Rep. Anthony Weiner closed the book on his political career — and the tawdry scandal that brought him down — with a raucous resignation announcement yesterday at the Brooklyn senior center where he launched his first run for office 20 years ago.
“I’m here today to again apologize for the personal mistakes I have made and the embarrassment I have caused,” Weiner told a gathering of close to 200 reporters and cameramen from as far away as Japan.
“I make this apology to my neighbors and my constituents, but I make it particularly to my wife, Huma.”
His five-minute statement appeared to end the three-week crisis that began when he was linked to a lewd crotch photo sent over Twitter to a Washington co-ed.
Among the developments yesterday:
* Weiner’s pregnant wife, Huma Abedin, was conspicuously absent from the announcement, but three hours later the couple had dashed to Long Island, where she smiled as he sang along to canned music in a supermarket.
* Democratic colleagues, who had planned to strip him of his House committee assignments yesterday, expressed sympathy, mixed with disdain.
“Congressman Weiner exercised poor judgment in his actions and poor judgment in his reaction to the revelations. Today he made the right judgment in resigning,” said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who had called on Weiner to quit.
* President Obama, who had said on Monday that he would have resigned if he were Weiner, believes the congressman and his wife will persevere.
“Obviously, it’s been a tough incident for him, but I’m confident that they’ll refocus and he’ll refocus, and they’ll end up being able to bounce back,” Obama said in an interview airing today on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
* It was disclosed that Weiner’s stonewall approach to the scandal began to crumble on June 5 when his inner circle realized he was lying to them about the infamous Twitter photo.
* A guessing game began over who would win a special election early this summer in his Queens-Brooklyn district to complete the remaining 18 months of Weiner’s term.
Weiner left many questions unanswered during his statement yesterday.
The seven-term congressman — who hadn’t been seen for four days while supposedly in rehab — only hinted at the behind-the-scenes struggle he fought last week with fellow Democrats before they convinced him his time was up.
“I had hoped to be able to continue the work that the citizens of my district elected me to do,” he said at his circus-like press conference. “Unfortunately, the distraction that I have created has made that impossible.
“So today, I am announcing my resignation from Congress,” he said, triggering an eruption in the room.
Dozens of senior citizens, who are regulars at the Midwood center and helped fill up the large catering-hall-like room, responded loudly — half of them cheering and half booing. One heckler shouted, “Bye-bye, pervert!”
Adding to the chaos, Howard Stern staffer Benji Bronk shouted, “Are you fully erect?”
When others tried to stifle Bronk, he argued, “Don’t you want to know? I want to know.”
Then he tossed another question at Weiner, “Are you more than seven inches?”
Weiner, dressed in a dark suit and striped tie, looked pained as he tried to resume reading his statement.
He wound it up by acknowledging his political career may be over.
“I got into politics to give a voice to the many people who simply did not have one,” he said. “Now I will be looking to other ways to contribute my talents to make sure that we live up to that most New York and American of ideals.”
The representative who once relished TV interviews and talk-show invitations left the stage and exited through a back door without taking questions.
Democratic leaders, seeing Weinergate as a lingering liability, had been demanding his resignation for more than a week. But he had told House colleagues that he needed to talk face to face to Abedin, a top aide to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Abedin had arrived with Weiner at their Queens home earlier yesterday but did not go with him to the press conference. Hours later, they left the Forest Hills Gardens apartment together on their way to the East End.
During the last two weeks, Weiner told other House Democrats from New York that Abedin wanted him to stand and fight for his seat. But it was after they spoke Wednesday that he called Rep. Steve Israel (D-LI) to give the party leadership a heads-up on his decision.
Weiner reached Israel at a White House picnic, where members of Congress were feasting on burgers, fried chicken, grilled corn — and foot-long hot dogs.
Weiner, who was the youngest-ever city councilman when elected in 1991, had been widely viewed as the front-runner in the 2013 mayor race before the sexting scandal erupted three weeks ago.
Although only 46 — young for a politician — it was unclear whether he has any future in politics.
Former Mayor Ed Koch said Weiner is unelectable for the foreseeable future.
“He’s toast for the next 10 to 15 years,” Koch said.
But House colleague Nita Lowey (D-Westchester/Rockland) said, “There is life after Congress for Anthony Weiner.”
And Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), who spoke with him during the scandal, suggested Weiner was talented enough to find another line of work.
“He’s a good writer. He can think. He’s very clever,” Pascrell said. “He’s a quick learner.”
Missing from the anguished reactions to Weiner’s resignation was any comment from the country’s best-known Democratic couple, the Clintons.
Former President Bill Clinton, who officiated at the Weiner-Abedin marriage last year, and Hillary Rodham Clinton were privately described as furious with Weiner, but neither spoke publicly about him yesterday.