Huma Abedin

This has been a week in which someone at the Republican National Committee must have said, "Send in the clowns!" Michele Bachmann, Rush Limbaugh and lesser jesters in the GOP circus were just a few fake noses and a seltzer bottle short of performances worthy of Ringling Bros. Bachmann was the premier buffoon. The Minnesota congresswoman alleged that a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Huma Abedin, may be a spy for the Muslim Brotherhood. Savvy readers will recall that Abedin is the wife of ex-New York Congressman Anthony Weiner, the twit who got caught tweeting photos of his nether regions.

Last week was a historic one for women. Eighteen women won or reclaimed Senate seats, bringing the number of women in that body to 20. Nearly 80 women now occupy the House. New Hampshire became the first state to elect a female governor and an all-women congressional delegation. But wait: What's that sound of tires screeching to a halt? What's that feeling of being yanked aside by the elbow and told, "Not so fast, missy. " It's that timeless behemoth known as the double standard, that ever-present reminder that no matter how many elected offices women hold or Cabinet positions they fill, no matter how many Fortune 500 companies they run, there's no amount of success that can't be undone by the ultimate mistake: a failure to comply with the strict set of culturally sanctioned standards of attractiveness.

WASHINGTON -- Calling the accusations from conservative Republican members of Congress against a top Muslim aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton “pretty dangerous,” House Speaker John A. Boehner became the second top GOP elected official to stand by Huma Abedin, the secretary of State's longtime adviser. “From everything that I know of her, she has a sterling character,” Boehner said Thursday. “Accusations like this being thrown around are pretty dangerous.” On Wednesday, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)

Re "McCain defends top Clinton staffer," July 19 Since her failed presidential campaign, we hadn't heard much from Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), but her accusation against Huma Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, brought her back into the public eye. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) condemned her attacks, and I hope she listens. Watching politics lately has been painful enough without having a McCarthy-like witch hunt. Ellie Berner San Diego Kudos to McCain for defending Abedin against baseless accusations of connections to the Muslim Brotherhood.

When U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner tearfully confessed Monday to sending lewd photos via Twitter to random women, wife Huma Abedin -- Hillary Rodham Clinton's right-hand woman during the 2000 presidential campaign, married to Weiner just under a year ago -- was noticeably absent. In stories of sexual indiscretion by male public figures, their wives are often caught in difficult positions. Some, like Hillary Clinton, stand by their high-profile husbands, while others, like Tiger Woods' ex-wife Elin Nordegren, cut the cord.

WASHINGTON -- Republican Sen. John McCain came to an unusual and impassioned defense of Huma Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, saying the “sinister accusations” by congressional conservatives about her alleged connection to the Muslim Brotherhood must end. The attacks have been led by Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), the chairwoman of the tea party caucus in the House, and four other conservative lawmakers, who have asked federal officials to investigate whether Abedin, a Muslim American who is deputy chief of staff at the State Department, is using her influence on U.S. policy toward the Islamic group.

WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) came to an unexpected and impassioned defense of Huma Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, saying that "sinister accusations" by congressional conservatives about her alleged connection to the Muslim Brotherhood must end. The attacks have been led by Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), the chairwoman of the tea party caucus in the House, and four other lawmakers, who have asked federal officials to investigate whether Abedin, a Muslim American who is deputy chief of staff at the State Department, is influencing U.S. policy in ways beneficial to the pan-Arab Islamic group.

Re "McCain defends top Clinton staffer," July 19 Since her failed presidential campaign, we hadn't heard much from Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), but her accusation against Huma Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, brought her back into the public eye. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) condemned her attacks, and I hope she listens. Watching politics lately has been painful enough without having a McCarthy-like witch hunt. Ellie Berner San Diego Kudos to McCain for defending Abedin against baseless accusations of connections to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Anthony Weiner announced his resignation from Congress on Thursday, apologizing for the "embarrassment" his personal behavior caused to his family and colleagues. Standing without his wife but before a horde of media at a senior center in his Brooklyn district, Weiner said he had hoped to continue his work in the House but "unfortunately, the distraction that I created has made that impossible. " Resigning, Weiner said, will allow him to "continue to heal from the damage that I have caused.

On Thursday night, Jon Stewart added his voice to the growing chorus of criticism directed at Rep. Michele Bachmann and her campaign against Huma Abedin, longtime aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton (as well as the wife of former Rep. Anthony Weiner, a New York Democrat). Late last week, the former presidential candidate and four other Republican representatives sent a letter to top intellgence officials urging them to investigate Abedin's alleged connections to the Muslim Brotherhood.

