Eric Massa: Sexual Harassment Allegations Explained, Claims Administration Plotted Against Him For Health Care Vote

Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.), who plans to step down on Monday afternoon, made an appearance on a WKPQ radio show this weekend to explain the events leading up to his ongoing ethics probe and to accuse the Obama Administration of conspiring to remove him from power.

According to Massa, the ethics probe arose from an incident that took place at a raucous wedding party on New Years Eve.

"One of them looked at me and as they would do after, I don't know, 15 gin and tonics, and goodness only knows how many bottles of champagne, a staff member made an intonation to me that maybe I should be chasing after the bridesmaid and his points were clear and his words were far more colorful than that. And I grabbed the staff member sitting next to me and said, 'Well, what I really ought to be doing is fracking you.' And then [I] tossled the guy's hair and left, went to my room, because I knew the party was getting to a point where it wasn't right for me to be there. Now was that inappropriate of me? Absolutely. Am I guilty? Yes."

Massa also spoke about what he sees as connections between the timing of the disclosure of these sexual harassment allegations and his reluctance to vote yes on health care reform.

"Mine is now the deciding vote on the health care bill," Massa said, "and this administration and this House leadership have said, quote-unquote, they will stop at nothing to pass this health care bill. And now they've gotten rid of me and it will pass. You connect the dots."

Comments

[GalapagosTortoise]

09:21 PM on 03/09/2010

Isn't he saying that the other guy was acting as drunk as someone who'd had 15 gin and tonics? When he made this remark to him?

[carmazon]

04:20 PM on 03/09/2010

Did people seriously believe this guy resigned purely because he was caught making an off color comment at the end of a "raucous"wedding party? The right wing pundits jumped right into this fake story because it was just too tempting. Now they and he are forcing folks to reveal the entire ugly pattern of behavior,and the folks looking evil and/or foolish have only themselves to blame.

[Rooster Coburn]

03:57 PM on 03/09/2010

Massa with Beck on Fox News Channel at 5:00 P.M. Eastern time.

[connorin]

03:49 PM on 03/09/2010

Just so everyone is clear on this, you all realize he voted No before was because he felt the bill wasn't strong enough. You know...like how many of you feel.

[Carolab]

03:23 PM on 03/09/2010

Massa also blasted Majority Leader Steny Hoyer for publicly acknowledging the existence of the ethics allegation. And he revealed a profanity-laced phone call he claims he got from White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel following a vote on the cap-and-trade bill.

Massa said Sunday: "The future of the Democratic Party rests on passing this health care bill. They can get anyone to say anything about me concerning anything at all. ... I was set up for this from the very, very beginning."

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/03/massa_accuses_dem_leaders_of_orchestrating_ethics.php

http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2010/03/massa_implicate.php

He apologized to the staffer for his remarks in October, by the way. And says he didn't hear about the allegations until after he said he'd resign.

[MESGAIN26]

03:45 PM on 03/09/2010

lol massa is lying how do he explain other allegations During his Navy career, Eric Massa allegedly touched at least two men inappropriately and may have exhibited a pattern of putting himself in situations where he would see men naked – particularly younger and lower-ranked men.

[Carolab]

05:47 PM on 03/09/2010

"allegedly".

Per WHOM?

[MyTake]

07:37 PM on 03/09/2010

It goes much deeper than the HC/C&T votes or the staffer allegations.

Massa drove to Congress in a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. Zero Corporate Media play given.

Within months, Massa gave one of the finest presentations on the floor of Congress, 1 hr, that any Congress person has ever given.

That presentation was on the Hydrogen Economy and Hydrogen Fuel Cell electric vehicles and why the U.S. needs to transition to both immediately.

There are 6 YouTube video's on that presentation.

That presentation sent shock waves through Exxon.

Now you just have follow the linkages of the external organizations that control government. This explains Massa being hit from all sides in this controlled take down.

- Exxon and the CIA are linked via the Rockefeller/CIA linkage since its inception.
- The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and the CIA (All Dir's vetted by CFR)
- The CFR and the Obama Administration are linked (300 CFR appointed to the Administration)
- The CFR and the Corporate Media are linked (Media has CFR memberships).
- The CFR Corporate Memberships control Senate/Congress through coordinated lobbying.

Massa had to be put out of business because of the threat to Exxon. The CIA coordinated the take down. They have access to Massa's Navy personnel files and always look for sex preference to bribe and pressure and will move assets close to Massa to induce those behaviors.

[Carolab]

10:05 PM on 03/09/2010

It think it's very clear he was set up.

And so do Cenk and Jesse:

March 8, 2010:

Uygur: I feel that since the advent of public corporations, the system self-selects the greedy, self-selects the people who are going to play ball. So if you need to have Generals who are going to start wars or who are going to advocate for longer wars, well, it helps that they're going to get hired by the military industrial complex later, after they retire.

Ventura: Yep. Sure.

Uygur: And that goes on and on. The bankers, of course, if you're Nomi Prins at Goldman Sachs and you grow a conscience, well, you're no longer welcome there, and they look for someone who's not encumbered with a conscience who can go ahead and buy politicians.

Uygur: You know, there's, of course, a theory that people, whoever they are, are not interested in people who don't play ball. You don't play ball, Eliot Spitzer didn't play ball, ERIC MASSA DIDN'T PLAY BALL, Pete Stark didn't play ball, Ashleigh Banfield didn't play ball, and you begin to see a pattern here. Let's take Eliot Spitzer as an example. Do you think that that was a coincidence that the bank happened to out him on those finances or do you think that was part of a larger agenda?

