this is "nightline." >> tonight -- >> i will be resigning as a member of the united states senate. >> senator al franken stepping down amid accusations of sexual misconduct. taking parting shots at president trump and alabama senate candidate roy moore. reaction from leann tweeden, the accuser who started it all by sharing this photo. >> i do think my voice was heard. >> the glowing politicization of the "me too" campaign. are democrats and republicans holding themselves to different standards? california burning. flames over the freeway in los angeles and across southern california. homes reduced to ashes. mountains on fire. >> we need to get out of here as soon as possible. that fire is right there. >> our correspondent's on the

ground just steps away from the blazing inferno. >> the smoke coming out is noxious, it's like breathing in tear gas. >> how long these fires could continue. heartwarming video. one man pulling over to rescue a rabbit from harm's way. but first the "nightline 5." >> julie, i know today's critical but i really need a sick day. >> dads don't take sick days, dads take dayquil severe. the nonproutdsy nondrowsy no si medicine. press clean and roomba from i-robot gets to work using surfaces and suction to remove everything from fine dust to large debris. daily dirt doesn't stand a chance. roomba from i-robot. better together. >> number one in just 60 seconds.

good evening. thank you for joining us. we begin tonight with the resignation of senator al franken. after multiple women came f forward with stories and photos of his alleged sexual misconduct. in a speech today the senator did not apologize to his accusers and disputed accounts of his behavior. so why does he say he's leaving? >> i know in my heart that nothing i have done as a senator, nothing, has brought dishonor on this institution. nevertheless, today i am announcing that in the coming weeks, i will be resigning as a member of the united states senate. >> reporter: senator al franken stepping down amid mounting accusations of sexual misconduct. three weeks ago it was this picture along with a total of eight women who have since come forward with stories of sexual misconduct against the senator. >> he mashes his lips against my

face and he stuck his tongue in my mouth soufs -- >> reporter: today franken answered to alleged victims and constituents. >> all women deserve to be heard and their experiences taken seriously. i think that was the right thing to do. i also think it gave some people the false impression that i was admitting to doing things that in fact i haven't done. some of the allegations against me are simply not true. others i remember very differently. >> reporter: the "me too" movement seeming to begin its reckoning in washington. >> he did the right thing and i think we're at a very important moment in our history in terms of women coming forward and feeling that someone will listen to them, will hear them. >> i feel badly that he felt he had to resign. but you know, i guess those things happen. >> reporter: yesterday a handful of female democratic senators

began calling for franken to resign. >> enough is enough. >> reporter: one by one, more than three dozen senators, male and female, most of them democrats, including minority leader chuck schumer, joining the chorus. >> we're saying he should resign. >> and i get no pride or pleasure in saying that. thank you. >> what was the tipping point here? why today? >> the numerosity and the type of complaints and accusations. >> this was a calculated effort led by female democratic senators, including some of senator franken's closest friends and political allies. >> reporter: franken apparently forced out, like another of his democratic colleagues. michigan congressman john conyers, the longest-serving member in the current house, accused by over six women of sexual harassment. allegations he's denied. but it caused a slew of calls within his own party to resign. eventually conyers stepped down earlier this week. amid two democratic resignations

franken said he couldn't ignore the irony. >> i am leaving while a man who has bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sit in the oval office, and a man who has repeatedly preyed on young girls campaigns for the senate with the full support of his party. >> reporter: at least eight women have accused alabama gop senate candidate roy moore of sexual misconduct. many of them were teenagers at the time. the youngest 14 years old. moore was in his 30s. moore has fiercely denied all allegations. >> we're not going anywhere. >> reporter: he now enjoys the support of president trump. while the republican national committee is now sending resources to aid moore's beleaguered campaign. senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, who once said moore should step aside, now appears to have softened. >> do you believe judge moore should be in the senate? >> i'm going to let the people of alabama make the call. >> republicans i talked to today weren't exactly eager to draw a care son between al franken and