On Thursday night, Jon Stewart added his voice to the growing chorus of criticism directed at Rep. Michele Bachmann and her campaign against Huma Abedin, longtime aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton (as well as the wife of former Rep. Anthony Weiner, a New York Democrat). Late last week, the former presidential candidate and four other Republican representatives sent a letter to top intellgence officials urging them to investigate Abedin's alleged connections to the Muslim Brotherhood.

WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) came to an unexpected and impassioned defense of Huma Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, saying that "sinister accusations" by congressional conservatives about her alleged connection to the Muslim Brotherhood must end. The attacks have been led by Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), the chairwoman of the tea party caucus in the House, and four other lawmakers, who have asked federal officials to investigate whether Abedin, a Muslim American who is deputy chief of staff at the State Department, is influencing U.S. policy in ways beneficial to the pan-Arab Islamic group.

This has been a week in which someone at the Republican National Committee must have said, "Send in the clowns!" Michele Bachmann, Rush Limbaugh and lesser jesters in the GOP circus were just a few fake noses and a seltzer bottle short of performances worthy of Ringling Bros. Bachmann was the premier buffoon. The Minnesota congresswoman alleged that a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Huma Abedin, may be a spy for the Muslim Brotherhood. Savvy readers will recall that Abedin is the wife of ex-New York Congressman Anthony Weiner, the twit who got caught tweeting photos of his nether regions.

WASHINGTON -- Calling the accusations from conservative Republican members of Congress against a top Muslim aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton “pretty dangerous,” House Speaker John A. Boehner became the second top GOP elected official to stand by Huma Abedin, the secretary of State's longtime adviser. “From everything that I know of her, she has a sterling character,” Boehner said Thursday. “Accusations like this being thrown around are pretty dangerous.” On Wednesday, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)

WASHINGTON -- Republican Sen. John McCain came to an unusual and impassioned defense of Huma Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, saying the “sinister accusations” by congressional conservatives about her alleged connection to the Muslim Brotherhood must end. The attacks have been led by Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), the chairwoman of the tea party caucus in the House, and four other conservative lawmakers, who have asked federal officials to investigate whether Abedin, a Muslim American who is deputy chief of staff at the State Department, is using her influence on U.S. policy toward the Islamic group.

Anthony Weiner announced his resignation from Congress on Thursday, apologizing for the "embarrassment" his personal behavior caused to his family and colleagues. Standing without his wife but before a horde of media at a senior center in his Brooklyn district, Weiner said he had hoped to continue his work in the House but "unfortunately, the distraction that I created has made that impossible. " Resigning, Weiner said, will allow him to "continue to heal from the damage that I have caused.

A day after hiring a lawyer to look into the online mini-drama now dubbed “Weinergate,” Rep. Anthony Weiner said that he wants to move on. “I’m going to return to working on the things I care about,” the New York Democrat told reporters at the Capitol on Tuesday. “This is a distraction, and I’m not going to let it distract me.” Weiner said his Twitter account was hacked after a photo of a crotch-level photo of a man wearing a bulging pair of underwear was sent via the social network to a Seattle college student over the weekend.

Rep. Anthony Weiner's confrontational exchange with a CNN reporter and producer over a lewd Twitter photo deserves some sort of spot in a pantheon devoted to clashes between reporters and politicians. Weiner, a Democrat from New York, is facing questions about how a lewd photo directed to a 21-year-old college student in Seattle ended up posted in his Twitter stream. Weiner initially claimed that his account was hacked. Later, he called it a "prank. " But Tuesday, it was clear that Weiner was no longer interested in saying anything more about the matter.

Democrats sought to swiftly turn the page on the three-week drama involving Rep. Anthony Weiner and refocus attention on other issues after the New York congressman signaled he would finally step down Thursday. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi appeared Thursday at what she noted was her regularly scheduled weekly press availability -- the topic was jobs --  and said if there were questions on Weiner: "I won't be answering any. " She said she would have an additional statement after Weiner's own press conference later Thursday.

President Obama said Monday that he would step down if he were in Rep. Anthony Weiner's shoes, questioning the New York Democrat's ability to serve constituents amid "personal distractions. " Hours earlier, the White House broke its silence on Weiner and his sexting scandal, saying the drama was diverting attention from important issues like the economy. But a spokesman stopped short of making an explicit demand for Weiner's resignation. In an interview with NBC's Ann Curry, Obama chose his words carefully.