Wu Put This In My Mouth?: Democratic Congressman Accused of "Unwanted Sexual Encounter" With Teenaged Daughter of... Longtime Friend

His route to redemption, I think, consists of claiming he had a nervous breakdown or something last Thanksgiving when this allegedly happened. Eventually I guess he'll pronounce himself all better now.

The unidentified teenager and her family did not file any criminal complaint over the incident, which apparently took place sometime around last Thanksgiving.

...

“This is very serious, and I have absolutely no desire to bring unwanted publicity, attention or stress to a young woman and her family,” Wu said.

And, as usual, I show my compassion for this poor young girl by refusing to speak further about it.

Didn't Weiner pull that? Yes he did.

The Oregonian reported the person involved graduated from high school in 2010 but did not mention her age. She and her family declined to speak to the newspaper.

Wu, who is being treated for an unspecified mental health condition, is separated from his wife Michelle and the couple reportedly is seeking a divorce. They have two children.

He has a history of oddness, including an old charge of sexual assault on a girlfriend back in his college days. But more recently was this:

n February 2011, Willamette Week[10] and later The Oregonian reported that in the runup to the November 2010 election, Wu began behaving erratically and that staffers "demanded he enter a hospital for psychiatric treatment."[11] The erratic behavior that triggered the staff's departure was reported to be no single incident but rather a pattern of behavior that included Wu's emailing his staff photos of himself in a tiger suit.[12]

Here's that picture:

You could just blow this off as a silly joke, but those closest to him interpreted it as deranged behavior, and they'd have the proper context to make that call.

After Wu won re-election, at least six of his staffers left, including his longtime chief of staff and his communications director.[13] In a statement, Wu acknowledged he has sought "professional medical care" and attributed the problems to the stress of being a single father, the death of his father, and his political campaign.[11] The Oregonian has reported that a campaign contributor gave Wu a prescription painkiller, identified by the staffer present as oxycodone to help alleviate an episode of severe neck pain.[14] Willamette Week quoted the donor as saying the pills were ibuprofen.[15] Wu has admitted taking the painkiller, saying that it was an act of bad judgment, but claiming that he does not know what it was.[16]

I remember in the run-up to 2010, a commenter was pushing the race in Oregon's first district (Wu's), suggesting we could get this guy out of office.

Well, that challenged failed. Who knows what happens next, though. He represents Portland -- not exactly fertile ground for a Republican candidate -- but has already picked up a Democratic challenger for the upcoming primary. I imagine he'll resign before then.

posted by Ace at 08:27 PM

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