roy moore. do you agree with the irony? >> i'm not going to get involved in that. >> a lot will be riding on that senate election in alabama. if it is seen as the republican party, aside from this, that people can commit any manner of offense and be a republican politician, that is a difficult argument for republicans to advance in the era of harvey weinstein. >> reporter: other republicans putting a clearer stake in the ground. >> i'm not happy that the rnc is backing him. and will have long-term damage for our party and our brand. >> i think he should have drooped out. >> reporter: speaker paul ryan now helping force another congressman out. just tonight, arizona representative trent franks became the third member of congress to announce his resignation this week after ryan says he received credible claims of misconduct and told him that he should resign. franks in a statement saying, i have absolutely never physically intimidated, coerced, or had or

attempted to have any sexual contact with any member of my congressional staff." in his announcement al franken is leaving the senate but not quietly. >> there are two words he did not utter, "i'm sorry." >> he did not come out and say, i did those things, right? he came out and said, i didn't do some of the things that the women accuse me of. of course he was questioning my story. you either are calling me a liar, basically, by insinuating that he remembers it differently -- >> reporter: leann tweeden was the first to come forward three weeks ago claiming franken forcibly kissed her during a rehearsal for a uso event in iraq in 2006 before he was a senator. and releasing this photo of him appearing to grope her on the flight home. next came lindsay mins, alleging franken groped her rear end while posing for this picture at the arizona state fair. he was a senator at the time. >> i was surprised and

wondering, did that really just happen? >> reporter: franken responded to the allegations. >> i am sorry. i know there are no magic words that i can say to regain your trust, i know that's going to take time -- >> reporter: at first some democrats were calling for an ethics investigation. >> the senate ethics committee should do an investigation. that's where i believe it should go. >> i am going to be accountable. we are going to cooperate completely with the ethics investigation. >> reporter: but more accusers kept surfacing. yesterday morning, politico reported a former democratic congressional aide said franken tried to "forcible kiss her" back when he was a radio show host three years before he became a senator. she said, i was really startled by it and i just sort of booked it towards the door. and he said, it's my right as an entertainer. franken responding to politico, this's is categorically not true. and the idea that i would claim this as my right as an

entertainer is preposterous. even while facing resignation today, franken remaining defiant. >> for him to not even acknowledge, own, and apologize, was a really big deal. it really showed his character, showed how he felt about the entire situation. >> some of the allegations against me are simply not true -- >> reporter: franken accuser lindsay vindication. >> i feel sad this is what it has come to. instead of being able to own mistakes and move forward and make things right, he's having to resign. >> reporter: with the recent fall of hollywood and media giants like harvey weinstein and matt lauer, many feel the tidal waves of change are finally making an impact. this movement has been called a reckoning. fair? >> absolutely. absolutely, we are experiencing a national reckoning right now. >> reporter: so much so that "time" magazine named the movement the 2017 person of the year. calling those now speaking up

the silence-breakers. who are the silence-breakers? >> women and men who spoke out this year about sexual harassment and assault in their workplaces. >> reporter: halley sweetland edwards is a correspondent who worked on the cover story. what does it say about this movement, the fact that today a u.s. senator, one of the most powerful men in america, stepped down from his job? >> it's extraordinary. and it speaks to how powerful this group has become. that this is half the population in america. >> reporter: it's a group that franken professes to be an advocate for. >> i am proud that during my time in the senate i have used my power to be a champion of women. >> reporter: franken's journey to the seat of power began far from washington. a comedian who many came to know on "saturday night live." >> i'm good enough, i'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me. >> reporter: on capitol hill, franken touted himself as the standard-bearer for progressives and a staunch proponent of

women. >> i rise today to speak in strong opposition to legislation that would defund planned parenthood and jeopardize women's access to health care. >> for the most part he was a serious and diligent senator who was committed to a core group of issues, including many issues that involve women's empowerment and women's rights. >> reporter: a visible he'der in the democratic party whose alleged inappropriate conduct and behavior ultimately cost him his seat at the table. >> is it possible for someone to be a progressive voice for women and be a sexual harasser? of course it is, his name's al franken. >> minnesotans deserve a senator who can focus with all her energy on addressing the challenges they face every day. >> reporter: as for who might fill senator franken's seat, the democratic governor of minnesota says he will announce a replacement in the coming days. and next year there could be a special election. next, the damage done and

