Updated 12:44 p.m
Scandal-plagued Rep. David Wu, D-Ore., announced Tuesday he is resigning in the wake of a report that he had an unwanted sexual encounter with a teenage girl.
"It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be a United States Congressman. Rare is the nation in which an immigrant child can become a national political figure. I thank God and my parents for the privilege of being an American," Wu said in a statement.
Scandal-plagued Rep. David Wu, D-Ore., announced Tuesday he is resigning in the wake of a report that he had an unwanted sexual encounter with a teenage girl.
"It has been the greatest privilege of my life to be a United States Congressman. Rare is the nation in which an immigrant child can become a national political figure. I thank God and my parents for the privilege of being an American," Wu said in a statement.
"Now, however, the time has come to hand on the privilege of high office. I cannot care for my family the way I wish while serving in Congress and fighting these very serious allegations.
But Wu added he will remain in office through the ongoing debt limit negotiations.
"The wellbeing of my children must come before anything else. With great sadness, I therefore intend to resign effective upon the resolution of the debt-ceiling crisis," said Wu. "This is the right decision for my family, the institution of the House, and my colleagues. It is also the only correct decision to avoid any distraction from the important work at hand in Washington.
Wu's announcement comes after he spent the weekend insisting he would not step down but conceding he wouldn't run for reelection in 2012. However, Democratic leaders had stepped up pressure on the congressman to resign, hoping to avoid another embarrassing sex scandal.
Wu, first elected in 1998, was the first Chinese-American to serve in the House.
Wu's resignation will now trigger the fifth special election this year -the third brought about by a sex scandal. Under Oregon law, Democratic Gov. John Kitzhaber has the authority to set the date of the contest. If he sets a date more than 80 days after Wu's resignation, there will be both a regular open primary and general, meaning nominees won't be chosen by party committees.
Since Wu was already considered highly vulnerable, several Democratic candidates were already mounting active campaigns to unseat him. Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian was the first to announce, and he has already raised $195,000 for his bid. State Rep.Brad Witt is also running, and state Sen. Suzanne Bonamici had also shown interest in a campaign. Another Democratic possibility is former state Rep. Greg Macpherson. Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel called Wu's resignation "the right decision" and said he was confident Democrats would hold onto the the seat in a special election. "A Democrat has held this seat in Congress since 1975, Senator John Kerry won this district in 2004 and President Obama won this district with 63 percent in 2008," Israel said in a statement. "We are confident that a Democrat will continue to represent the families in this overwhelmingly Democratic district and fight against Republicans' agenda to end Medicare and harm our economy." National Republicans aren't optimistic about capturing the Democratic-leaning seat. 2010 nominee Rob Cornilles could consider another run, and businessman Rob Miller has also been mentioned as a possible candidate, but if Cornilles does decide to run, given his name recognition in the state and the strong organization he put together last time, he would likely be the frontrunner for the nomination. Wu's departure brings to a close a long series of bizarre incidents that began last fall during the congressman's reelection campaign. In one incident, Wu sent to his staffers a photo of himself in a Halloween tiger costume. His behavior became so erratic that his aides began to avoid scheduling public appearances with him. When news of his erratic behavior surfaced earlier this year, Wu said his actions were a result of extreme stress following his divorce, and that he'd also begun taking prescription painkillers from a campaign donor. He said he was seeking treatment for mental illness, but underscored that he would run for reelection again, and even posted strong fundraising numbers last quarter. But the report from the Oregonian on Friday was the most serious accusation yet - that over Thanksgiving last year, Wu had an "aggressive, unwanted sexual encounter" with the young girl. After the woman called his office distraught, Wu told his senior aides the encounter was consensual. It wasn't the first time Wu had been accused of unwanted sexual advances. In 2004, The Oregonian reported that Wu had been disciplined in 1976 when he was a student at Stanford University for trying to force an ex-girlfriend to have sex with him. -- Jim O'Sullivan contributed to this post
http://www.nationaljournal.com/blogs/hotlineoncall/2011/07/wu-resigning-from-congress-26
But Wu added he will remain in office through the ongoing debt limit negotiations.
"The wellbeing of my children must come before anything else. With great sadness, I therefore intend to resign effective upon the resolution of the debt-ceiling crisis," said Wu. "This is the right decision for my family, the institution of the House, and my colleagues. It is also the only correct decision to avoid any distraction from the important work at hand in Washington.
Wu's announcement comes after he spent the weekend insisting he would not step down but conceding he wouldn't run for reelection in 2012. However, Democratic leaders had stepped up pressure on the congressman to resign, hoping to avoid another embarrassing sex scandal.
Wu, first elected in 1998, was the first Chinese-American to serve in the House.
Wu's resignation will now trigger the fifth special election this year -the third brought about by a sex scandal. Under Oregon law, Democratic Gov. John Kitzhaber has the authority to set the date of the contest. If he sets a date more than 80 days after Wu's resignation, there will be both a regular open primary and general, meaning nominees won't be chosen by party committees.
Since Wu was already considered highly vulnerable, several Democratic candidates were already mounting active campaigns to unseat him. Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian was the first to announce, and he has already raised $195,000 for his bid. State Rep.Brad Witt is also running, and state Sen. Suzanne Bonamici had also shown interest in a campaign. Another Democratic possibility is former state Rep. Greg Macpherson. Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel called Wu's resignation "the right decision" and said he was confident Democrats would hold onto the the seat in a special election. "A Democrat has held this seat in Congress since 1975, Senator John Kerry won this district in 2004 and President Obama won this district with 63 percent in 2008," Israel said in a statement. "We are confident that a Democrat will continue to represent the families in this overwhelmingly Democratic district and fight against Republicans' agenda to end Medicare and harm our economy." National Republicans aren't optimistic about capturing the Democratic-leaning seat. 2010 nominee Rob Cornilles could consider another run, and businessman Rob Miller has also been mentioned as a possible candidate, but if Cornilles does decide to run, given his name recognition in the state and the strong organization he put together last time, he would likely be the frontrunner for the nomination. Wu's departure brings to a close a long series of bizarre incidents that began last fall during the congressman's reelection campaign. In one incident, Wu sent to his staffers a photo of himself in a Halloween tiger costume. His behavior became so erratic that his aides began to avoid scheduling public appearances with him. When news of his erratic behavior surfaced earlier this year, Wu said his actions were a result of extreme stress following his divorce, and that he'd also begun taking prescription painkillers from a campaign donor. He said he was seeking treatment for mental illness, but underscored that he would run for reelection again, and even posted strong fundraising numbers last quarter. But the report from the Oregonian on Friday was the most serious accusation yet - that over Thanksgiving last year, Wu had an "aggressive, unwanted sexual encounter" with the young girl. After the woman called his office distraught, Wu told his senior aides the encounter was consensual. It wasn't the first time Wu had been accused of unwanted sexual advances. In 2004, The Oregonian reported that Wu had been disciplined in 1976 when he was a student at Stanford University for trying to force an ex-girlfriend to have sex with him. -- Jim O'Sullivan contributed to this post
http://www.nationaljournal.com/blogs/hotlineoncall/2011/07/wu-resigning-from-congress-26