(In the Interview at 19:58 Cenk actually mentions Eric Massa but it's not in the transcript....hmm)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYMI9_QmGIY

[Carolab]

10:10 PM on 03/09/2010

Uygur: You know, there's, of course, a theory that people, whoever they are, are not interested in people who don't play ball. You don't play ball, Eliot Spitzer didn't play ball, Eric Massa didn't play ball, Pete Stark didn't play ball, Ashleigh Banfield didn't play ball, and you begin to see a pattern here. Let's take Eliot Spitzer as an example. Do you think that that was a coincidence that the bank happened to out him on those finances or do you think that was part of a larger agenda?

From The Young Turks interview with Jesse Ventura, aired yesterday.

[Carolab]

03:14 PM on 03/09/2010

Eric Massa was a Dean candidate -- supported by Democracy for America.

You figure it out.

[Rooster Coburn]

03:55 PM on 03/09/2010

Huh?
Never heard of 'em!
Is that another loony lefty group with a couple dozen members?

[Carolab]

05:48 PM on 03/09/2010

No, it is Dean's former campaign site, Dean for America.

And it is huge, as is Dean's following to this day.

His brother Jim Dean runs it now. They focus on getting progressives elected.

http://www.democracyforamerica.com

[Puddin]

03:00 PM on 03/09/2010

Some of this stuff is just too crazy/weird to comment on. I mean, REALLY! This man has changed his story more times than some people change their underwear!

[GalapagosTortoise]

02:02 PM on 03/09/2010

This is the first story I've read about it, but I'm inclined to believe Massa's version. A story that's been twisted. From the looks of Washington politics, not much is beneath the Democrats, either, and apart from Kucinich, Massa has been a lone voice in their desert calling out for single payer, intelligently criticizing the legislation, after having read it, and from a more conservative posture that also advocates for real change. Which IMO has been good for the issue, too often too far clouded with finger pointing about "right" and "left". Single payer is not about "right" or "left".

Will the commercial weeping Glen Beck come out now and support single payer? Fat chance. But if Massa gets to go on and talk about real health care reform on his show, rather than Beck's desire to just shoot the Democrats down, all the more power to him for reaching a broader audience in America, and on health care.

[jjgg5]

11:30 AM on 03/09/2010

This sounds like a case of sour grapes, paranoia and denial of personal responsibility for Mr. Massa.

[den1953]

11:12 AM on 03/09/2010

Is Glen Beck against gays? This should be interesting not a word mentioned about this guy being gay i bet!

[JimR]

09:46 AM on 03/09/2010

Let's look at what he said (and what he was saying between the lines):

"...a (hot) staff member made an intonation to me that maybe I should be chasing after the bridesmaid and his points were clear and his words were far more colorful than that. (God I wanted him.) And I (seductively) grabbed the staff member sitting next to me and said, 'Well, what I really ought to be doing is fracking you.' And then [I] tossled the guy's hair (,tossed him my room key) and left, went to my room, because I knew the party was getting to a point where it wasn't right for me to be there (and I really wanted to frack that guy). Now was that inappropriate of me? Absolutely. Am I guilty? Yes. (Did he show up to my room? Sigh. No.)"

[TimeToPunt]

11:23 AM on 03/09/2010

Sounds like Larry Craig's diary entry.

[MESGAIN26]

04:01 PM on 03/09/2010

lol exactly good analysis

[den1953]

09:09 AM on 03/09/2010

There you go again congressman going all Larry Graig on yourself!

[missmanners]

08:16 AM on 03/09/2010

Good grief, 15 gin and tonics!

[Justdontgetit]

10:21 AM on 03/09/2010

Plus champagne. This dude is not a novice drinker. How much alcohol does he have to drink daily to be able to stand after what he admits to 15 G&T plus champagne.

He gets a lot of practice.

[Dustee]

11:18 AM on 03/09/2010

That's what I said! What a tolerance he has for gin and tonic. My top is three.

[TimeToPunt]

11:25 AM on 03/09/2010

I might be able to do 10 or so, but I would have no recollection of anything that happened. Big blank spot.

[Robster]

07:27 AM on 03/09/2010

Glenn Beck is having him on Fox tonight- should be good.

[Tommygun264]

01:29 AM on 03/09/2010

I was willing to give Mr. Massa the benefit of the doubt when he first announced he wouldn't be running for reelection because his cancer had come back. But now with his abrupt resignation and this story that doesn't pass the smell test - if he's fully explained what happened, then it's all out in the open and he doesn't have to resign - I'm thinking either there is a lot more he isn't telling us, or Mr. Massa is experiencing side effects related to his medication. I'm midway through my second round of chemo and although I feel fine most of the time, every once in a while I find my memory playing tricks on me, but the hazy spells are brief and I don't have a microphone in my face 24/7 so I've managed not to embarrass myself too much. However, when viewing his erratic behavior in greater context (his resignation immediately ended all investigations by the Ethics Committee) I am more inclined to believe that there is something Mr. Massa doesn't want coming out. Unfortunately, his choice to adopt a scorched earth policy virtually assures any and all unpleasant stories, be they fact or rumor, will come out, so the best he can do is claim that they are lies generated in retribution. The pubs, ditto-heads and Beckerheads will all jump on Massa's bandwagon, eager to seize on any opportunity to bash the Obama administration, whether it's true or not. It's sad.