House Democratic leader Hoyer charges political opponents seeking advantage in Massa incident

Hoyer says some trying to politicize Massa case

WASHINGTON — House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer accused political opponents Wednesday of trying to exploit the controversy surrounding former Rep. Eric Massa, who resigned from Congress amid accusations of sexual harassment.

“I think there were some people that did jump in and try to use this for political purposes,” the Maryland Democrat said in a nationally broadcast interview, apparently referring to critics who embraced Massa’s charge that he was pressured to leave by majority Democrats because of his opposition to the health care overhaul bill.

Asked directly if he or any other Democratic leaders brought pressure on the New York Democrat to step aside, Hoyer replied, “No, absolutely not.”

But in an interview on NBC’s “Today” show, he declined to say whom he was referring to in saying political opponents had tried to leverage some tactical advantage as a result of the Massa scandal.

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor declined to directly address Hoyer’s assertion, telling interviewers: “I think I’m a little taken aback and stunned by all of this. I don’t know the facts of this at all. I know that the American people are sickened by all of this.”

Hoyer said one of his staffers had alerted him on Feb. 8 that a staffer working for Massa had complained of being harassed.

Hoyer said he told his aide that the person making the complaint “needed to immediately bring this to the attention of the Ethics Committee, and I said further, ‘If you don’t make the complaint, I will.’ “

He said he had not discussed the allegation directly with Massa because he thought the ethics panel was the “appropriate” forum for investigating the complaint.

For his part, Massa offered contradictory explanations for his behavior in cable television interviews Tuesday night.

He acknowledged that he groped a male staffer in a non-sexual way but later denied any groping.

In a pair of TV interviews, the New York Democrat discussed wrestling with male staffers at his 50th birthday party and tickling one of them.