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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) may have suggested Wednesday that disgraced former Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) was joking when he sexually assaulted multiple women.
The Washington Post’s James Hohmann asked Sanders if it was a mistake for Senate Democrats to force Franken to resign from the Senate following allegations of sexual assault. Franken was forced to resign from the Senate last year after multiple women came forward and accused the former comedian of groping or trying to kiss them.
“Al is a friend of mine, and we miss him very, very much,” Sanders said. “I guess what the issue is about is we have got to be aggressive in making certain that women, when they are on the job, feel safe and comfortable on the job.”
“On the other hand, if somebody you know says a dumb joke, you know, that has to be put in an overall context,” Sanders said.
Franken initially defended his actions as a joke, saying a photo of him groping Leeann Tweeden during an overseas USO tour in 2006, was “intended to be funny.”