Rep. Anthony Weiner reportedly coached an ex-porn star to lie about their interactions online after the controversy over a lewd Twitter photo erupted more than a week ago.
TMZ reports that Weiner offered professional advice to adult star Ginger Lee after she started receiving calls from reporters about her relationship with the New York Democrat.
At first, he reportedly told Lee in a June 1 email to craft a "short, thought-out statement" to repeat to the press, with a couple variations to make clear she doesn't know him.
The following day, Weiner asked via email if she needed to talk to "a professional PR type" for advice, according to TMZ.
"I can have someone on my team call," the email said.
It's not clear whether he was referring to his congressional team or a private team. Weiner also reportedly sent her a proposed statement in which she would say she has "nothing to do with the situation" and merely followed his Twitter account.
Weiner claimed last week that the reason a lewd photo showed up on his Twitter account was because he was hacked. He admitted Monday afternoon that he lied, and also said he's been carrying on explicit conversations with women online for the past three years.