UPDATED: Two potential Democratic presidential candidates are distancing themselves from Harvey Weinstein in the wake of an explosive New York Times report that the movie mogul serially harassed women.
A spokesman for Cory Booker, the junior senator from New Jersey, said he is donating $7,800 that he received from Weinstein to the New Jersey Coalition Against Sexual Assault. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts’ senior senator and a darling of the progressive wing of the party, will donate the $5,000 in contributions she received from Weinstein for her 2012 senate campaign to charity, a spokeswoman said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) also said he would donate Weinstein’s contributions to several charities supporting women, according to a spokesman. The donations totaled $14,200.
Weinstein, the co-founder of the Weinstein Company, was a force in Democratic politics. He hosted fundraisers for Hillary Clinton’s White House bid and for Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns.
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Warren, Schumer, and Booker aren’t the only prominent Democrats to shun Weinstein’s contributions. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) are all rerouting his donations to charity.
The Times report has rocked Hollywood and the Beltway. It contains several on-the-record accounts of Weinstein’s aggressive advances toward women, including actresses Ashley Judd and Rose McGowan. The indie studio’s board met on Thursday night to decide whether or not Weinstein will be given a leave of absence or be ousted from the company.
Weinstein also gave money to Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Al Franken (D-Minn.).
