Al Franken on resignation from Senate: ‘I deserved due process’

Al Franken made a rare television appearance on Conan almost two years after stepping down from the U.S. Senate. Franken was accused of sexual misconduct by several women in the Fall of 2017. Franken claimed he was pressured to resign from office without due process. Since the resignation, 8 of his fellow Democratic senators have apparently issued public apologies. “It was very gratifying,” said Franken, “To get a U.S. Senator to publicly admit, you know, he or she made a mistake, that's hard. And again, eight, you know, that's unusual.” Franken said he did not want to resign but without the support of his fellow Democratic senators he could not be an effective leader. “My committee work would be at risk,” said Franken, “My staff would be isolated. And I just couldn't serve the people of Minnesota.” While Franken maintained his innocence in the matter, he did admit that the accusations have had a significant impact on how he has handled himself since then. “I thought I must be doing something wrong,” said Franken, “Ever since I've been a lot more mindful in my interactions with pretty much everyone.”