According to Democratic Underground poster groundloop, country music artist Mark Wills (during a 2006 USO performance in Iraq) "was playing a song when she [Tweeden] started rubbing her butt on him, looks like he was trying to gently push her away. She moved on, but grabbed his ass as she walked away" (comment #83 in the thread).
This widely disseminated picture of Wills being groped by Tweeden (unwelcomed ass grab) was surprisingly commented on by predator-in-chief Trump. The predisent implies that Tweeden goes on to grab Willis by his junk, perhaps slipping her hand down his pants first? At least he wonders if that might be what happened (or, so this tweet implies to me, at least).
But I think it unlikely that Tweeden's assault of Wills went any further, as I think this is something we would have heard about. Just as I think it's as unlikely that Al Franken did anything other than mime groping Tweeden's boobs while she slept. You'd have to ask Mark Wills if he felt violated, though. We already know that Tweeden felt violated by Franken's actions (kissing her in a rehearsal for a skit and posing for a picture in which he pretends to grab her breasts as she sleeps).
For the record, while the picture is real, the tweet by the hypocrite-in-chief was photoshopped by me. "Tweedenstien" was actually "Frankenstien" (which should be "Frankenstein"). And Trump, the sexual predator who admitted on tape that he grabs (or has grabbed) women by their privates, wondered if Al Franken further groped Tweeden after the first picture was snapped.
Over on Democratic Underground commenters are theorizing that Franken called for an investigation into his actions because he can't disclose all the facts without looking bad. Those facts being the fact that everyone involved in the tour was engaging in sexually suggestive behavior.
Or Tweeden was, at least. As per another commenter, Tweeden (during an earlier 2005 USO tour), "introduces Robin Williams, humps him, then he pretends to zip up his pants after. It's just the nature of these shows for the troops, they get rowdy" (comment #8 in the thread by BevMarie).
Now, I'm absolutely not saying that (if Tweeden's description of the kiss is what really happened) that gave license to Franken to unexpectedly stick his tongue in her mouth (gross) when the pretense was to rehearse a pretend/stage kiss. Franken apologized, as he should have. And he should have been able to figure out that the picture might not be a good idea. Because it wasn't funny and could come back to haunt him at a latter date (as we know it has).
But I think there are some questions to be answered here. Like (as Shaw Kenawe of Progressive Eruptions noted) "political operative Roger Stone knew about the Weeden accusation and tweeted about it before it became public". Leeann Tweeden is a Conservative Trump supporter who has appeared on Sean Hannity's program.
Additionally, as twitter-er Puesto Loco points out, in the picture of Franken "groping" a sleeping Tweeden's breasts, she is seated in military "jump seats" and military planes that transport civilians have regular seats for such passengers. Puesto Loco's conjecture is that the photo is a joke that Tweeden was in on (she posed for the picture and wasn't sleeping).
Now, you'd think that Franken, if Tweeden had posed for that picture, would have said so. Or maybe he thought "a picture is worth a thousand words", nobody would believe him, and decided that he'd call for an investigation in which the truth would come out. I have no idea, although I'm inclined to believe that Tweeden is recounting the events as she remembers them.
As least as far as the unwanted kiss is concerned. That picture, while she might find it humiliating (and to humiliate her and show his dominance might be why he mugged for it), there clearly was no "groping". As Conservative blogger Silverfiddle points out on FreeThinke's blog "you cannot feel a woman's boobs through kevlar body armor. You'll just have to trust me on that one".
Although the trumpy Silverfiddle goes on to say (in a later comment) that "Al Franken calling for himself to be investigated by the senate ethics committee is a pander. It's a scared man [offering an] apology so he can hold on to his power". A comment to which my response would be "bullshit". But I might be wrong. Either Franken knows (or hopes) the truth will exonerate/allow him to hold on to his Senate seat and/or contriteness will. Certainly running for a Senate seat is a lot of work and he doesn't want to see that flushed away.
SNL alum Jane Curtin said "If he did that, that's really stupid, but I have never seen him in a situation where he has been sexually aggressive with anybody". Larine Newman tweeted in support of Franken, one tweet pointing out that "former female staffers of Franken... issued a statement in support of the senator that noted he treated us with the utmost respect" (WaPo article says "the statement is co-signed by eight former [female] Franken staffers who have worked for him since he was elected to the Senate in 2008").
