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Army veteran accuses Franken of groping her during USO tour
The Hill ^
| 11/30/17
| Rebecca Savransky
Posted on 11/30/2017 5:49:24 AM PST by markomalley
An Army veteran is accusing Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) of inappropriately touching her during a USO tour in 2003 while she was deployed in Kuwait.
Stephanie Kemplin told CNN that Franken cupped her breast while she was taking a photo with him.
She told the network she met Franken when he was visiting troops on a USO tour and wanted to take a photo with him.
"When he put his arm around me, he groped my right breast. He kept his hand all the way over on my breast," Kemplin said.
"I've never had a man put their arm around me and then cup my breast. So he was holding my breast on the side."
She said she remembers "clenching up."
"And I remember thinking -- is he going to move his hand? Was it an accident? Was he going to move his hand? He never moved his hand," she said.
"It was long enough that he should have known if it was an accident. I'm very confident saying that."
Kemplin said she moved her body before the photo was taken.
A spokesperson for Franken said in a statement that the Minnesota Democrat takes "thousands of photos and has met tens of thousands of people."
"He has never intentionally engaged in this kind of conduct," the spokesperson said. "He remains fully committed to cooperating with the ethics investigation."
Franken has been accused by multiple women of sexual misconduct.
A Los Angeles broadcaster earlier this month said Franken kissed and groped her without her consent during a USO tour. Other women have come forward to allege Franken touched them inappropriately during photos.
Earlier this week, Franken said he would work to regain people's trust following the allegations, adding "this will not happen again going forward."
I know Im going to have to be much more conscious in these circumstances, much more careful, much more sensitive, and that this will not happen again going forward, Franken told dozens of reporters outside of his Capitol Hill office.
Again, its going to take a long time for me to regain peoples trust, but I hope that starting work today that I can start to do that, he added.
TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Extended News; Government
KEYWORDS: creepydemocrats; democratpredators; democratwaronwomen; franken; leftistmolesters; metoo; perverts; uso
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To: markomalley; Romulus; John O; miss marmelstein
As I explained to miss marmelstein above (#48), I was not excusing Franken's (or any other adult's) groping someone who isn't in such a situation by choice.
I was talking about a couple of teenagers in a movie theater, long long ago (when I was a teenager), who are there together by choice, and where there's often some expectation of light-hearted "fooling around".
And also some expectation that if it isn't appreciated, getting swatted.
Sheesh. Tough crowd.
61
posted on
11/30/2017 7:58:41 AM PST
by
dayglored
("Listen. Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.")
To: markomalley
A spokesperson for Franken said in a statement that the Minnesota Democrat takes "thousands of photos and has met tens of thousands of people."And, apparently, has also enjoyed fondling a commensurate number of breasts...
62
posted on
11/30/2017 7:59:19 AM PST
by
DJ Frisat
(Hey, what happened to my clever tag line?!)
To: markomalley
>
I would HOPE that the answer in my rephrased question would be a bit different than the original question you asked. Of course. You and a few others misunderstood the intent of my comment. Sorry I wasn't more clear.
63
posted on
11/30/2017 8:00:51 AM PST
by
dayglored
("Listen. Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.")
To: dsc
And she could say I don’t care if he is a Senator, he is not grabbing m e.
64
posted on
11/30/2017 8:01:51 AM PST
by
yldstrk
(My heroes have always been cowboys)
To: dayglored
65
posted on
11/30/2017 8:04:21 AM PST
by
markomalley
(Nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good -- Leo XIII)
To: yldstrk
I don’t recall: are you a veteran?
66
posted on
11/30/2017 8:05:41 AM PST
by
dsc
(Any attempt to move a government to the left is a crime against humanity.)
To: Celtic Conservative
I don’t understand when or why women in general stopped doing that. I say women in general because I would likely still do that or at least say something to them loud enough for everyone to hear. Supposedly independent feminist women have just let men grope them without a word? Seems so but doesn’t make sense to me.
I understand why a female soldier would be in a bad spot with a senator. That is a situation where she would have to be careful. So many others though I just want to say- Why did you not loudly tell them not to touch you or slap them or something?
I have never in my life had a man think he could just put his hands on me. Never had it happen and worked in jobs dominated by men; agriculture, construction, with federal law enforcement officers- in the offices- even the open and at job sites. I even worked in bars as a second job when I was young. Never had a man think he could get away with harassing me. I do not really know why, maybe I seem mean. I had plenty of men flirt with me, and ask me for dates though they soon found I did not like that at work either.
67
posted on
11/30/2017 8:22:47 AM PST
by
Tammy8
(Please be a regular supporter of Free Republic !)
To: miss marmelstein
That is a disgrace, he does need to go.
68
posted on
11/30/2017 8:23:30 AM PST
by
Tammy8
(Please be a regular supporter of Free Republic !)
To: MomwithHope
No longer have Windows Movie Maker to do songs.
69
posted on
11/30/2017 8:40:58 AM PST
by
doug from upland
(Why the hell isn't Hillary Rodham Clinton in prison yet?)
To: doug from upland
Bummer! I am not creative enough.
70
posted on
11/30/2017 9:01:27 AM PST
by
MomwithHope
(Law and Order and that includes Natural.)
To: markomalley
Has S.E. Cupp commented on this yet?
71
posted on
11/30/2017 9:04:07 AM PST
by
Kickass Conservative
( Democracy, two Wolves and one Sheep deciding what's for Dinner.)
To: markomalley
Take a look at Al Franken’s wife and see maybe why he does this crap.
She is not an attractive woman.
Google her. Al Franken’s wife and see for yourself.
To: hal ogen
We have two major cultural imperatives that make this:
1 - we don’t like to make a scene
2 - we deify celebrities as the best of us
Those add up to make it so that if she fought back she’d immediately be the bad guy (made a scene) and people wouldn’t believe her (but Al’s famous).
73
posted on
11/30/2017 9:55:44 AM PST
by
discostu
(let's do another bad one, cause I like it when the blood drains from Dave's face.)
To: dsc
I am. I was a JAG Officer. Female.
74
posted on
11/30/2017 10:24:57 AM PST
by
yldstrk
(My heroes have always been cowboys)
To: yldstrk
When I was in, for a female in that position, the choice was likely between putting up with a grope, or career suicide.
75
posted on
11/30/2017 10:30:26 AM PST
by
dsc
(Any attempt to move a government to the left is a crime against humanity.)
To: Tammy8
To: dsc
Not me. No one dared mess with me.
77
posted on
11/30/2017 11:34:08 AM PST
by
yldstrk
(My heroes have always been cowboys)
To: miss marmelstein
Seems to me that after tailhook it's gone entirely the other way. I am not in the military but I work for them and with them extensively and there is no tolerance for anything even remotely resembling sexual harassment in the groups I've seen. If a woman decked a man (any man) for touching her he'd be in the brig.
78
posted on
11/30/2017 1:25:22 PM PST
by
John O
(God Save America (Please))
To: GailA
accuser #6 just showed up
79
posted on
11/30/2017 1:54:25 PM PST
by
GailA
(Ret. SCPO wife: suck it up buttercups it's President Donald Trump!)
To: markomalley
His breast cupping resulted in a photo. he was counting coup
My guess is there are hundreds of such photos
80
posted on
11/30/2017 1:56:55 PM PST
by
Thibodeaux
(whites seem to actually be supreme)
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