Democratic Sen. Al Franken of inappropriate conduct
A second woman has come forward to complain about the conduct of Democratic Sen. Al Franken (Minn.), CNN reports. Lindsay Menz, now 33, claims Franken "put his hand full-fledged on my rear" when she posed with him for a photo at the Minnesota State Fair in 2010.
"It was wrapped tightly around my butt cheek," Menz told CNN. "It wasn't around my waist. It wasn't around my hip or side. It was definitely on my butt. I was like, oh my God, what's happening."
Menz's husband, who was taking the photo, said that while he could not see the contact his wife described because he was standing in front of the pair, he could confirm that Franken had "reached around [Lindsay Menz] and kind of pulled her into him." Menz posted the photo to Facebook and replied to a comment from her sister by writing: "Dude — Al Franken TOTALLY molested me! Creeper!"
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Menz reached out to CNN after reporter Leeann Tweeden accused Franken last week of groping her in her sleep and kissing her without her consent while on a USO tour in 2006. Menz said of her own experience: "I felt gross. It'd be like being walking through the mall and some random person grabbing your butt. You just feel gross. Like ew, I want to wash that off of me."
Franken said in a statement that he did not remember the events Menz described. "I take thousands of photos at the state fair surrounded by hundreds of people, and I certainly don't remember taking this picture," he said. "I feel badly that Ms. Menz came away from our interaction feeling disrespected." Read the full report at CNN.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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