Anthony Weiner addressed his latest sexting scandal (mostly) head-on Tuesday evening, acknowledging that his admittedly inappropriate online behavior continued well after it forced him to resign from Congress but brushing off suggestions that he would need to drop out of the New York City mayoral race as a result of the latest revelations. “Some of these things happened before my resignation, some of them happened after,” he said, refusing to confirm or deny any specific allegations.
However, potentially the bigger news—or, at the least, the more striking TV moment—from the press conference belonged to his wife, Huma Abedin, who was noticeably absent from her husband’s side the last time he was under the bright lights in a similar situation. This time she couldn’t be missed, first standing by Weiner’s side while he read from prepared remarks and then later when she took her turn in front of the mic to do the same.
“Anthony has made some horrible mistakes, both before he resigned from Congress and after,” Abedin said, her voice wavering slightly at times. “But I do strongly believe that that is between us and our marriage. We discussed all of this before Anthony decided to run for mayor.” The long-time Hillary Clinton aide added: “I love him, I have forgiven him, I believe in him and, as we have said since the beginning, we are moving forward.”
It’s unclear if Abedin’s turn as the Good Wife will be enough to right the ship for Weiner’s campaign, but in the moment it was probably the best-case scenario for the New York Democrat given the situation. His campaign must now hope Abedin’s performance is enough to keep the attention on her forgiveness—and, as a result, her husband’s redemption narrative—and not on the hilarious pseudonym of “Carlos Danger,” or the fact that his sketchy online life continued well after he first took responsibility for it.
Elsewhere in Slate: The Carlos Danger Name Generator.
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