Resignation Process Not Yet Complete for Weiner
Updated: 9:47 p.m.
House Democrats just can’t seem to put to rest the debacle that has been Rep. Anthony Weiner’s fall from grace.
Although the New York Democrat announced Thursday that he would resign from the chamber and wrote a letter Monday that should have made it effective at midnight Tuesday, Weiner’s departure from the House still isn’t official.
Technically, Weiner is no longer a Member of the House; he cannot vote and is no longer being paid as a Member of Congress. But until his letter is read on the chamber floor, his resignation hasn’t been officially recognized by the House. And the reading won’t happen until Thursday, Democratic and Republican aides said Wednesday. If they’re lucky.
Weiner’s decision to delay the effective date of his resignation confounded Democrats and Republicans, and the circumstances surrounding the latest hang-up remain unclear. Aides in both parties said it appeared that Weiner’s staff did not submit the proper paperwork to leadership to process the resignation. But one aide noted that a lack of complete paperwork did not stop the process from moving forward for other resignations, such as Rep. Chris Lee’s. Like his colleague, the New York Republican stepped down after it was revealed that he had sent a risqué photo to a woman on the Internet.
Weiner’s protracted resignation is taking a path similar to the scandal that drove him from public office and made him the butt of late-night talk show jokes. The revelation of the seven-term lawmaker’s online dalliances with at least six women was dragged out over three weeks, forcing Democrats off-message and embarrassing Weiner, his family and colleagues.