Her whole story really revolves around the extent of the “rehearsed” kiss. It is the only element of this claim which really clearly falls under the heading of “abuse” or “assault.” On this we are relying on her eleven-year-old recollection versus his (it should also be pointed out that she went ahead with the performance after this occurred, apparently without any sort of official complaint).
Then there is the issue of the photograph, taken on the way home, of Franken posing while “groping” Tweeden’s breasts while she is asleep and wearing several layers of clothing, including a military vest. Part of the problem with evaluating that photo is that we are doing so through the prism that Tweeden’s recollection of the “kiss” is fair/accurate, and that this was therefore proof of Franken having an animus towards her for rejecting his “advances.”
But let’s pretend that the “kiss” was not exactly as Tweeden now says. That photo then has a MUCH different context. Franken is clearly posing, and it sure seems to me to not even be touching her, but rather doing a (stupid/juvenile) “hover” move for what was, just as he now claims, a bad but relatively harmless joke.
There is another important element of the photo that has not yet been explained. How did Tweeden obtain it and why did she save it? Was it because she was told when she woke up that Franken had “assaulted” her and she wanted evidence of this for future use (and then failed to do so, even when Franken ran for the Senate), or, perhaps more likely, did someone send it to her because it was a funny keepsake from their trip which is now being used to create a completely different impression of what happened?
I Loathe Al Franken, But It Sure Seems Like He is Getting Totally Railroaded
