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Eric Massa envolved in a fast-growing sex scandal
USINFO | 2013-08-30 13:43
A week after announcing he was retiring from Congress for health reasons, New York Democrat Eric Massa finds himself in the midst of a fast-growing sex scandal involving allegations that he had improper physical contact with several men who worked for him — including at least one intern.
In a widely anticipated interview on Glenn Beck’s Fox News show Tuesday night, Massa acknowledged that he had “groped” and “tickled” a male staffer at the congressman’s 50th birthday party.
He also said he’d used rough language when he shouldn’t have and that he had jokingly told a male staffer at a wedding reception that he’d rather have sex with him than with one of the bridesmaids.
But, Massa told Beck, “I did nothing sexual.”
He said he had done “things that were wrong,” but he suggested that his only real sin — aside from “salty” talk — was that he had allowed himself to become too familiar with his staff.
And he said his political enemies were twisting his high jinks into something sinister to smear his name and drive him out of Congress.
Massa officially resigned from Congress Tuesday, and the saga of political ruination captivated Capitol Hill on an otherwise quiet day as lawmakers, aides and journalists watched it all unfold with a mix of horror, fascination and, in some cases, pity.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican and fellow member with Massa of the House’s freshman class, said earlier in the day that he would be glued to the television set for Massa’s interview with Beck.
“It’s like the WWF,” Chaffetz said, comparing the showstopping nature of Massa’s bizarre story with a professional wrestling event. “It’s political theater, great drama.”
The House ethics committee was apprised last month of allegations that Massa had groped at least three men who worked for him and had inappropriate physical contact with at least one intern, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Massa has lived with as many as five aides in a Capitol Hill townhouse, and he told the local Evening Tribune last October that the living arrangement stemmed from his refusal to pay junior staffers more than his average college-educated constituent earns. It is not clear whether any of the alleged incidents may have occurred at the townhouse or with staffers who shared quarters with their boss.
A source familiar with the matter said one incident is alleged to have occurred when Massa and an aide traveled to San Francisco together for a political fundraiser.
Massa announced last Wednesday that he was resigning because of health issues. But after POLITICO broke the news of sexual harassment allegations before the House ethics committee, Massa offered a different story: He said House Democratic leaders were pushing him out of office because he opposed the Democratic health care bill.