My opinion thus far is that Franken absolutely should not resign. Certainly when the Republicans just sent a serial sexual assaulter with more than a dozen accusers to the White House AND when it looks like the Republican voters of Alabama are going to send a dater and assaulter of underage girls to the Senate.
Surely when Franken himself has said there should be an Ethics Committee investigation into his digressions and who knows how that might turn out (as per my commentary above). I say this knowing that a 2nd accuser has come forward, btw. Some woman who says Franken grabbed her buttocks in 2010 when she posed for a picture with him (taken by her husband). Lindsay Menz, a Trump voter (as per the NYP) "wasn't sure if she voted for Franken in Minnesota". Yeahhh... she doesn't remember if she voted for Franken and then for Trump.
Franken says he doesn't remember. Grabbing the butt of a constituent, that is. Maybe she's just mistaken? I say this as a Franken fan. Scratch that, make that a SUPER fan. I'd watched him on SNL, read his books and listened to his Air America radio program prior to him being elected to the Senate. Perhaps it's a conspiracy concocted by the Right to turn the #metoo movement against the Left. That is surely not outside the realm of whats possible.
Roger Stone, the "dandified dirty trickster" (as per Vanity Fair), is about to have HIS time in the barrel. Although it is in regards to his time with the Trump campaign and what he knows about Russia collusion and being questioned by the House Intelligence committee. How he knew ahead of time that Leeann Tweeden was going to "tell her story" about Franken likely won't come up.
Gloria Allred representing Roy Moore accuser Beverly Young Nelson is enough to convince trumpanzees Freethinke and Lisa of WYD (with 100% certainty) that the GOP Alabama Senate candidate is being framed. Silverfiddle (whose quoted comment on Franken I agreed with) writes that "Roy Moore got rolled by a well-planned attack" (it was just "creepy" that Moore dated teens and that he doesn't consider any of them victims).
So, Roger Stone being involved (info shared by Stone-associated and now suspended twitter account Enter the Stone Zone), as well as Tweeden's association with slimebag Trump sycophant Sean Hannity (and the other woman being a Trump voter), does give me PAUSE. I'm not saying I know AT ALL that this is a conspiracy against Franken, but I think it warrants looking into. And, yeah, I'm a Democrat who'd have voted for Franken if I live in MN, so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
Roy Moore (a hate-filled "good Christian man" who has been twice removed from the AL Supreme Court and is supportive of laws to make homosexuality illegal) is obviously guilty, what with his multiple accusers (accusing him of a LOT worse, btw).
(Image: Tweeden and Franken kissing on stage during the performance of his skit. Note that Tweeden has her arm around Franken's neck. She is not turning her head, or placing her hand over her mouth to avoid the kiss as she says was her plan. Does this pic exonerate Franken re her rehersal kiss story?).
Youtube Videos
USO Show 2006 Part One, Camp Phoenix Afghanistan (12:41) Leeann Tweeden rubs her butt against the leg of Mark Willis (5:50). Now that I watch the video I'm thinking Mark Wills probably wouldn't describe it as a "sexual assault". But you can judge for yourself. This video proves, contrary to what I write above, that Tweeden does not next grab Wills by his ding-a-ling.
Leeann Tweeden republican evidence of lies revealed! (3:26) This is a video that says Leeann Tweeden's body language says she is lying about Al Franken. While I don't place much stock in novice body language analysis, Lisa of WYD put up a photo on her blog that, according to her, proves that when Obama cried re the Sandy Hook shootings he was faking it because he's a psychopath. And his body language gave him away. But behavior analyst Lillian Glass says her quote "when people cry genuine tears they cry with both eyes, and so tend to wipe both eyes at once" being applied to this meme is "unequivocally false" (pic is of Obama wiping one eye. See SWTD #370).
Melanie Morgan: Al Franken harassed me after TV appearance (11:13) Laura Ingraham covers Tweeden revelations, interviews Melanie Morgan (2:59) who says Al Franken "stalked and harassed her" and is "not surprised at all" by the Tweeden allegations. Brian Maloney of MediaEqualizer says he warned that Dems would be sorry that they brought him forward as a political candidate. "So much of what he's done hasn't even been mentioned today". Laura and guests laugh at predisent's "where does his hands go" tweet. Laura calls it "humorous commentary", totally ignoring the fact that Trump himself has over a dozen accusers.
SWTD #394
