December 8, 2017

Trent Franks Is Resigning Immediately For Reasons That Are Incredibly Creepy

Yikes.

Alex Edelman/ZUMA

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On Thursday, Arizona Republican Rep. Trent Franks announced he would resign in January. In a statement, the social-conservative warrior admitted that he had previously asked two female members of his staff to carry his child as surrogates. Frank conceded that this had made those staffers uncomfortable, but his statement left the impression that there was probably a bit more to the story, and on Friday we found out what it was: the congressman offered to pay $5 million for the surrogacy. According to Politico, the staffers Frank propositioned also feared he wanted to impregnate them himself.

Shortly before the Politico story dropped, Franks announced that he would, in fact, be resigning immediately. Congress will lose one of its most ardent anti-abortion crusaders, and Phoenix-area residents will have themselves a special election next year. If you’re keeping track, that’s four retirements or resignations related to sexual misconduct in one week in Washington.

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DEMOCRACY DOES NOT EXIST...

without free and fair elections, a vigorous free press, and engaged citizens to reclaim power from those who abuse it.

In this election year unlike any other—against a backdrop of a pandemic, an economic crisis, racial reckoning, and so much daily crazy—Mother Jones' journalism is driven by one simple question: Will America move closer to, or further from, justice and equity in the years to come?

If you're able to, please join us in this mission with a donation today. Our reporting right now is focused on voting rights and election security, corruption, disinformation, racial and gender equity, and the climate crisis. We can’t do it without the support of readers like you, and we need to give it everything we've got between now and November. Thank you.

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