The irony...

Former Senator Al Franken says he regrets resigning from office over sexual misconduct allegations

Grace Panetta

For Senator Al Franken told the New Yorker's Jane Mayer, "Oh, yeah. Absolutely," when asked if he wished he had stayed in the Senate long enough for the allegations to be thoroughly investigated in the Senate Ethics Committee.

In promoting the piece on Twitter, Mayer argued that Franken had been "railroaded" and "almost NOTHING his main accuser said checks out," referring to conservative talk-show host and model Leann Tweeden.

In December of 2017, a photo emerged of Franken – who worked as a comedian before being elected to the Senate — jokingly pretend to grab Tweeden's breasts while she was asleep on a 2006 USO tour.

The New Yorker spoke to multiple other people who traveled on that specific USO tour and said the photo was a direct reference to a skit Franken and Tweeden performed — and that Tweeden didn't complain about his behavior at the time.