Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) on Thursday said both Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) and Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) should resign in order for Congress to set an example in its response to sexual misconduct allegations.
“These are credible allegations, and I believe these women. Congress should set the example for all industries and be a safe place for women to work,” Ryan tweeted.
Several lawmakers, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Ohio), on Thursday called for Conyers to resign following reports of multiple women who described Conyers making unwanted sexual advances.
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Congress has also faced criticism for slowness in responding to such allegations, compared to other industries where high-profile men have almost immediately lost their jobs when confronted with sexual misconduct allegations over the past few weeks.
Conyers has denied allegations against him but acknowledged he previously settled a wrongful termination case to avoid litigation. Conyers’s lawyer said the congressman has no plans to step down.
Conyers, 88, was taken to the hospital Wednesday night due to stress.
Multiple women have separately accused Franken of groping them during photo ops. Radio broadcaster Leeann Tweeden said earlier this month that Franken kissed her without consent during a 2006 USO tour, and provided photographic evidence of Franken appearing to grope her while she was sleeping.
Franken has not indicated he will resign, and has not faced calls from his Democratic colleagues in the Senate to do so.
He returned to the Capitol on Monday and vowed “this will not happen again going forward.”
“Again, it’s going to take a long time for me to regain people’s trust, but I hope that starting work today that I can start to do that,” Franken told reporters on Monday outside his office.