Rep. Kathleen Rice: Senator Al Franken and Rep. Conyers should step down: “There’s no reason for the public to trust us if we can’t even call people out” https://t.co/sxRfskdfnN pic.twitter.com/hIT1797r60

On Monday’s broadcast of CNN’s “Situation Room,” Representative Kathleen Rice (D-NY) called on Senator Al Franken (D-MN) and Representative John Conyers (D-MI) to resign from Congress and criticized both President Trump for and House Minority Leader Representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for protecting Alabama Republican Senate nominee Judge Roy Moore and Conyers, respectively.

Anchor Wolf Blitzer asked Rice, “Was Senator Al Franken’s apology today enough to merit him staying in the US Congress? What do you believe?”

She answered, “I don’t think so. I think if you ask any person on the street, do you think the action that CBS took with Charlie Rose was appropriate? Or Louis C.K., or anyone else in Hollywood, Harvey Weinstein they would say, ‘Yes, they took the right action.’ Why can’t we do the same thing in Washington? What is so problematic, and the reason why I’m being so vocal on this issue, Wolf, is because what we are saying in Washington is there’s a set of rules that apply to people who are not politicians in Washington, and there’s totally different set of rules that apply to elected officials serving in Congress. And that’s why there is such distrust of government and Congress, just in general, across the board.”

She continued, “People are seeing us circle the wagons and protect our own. Whether it’s Donald Trump not coming out against Roy Moore, and supporting him to the extent that he is, or if it’s Nancy Pelosi protecting John Conyers and saying that she leaves it up to him to make the right decision. I think that’s ridiculous. I called on John Conyers to resign.”

Blitzer then followed up, “So you want both Conyers and Franken to resign?”

Rice responded, “I think they should. And I think that that’s what most people feel would be an appropriate consequence for these elected officials.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett