--- title: Sen. Joe Manchin Says Sen. Al Franken Should Not Resign description: One Democratic senator says = Minnesota Sen. Al Franken, who announced he would resign earlier in December, was mistreated. canonical: https://time.com/5069058/al-franken-resign-joe-manchin/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-12-18T17:00:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T18:37:03.653Z article:section: Politics og:title: 'Hypocrisy at the Highest Level.' Democratic Senator Hopes Al Franken Doesn't Resign og:description: "The most hypocritical thing I've ever seen done to a human being" og:url: https://time.com/5069058/al-franken-resign-joe-manchin/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb1ee85286f8225f3/6988f572929fad41f9beee67/gettyimages-801987322.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5217 og:image:height: 2935 og:image:alt: Senate Democrats Address How The GOP Senate Health Care Bill And Its Affect On The National Opioid Crisis og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'Hypocrisy at the Highest Level.' Democratic Senator Hopes Al Franken Doesn't Resign twitter:description: "The most hypocritical thing I've ever seen done to a human being" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb1ee85286f8225f3/6988f572929fad41f9beee67/gettyimages-801987322.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'Hypocrisy at the Highest Level.' Democratic Senator Hopes Al Franken Doesn't Resign > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Dec 18, 2017 5:00 PM UTC  U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) looks on during a news conference to discuss the national opioid crisis, on Capitol Hill June 27, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) looks on during a news conference to discuss the national opioid crisis, on Capitol Hill June 27, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) Drew Angerer—Getty Images by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Dec 18, 2017 5:00 PM UTC One Democratic senator says embattled [Minnesota Sen. Al Franken](http://time.com/5057462/al-franken-resignation-sorry/), who announced he would resign earlier in December, was mistreated by his colleagues. “What they did to Al was atrocious, the Democrats,” West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin said in an interview on [_Politico_‘s Off Message podcast](https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/18/manchin-franken-senate-resign-300843). “The most hypocritical thing I’ve ever seen done to a human being.” Franken stepped down after facing a [flood of calls for his resignation](http://time.com/5052304/al-franken-resign-democrats-women/), led by a group of Democratic women. He has been accused of groping or trying to forcibly kiss several women. Sen. Franken disputes many of the claims, but announced he [would resign on Dec. 7](http://time.com/5053958/al-franken-resigns/) though he has not officially left office. His successor, Lt. Gov. Tina Smith, was named by the Minnesota governor last week. Manchin was one of few Democrat who did not urge Franken to leave the Senate. In the interview with [_Politico_](https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/18/manchin-franken-senate-resign-300843), the West Virginia Democrat said seeing his colleagues hug Franken after his resignation speech on the Senate floor “made me sick.” “That’s hypocrisy at the highest level I’ve ever seen in my life,” he said. ” I think it’s atrocious. We ran a good person off.” Manchin noted that Franken was willing to go through Congress’ ethics investigation process and deal with whatever consequences came of that before he was urged to leave. The Democrat said he hopes Franken does not ultimately resign. “I hope they have enough guts. If they had enough guts and enough conscience and enough heart to say, ‘Al, we made a mistake asking prematurely for you to leave,” Manchin said of his colleagues. According to [_Politico_](https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/18/manchin-franken-senate-resign-300843), some other Senators have begun to question whether or not they made a mistake in calling for Franken to resign the way that they did — though not all Democrats are having second thoughts. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5069058/al-franken-resign-joe-manchin/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5069058/al-franken-resign-joe-manchin/"},"headline":"'Hypocrisy at the Highest Level.' 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