The #BelieveSurvivors movement and Start By Believing both share a belief that persons who claim to be victims of sexual assault almost never lie.

That was the dominant Narrative when Leeann Tweeden accused Sen. Al Franken in November 2017 of having forced an unwanted kiss on her during a 2006 USO tour. Seven other women soon accused Franken of inappropriate kissing or touching.

The Narrative was so powerful that due process was eliminated -- no presumption of innocence, no ethics committee hearing, no chance to face his accuser. On December 7, 2017, Sen. Franken announced his resignation.

Now, leading senators are expressing regrets how Franken was railroaded -- see attached article:

• Patrick Leahy: My decision to seek Franken’s resignation without first getting all the facts was “one of the biggest mistakes I’ve made” in 45 years in the Senate.  
• Tammy Duckworth: “We needed more facts. That due process didn’t happen is not good for our democracy.” 
• Angus King: “Al deserved more of a process. I don’t denigrate the allegations, but this was the political equivalent of capital punishment.” 
• Jeff Merkley: “This was a rush to judgment that didn’t allow any of us to fully explore what this was about….In my heart, I’ve not felt right about it.”  
• Heidi Heitkamp: “If there’s one decision I’ve made that I would take back, it’s the decision to call for his resignation. It was made in the heat of the moment, without concern for exactly what this was."
• Tom Udall: “I made a mistake. I started having second thoughts shortly after he stepped down. He had the right to be heard by an independent investigative body…. I really believe in due process.”
• Harry Reid: “It’s terrible what happened to him. It was unfair.”

A sad example why we need to stop #BelieveSurvivors hysteria and restore due process to our legal system.