WEINER: I'M NOT QUITTING; WIFE PHOTOGRAPHED
Despite the Democratic drumbeat of doom, embattled Rep. Anthony Weiner said Thursday that he has no plans to resign from office. In an interview, he told a New York Post reporter he is looking forward to getting back to his duties. "I'm going to get back to work as best I can," he said. Asked about news Wednesday that his wife, Huma Abedin, is pregnant, Weiner refused to say whether the baby was a boy or girl but said of Abedin, “She's bearing up well and she's back at work and she's doing a great job.” Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, was photographed in Abu Dhabi meeting with the emirate’s crown prince.
DEMS MOUNT CAMPAIGN AGAINST WEINER
The House Democratic leadership has launched an “orchestrated effort” to force Rep. Anthony Weiner to resign, according to The New York Times. Nancy Pelosi, says the Times, is “especially furious” and has concluded that Weiner is “too much of a problem” as she sets her eyes on retaking the House in 2012. Rep. Allyson Y. Schwartz of Pennsylvania, who is leading the Democrats’ 2012 recruitment efforts, called on Weiner to resign Wednesday. New York Democrats could also attempt to eliminate Weiner’s congressional district.
In a statement, Schwartz called Weiner’s behavior offensive and said that having the respect of one’s constituents is fundamental for a member of Congress. Though Schwartz was the first to make it public, more House Democrats piled on later, including Mike Ross of Arkansas, Michael H. Michaud of Maine, Niki Tsongas of Massachusetts, Larry Kissell of North Carolina and Joe Donnelly of Indiana, the Times reported.
WEINER'S WIFE IS PREGNANT: REPORT
Mazel tov! Huma Abedin, the wife of Rep. Anthony Weiner, is pregnant, according to several reports. Abedin, a longtime aide to Hillary Clinton, is in the early stages of pregnancy, the report says. She's 35 years old. The couple has reportedly disclosed the news to their friends and family, but not publicly. It will be their first child after marrying just 11 months ago. Weiner, of course, is embroiled in scandal for sending lewd photos on Twitter and engaging in "inappropriate" online conversations with six women over the last two years.
WHITE HOUSE: NO COMMENT ON WEINER
President Obama won’t be calling for him to resign any time soon. The bad news? They won’t be defending him, either. At Wednesday’s White House briefing, said only, “We have no comment on that story.” But a high-profile Democrat close to Obama isn’t holding his fire. Tim Kaine, a Senate candidate in Virginia and head of the Democratic National Committee until May, said on Wednesday that Weiner should step down, explaining, “Lying is unforgivable.” Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas, another Democrat, also called for his resignation.
CLINTONS ‘DEEPLY UNHAPPY’ ABOUT WEINERGATE
Bill and Hillary Clinton are “deeply unhappy” with Anthony Weiner, friends tell The New York Times. Weiner’s wife Huma Abedin is a longtime top aide to Hillary Clinton, and Bill Clinton officiated at the couple’s 2010 wedding. But Weiner’s Twitter scandal has cast unwanted light on Abedin, which has displeased them. Neither Clinton has weighed in publicly, but a number of other high-profile Democrats—including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid—have blasted the New York congressman.
EXPLICIT ALLEGED WEINER PHOTO LEAKS
Andrew Breitbart said he was holding on to an explicit photo of Rep. Anthony Weiner as an “insurance policy” against reprisals, but apparently he’s been showing it around: Anthony Cumia, co-host of the Opie and Anthony Show, has tweeted a photo of a cell phone displaying the XXX photo of a man’s penis that he says is Weiner. (The man’s face, however, is not visible in the photo.) Cumia says the cell phone containing the image belongs to Breitbart, who showed it to them while doing a spot on their show.
TWITTER GROUPS WARNED WEINER’S FEMALE FOLLOWERS
When Rep. Anthony Weiner lied about his Twitter scandal and said his account had been hacked, it seemed credible at first in part because a group of conservative activists had been warning, for weeks, of a coming scandal. It turns out they were just close readers of his feed. (It was one of these activists, @PatriotUSA76, who saw the explicit photo in Weiner’s feed.) They called themselves #bornfreecrew and warned young women to avoid the congressman. On several occasions, Weiner dropped contact with women after #bornfreecrew had flagged it, suggesting he was aware of their campaign against him.
NEVADA WOMAN REVEALS RAUNCHY MESSAGES
A Nevada woman has revealed a string of raunchy messages that she claims came from Rep. Anthony Weiner. In the messages, Lisa Weiss, a 40-year-old blackjack dealer, says Weiner boasted about his penis size, asked her to make “a night plan for us” during one of his visits, and called her “my favorite dirty facebooker.” Weiner has admitted to sending a lewd picture over Twitter and chatting online with about six women, though these messages have not been confirmed by him or his camp.
WATCH: WEINER’S CONFESSION