Politics & Government

Queens Reacts to News of Weiner's Resignation

What do you think of the Congressman's reported decision to resign?

Constituents were quick to react on Thursday to the news, first reported in the New York Times, that U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-Forest Hills, would be resigning.

Some voters said they were happy to see the embattled Congressman leave office, for the sake of the district.

“I hope he straightens his brain out,” said Kathleen McCaffery, who said she was surprised by how aggressively Weiner was hounded by his own party.

Find out what's happening in Forest Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Weiner has been fighting calls to resign since

The story first came to light when Weiner accidentally made public a private Twitter message containing a photo of his crotch to a user in Seattle.

Find out what's happening in Forest Hillswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Jerry Iannece, Chairman of Community Board 11, which overlaps partially with Weiner’s district, said he was shocked by how the events of the last month have unfolded.

“I’m disappointed and saddened. It’s a very unfortunate scenario,” Iannece said. “I had no problems with his representation and his diligence. He was fairly active and responsible to our needs. It’s a shame his personal life interfered with his professional life.”

Many residents expressed relief that Weiner would finally be going.

"Amen! He didn't deserve to be in office in the first place. He didn't have good morals — we need to start electing better people," said Felica Zoe. 

"It's bad in a way, but it's good in way," said Forest Hills resident Shai Fadra. "I think he was prepared to step down. There was so much pressure on him. Something that concerns his personal life and that concerns his office life I think is totally different."

Many Forest Hills residents had grown weary of the never-ending presence of news crews, vans and cameras outside Weiner’s Forest Hills Gardens apartment building.

“I’m glad he’s [resigning] for himself, his family and for us,” said one constituent.

Not everyone thought Weiner was doing the right thing by leaving office, however.

"I don't really feel he should resign, what would that do? I'm not condoning what he did I just don't see how the scandal is going to affect his job performance," said Bobby Bushea "He's taking care of his constituents and doing an exceptional job and that's really all that matters to me."

Reporting by Pat Conti, Lori Gross, Lauren Evans and Nathan Duke.


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