Pennsylvania Rep. Pat Meehan Resigns From Congress Amid Scandal

UNITED STATES - SEPTEMBER 20: Rep. Patrick Meehan, R-Pa., leaves the House the Republican Conference meeting at the Capitol Hill Club on Thursday, Sept. 20, 2012. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
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Already embroiled in a sexual harassment scandal that forced him to withdraw from a reelection bid, Rep. Pat Meehan (R-PA) abruptly announced his resignation Friday.

“While I do believe I would be exonerated of any wrongdoing, I also did not want to put my staff through the rigors of an Ethics Committee investigation and believed it was best for them to have a head start on new employment rather than being caught up in an inquiry,” he said in a statement. “And since I have chosen to resign, the inquiry will not become a burden to taxpayers and committee staff.”

“I recognize that there are constituents who are disappointed in the manner in which I handled the situation that lead to my decision not to seek reelection and wish I had done better by them,” he added.

Meehan was already under fire for reportedly using $39,000 of taxpayer dollars to settle sexual harassment claims from a former aide. He promised to pay back the money, though he refers to it as “severance,” denying any wrongdoing.

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Notable Replies

  1. I also did not want to put my staff through the rigors of an Ethics Committee investigation

    (kisses fingers)

    The Party of Trump, distilled.

  2. Crooked is as crooked does…

    Any chance of flipping this one?

  3. Are similar scandals happening to Democrats and just not being reported, or is the party of family values seeking to radically redefine “family”…and “values”…?

  4. Yeah, the Dems exorcised one of their leading candidates for 2020…

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