Former Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges and several of her Democratic allies have published a letter in support of Keith Ellison in his bid for Minnesota attorney general.
The letter smears Ellison accuser Karen Monahan for her “repeated attacks on Keith Ellison’s current relationship” while calling into question the “timing” of her allegations, which came “just three days before a contested primary.
“As a result, we can say without hesitation or reservation that we believe Keith committed no abuse toward Ms. Monahan. We support Keith fully and wholeheartedly in his campaign for attorney general,” the letter states, signed by local Democratic politicians and activists, including a faculty member of the University of St. Thomas and Minnesota Rep. Rena Moran (D-St. Paul).
The letter bases its claims on the recent Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party investigation into Ellison, which concluded that Monahan’s accusations were “unsubstantiated.” Monahan, however, provided medical records from the time of the abuse, text messages between her and Ellison, and at least three witnesses who corroborated her story.
Nonetheless, Hodges asserts that “there is no independent evidence that the incident of abuse Ms. Monahan has described took place.” Instead, Hodges and her colleagues suggest that Monahan’s claims amount to nothing more than a “difficult breakup.”
“We know how painful it is when women who come forward with stories of abuse are not believed, and we are glad that we are having a national conversation about that,” the letter continues, but then expresses “serious concerns” about Monahan’s story.
The Minnesota Democrats later claim that Monahan’s “allegations have become politically as well as personally motivated,” bashing her “apparent willingness to be used by and possibly collaborate with right-wing, sometimes Islamophobic media.”
“It’s also important to us that unlike when most powerful men are accused, Keith did not shut down his accuser or demand we ignore her—rather, Keith welcomed and fully and willingly cooperated with this independent investigation,” they write, saying that “Keith has nothing to hide.”
Hodges concludes by calling on Minnesotans and “every person who believes that people matter more than corporations” to “work as hard as possible over the next month to elect Keith Ellison our next attorney general.”
“Both because of who Keith Ellison is and what he will fight for, and because of who his opponent is and how he would impose Trump’s agenda on people and communities we care about,” the letter elaborates. “For his entire career in public life, Keith has stood for the principle that has become his signature: everybody counts, everybody matters.”
In response, Monahan accused Hodges and her cosignatories of “smearing” her children, saying they are “victim shaming” her for “having the courage to break” her silence.
Two Dr. reports almost 6 months a part in 2017. @BetsyHodges and other democrats have a sign on letter smearing, lying and victim shaming me 4 having the courage to break my silence.
What’s more heartbreaking is they r smearing my kids. #whyididnotreport pic.twitter.com/AX1YrlVyeC— Karen Monahan (@KarenMonahan01) October 6, 2018
“These are the smears, dishonesty, and bullying women deal with when breaking their silence,” Monahan wrote on Facebook. “This doesn’t help Keith. I will share all the evidence I did with the DFL investigator in the near future.”
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