US Congressman Weiner quits after Twitter photo scandal
The Democrat said in a press conference in his district in New York City\'s borough of Brooklyn that \'the distraction that I have created\' had made it impossible for him to continue to represent his constituents.
Weiner, 46, apologized to his wife, as well as to voters and his colleagues in Congress.
During the four-minute statement, delivered at a community centre for senior citizens where he announced his first run for public office 20 years ago, he took no questions, though there were rude shouts including \'pervert,\' apparently from non-journalists in attendance.
Weiner got into hot water starting on May 27, when he apparently sent a photo of his crotch, wearing only underpants, to a woman through the online messaging website Twitter, but posted it publicly instead of privately. He quickly deleted the image, but when word of the posting emerged the next day, Weiner claimed that his Twitter account had been hacked.
On June 6, as revelations emerged of more women to whom he privately sent photos, Weiner admitted to sending the photo and lying about it. He admitted sending photos to several women and apologized to his wife, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, but denied any physical relationships with the women with whom he communicated online.
New York City\'s aggressive tabloids and other media continued to pursue the story with relish, and as more photos continued to emerge, Weiner\'s spokeswoman announced on Saturday that Weiner would seek \'treatment\' for his behaviour.
Embarassed by the revelations and concerned about the distraction it created for the party, top Democrats, including Nancy Pelosi, leader of the House minority, had started calling for Weiner to consider leaving office. President Barack Obama made a similar suggestion on Tuesday.
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