{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=F9F5079E-98AB-4219-9B35-9AD696E303AE", "Senator Murrays Statement on Latest Franken News: Its time for him to step aside", "2017-12-06", "2017", "2017-12", "Democrat", "House", "WA", "Patty Murray", "M001111", "www.murray.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "\u201cI\u2019m shocked and appalled by Sen. Franken\u2019s behavior.\u00a0 It\u2019s clear to me that this has been a deeply harmful, persistent problem and a clear pattern over a long period of time.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s time for him to step aside.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\u201cFor some time I have talked about returning the word respect to our language, to our actions,\u00a0and to our politics.\u00a0 That has to start at the top. We must lead by example. Respecting women as equals and not as objects is a critical part of that. Sexual harassment, or assault, or in any way using your power to demean women cannot be tolerated. \u00a0I want my colleagues, my staff, my constituents, and especially my granddaughters to know that is not acceptable.\u00a0\u00a0\r\n\r\n\u201cThis institution has evolved over centuries, it\u2019s evolved over my nearly three decades of service, and it\u2019s evolving once more before our very eyes.\u00a0 This current evolution is long overdue.\u00a0 It\u2019s time for us as elected representatives to hold ourselves to a higher standard, to set an example, and to live a set of values that is truly representative and worthy of the Congress, our democracy, and our great country.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\u201cTo truly accomplish that we must agree that there is no place for discrimination or harassment in the government.\u00a0We cannot pick and choose based on political party or friendship who we call out. It pains me that in this case it is someone who I think has been a tremendous voice for our party. \u00a0But that makes it even more imperative that we don\u2019t tolerate this behavior. We cannot allow it to be ok. Or we own the silence women will once again be delegated to.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\u201cBe they political friends or foes, we must call out those who would seek to sweep under the rug behavior that should never be accepted in any family or community. And if we\u2019re serious about that, there\u2019s no way we can condone those who inappropriately touch others, those who force themselves on women of all ages, or those would take their power and weaponize it for their own ends.\u00a0For those who are tempted to politicize this issue, or try to protect anyone who has crossed the line into an unacceptable place, I would suggest that they speak first with their mom, wife, sister, daughter, or friend, and ask about their own experiences.\u00a0 Find out how pervasive the culture of abuse, silence, and acceptance is.\u00a0 Find out how power is used to abuse.\u00a0 Find out just how hard it is to speak out.\u00a0\u00a0And then, rather than justifying one person\u2019s behavior for your own political purposes, join me and so many others in making clear that we will not accept it\u2014regardless of party, position, or celebrity.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\r\n\r\n\u201cI believe service in politics and government is a noble pursuit, and all those who pursue it are flawed in some way.\u00a0 But I also believe public service demands higher standards \u2013 standards we choose to live by the moment we enter public life.\u00a0 And some actions should disqualify you from service, and they should disqualify you as a representative of all the people in a district, state, or even in the entire country.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=F9F5079E-98AB-4219-9B35-9AD696E303AE"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.2231343425810337, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}