Doug Jones

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Doug Jones: America should ‘move on’ from Trump sexual harassment allegations

Many were disappointed to hear Jones' statement.

 

Ana Valens

Internet Culture

Posted on Dec 18, 2017   Updated on May 22, 2021, 7:39 am CDT

Senator-elect Doug Jones (D-Alabama) may have won election over accused sexual harasser Roy Moore, but don’t expect him to take the fight over misconduct to the White House.

During CNN’s State of the Union over the weekend, host Jake Tapper asked Jones about his views on sexual harassment allegations made against President Donald Trump, after Sen. Corey Booker (D-N.J.) called on Trump to resign. There’s been a renewed focus on potential Trump misconduct, following Sen. Al Franken’s (D-Minn.) planned resignation over alleged sexual harassment. But Jones believes it’s time for Americans to “move on.”

“Those allegations were made before the election,” Jones told Tapper on CNN. “People had an opportunity to judge before that election. I think we need to move on and not get distracted by those issues, let’s get on with the real issues that are facing the people of this country right now.”

Jones also stressed that resignation shouldn’t be on the table, arguing that the “American people spoke” when electing Trump. Instead, he thinks Democrats should hold off on the issue for the time being.

“We’ll see how things go,” he told Tapper.

Of course, implying that sexual assault isn’t a “real issue” is deeply troubling, seeing how this year alone has exposed the ongoing sexual harassment in every field from hotel service to politics. The #MeToo movement has highlighted how sexual misconduct ends victims’ careers by creating predatory power dynamics, making many women (and men) feel unsafe in the workplace. Jones’ comments weren’t received well on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/hellokitty11277/status/942411243100524544

Jones beat Moore last week in a hotly contested race that gained national media attention after multiple women accused Moore of child sexual assault and misconduct. Jones’ win has since left many right-wing activists spiraling, especially after the president endorsed Moore for the Senate. But Democrats may have to do their own reevaluating to do on how to handle sexual harassment conversations.

H/T HuffPost

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*First Published: Dec 18, 2017, 12:31 pm CST