Portland mayor Sam Adams, 45, has publicly apologised for lying about his affair with a then 18-year-old intern in 2005, saying he would be prepared to resign ...
"I screwed up. I blew it. There's no way to sugarcoat it," Adams said during a news conference at Portland City Hall.
Adams had a big win in the 2008 election, making Portland the largest American city to elect an openly gay mayor. He was sworn in January 1.
While the new mayor said he had no plans to resign, he was open to the possibility: "If it were no longer in the city's best interests that I stay, yes, I would resign."
Rumours of a relationship between the then city commissioner and "a minor" surfaced as Adams was preparing for his mayoral campaign.
At the time he denied the allegations, explaining now that he didn't think people would believe him if he said he had waited until intern Beau Breedlove's 18th birthday to commence the relationship.
He said there's a stereotype that gays seek out underage children.
"In fact, Beau encouraged me to be honest about the facts of our relationship," Adams said. "I am deeply sorry that I asked him to lie for me."
Adams stressed the issue is about a public official lying, not sexual orientation, and he would work to regain the public's trust.
"I will be subject to greater scrutiny because of this, and that is appropriate," he said.
"My reputation has been impacted. Friendships have been impacted, and that's appropriate as well."
Jeana Frazzini of Basic Rights Oregon, the state's largest gay rights organisation, said there was disappointment within the gay community, but: "Our main concern is that we hope gay politicians who come after Sam don't turn out to be failures because of individuals who came before."
There are now calls for an investigation, some of those voices are people who supported Adams during the 2005 allegations.
No comments:
Post a Comment