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>> i've never seen a fire like that before. >> reporter: flames leaping over the pacific coast highway. >> it's dangerous out there. >> reporter: this man hurrying over to save a rabbit on the side of the road. los angeles' famed 405 freeway a fiery hellscape. in ventura county the massive thomas fire showing no signs of slowing. fueled by those fierce santa ana winds. >> we cannot do this on our own. it really takes a village. >> reporter: the fire chief speaking to our david muir. >> what's your concern going into tonight? >> really it's the winds. >> what are they telling you to expect in the coming hours? >> we've got gusts 40 to 50 miles per hour coming hard out of the east. so that pushes the fire really hard in the western direction. >> reporter: so far, well over 100,000 acres destroyed in that fire, and it's only 5% contained. we're seeing an entire apartment complex engulfed in flames -- >> reporter: abc's marcus moore

also there on the ground. >> this is the 101 freeway, look at those flames as they burn off in the distance. this is the fire that is working its way through this part of ventura county, hopping the highway. this thing is shut down right now. >> reporter: throughout the week, first responders going door to door. >> anybody home? >> reporter: tens of thousands of residents forced to evacuate as the flames closed in. >> this is the police department, mandatory evacuation due to the fire -- >> we need to get out of here as soon as possible, that fire is right there. >> reporter: neighborhoods reduced to cinders. we met tracy bird recording the devastation, helpless as her home burned to the ground. >> we can't even describe what i'm thinking, my mind is not even really connecting with it all yet. and yet there it is. >> reporter: earlier today this fire line racing down this mountain.

these helicopters are dropping as much water as they possibly can on these fields. the idea is to stop the fire from getting from this charred part of the mountain down there to those avocado fields and the homes below. and just yards away, we met anthony linet bavaro as they frantically packed their belongings. we helped as they tried to save what they could. linet pregnant with her third child. >> why the wedding dress? >> just our memories. and we've been together since i was 19. we've been through so much. so that's like our big milestone. i want to give that to my kid. >> reporter: this is just one of multiple fires exploding in california tonight. more than 187,000 people evacuated throughout the state. hundreds of homes and buildings destroyed. these owners working to evacuate their horses as flames intensified at the creek fire. in los angeles, the skirball

fire turning mountainsides into fireballs. one of the nation's busiest highways transformed under that orange haze. >> we're attempting to prevent the fire from jumping west up the 405. >> reporter: the fire threatening the getty museum, its walls lined with priceless art. at surrounding neighborhoods some of the most expensive real estate in the country. >> we ask you to leave immediately if you're still there -- >> reporter: the 475-acre blaze in the geographical heart of los angeles. it's now 20% contained. >> it looks much calmer and by many measures it is. but as we know there are a lot of hot spots and hot spots right next to homes. >> reporter: this week hundreds of firefighters on the ground. this one overcome by the smoke and the heat. >> are you just hot? or burned? >> just hot. the blaze from above. >> it's been years since anything's burned at all in this area. >> reporter: the exclusive enclave of bel air not spared. >> this is really frightening.

there are a lot of homes here. the helicopter overhead now. it's dropping water right now. i might get wet. it was here we met ron ancon at the husk of his neighbor's once-palatial home. >> still burning. hasn't been a fire since '61, bel air fire. >> reporter: firefighters still working to put out flames there. back in ventura, some residents finally able to survey the damage. >> it's devastating. sorry. thankful we have our home. but i'm very sad for my neighbors. it's just horrible. >> reporter: without rain, authorities say the battle against the thomas fire could drag on until christmas. for "nightline," i'm matt gutman near ojai, california. next, a young man with leukemia fulfilling his bucket list with his best friend at his side. their incredible act of kindness.

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finally tonight, a story about the power of friendship. you see them here handing out burgers. this is 20-year-old chris benacourt and best friend dylan hill. i've a lifelong battle with leukemia, chris was told by doctors he would only have one or two years to live unless he found a bone marrow match. dylan quit equal edge to help his sick friend fulfill his bucket list. if this viral video the pair are crossing off two items from that bucket list. ordering 100 items from a fast food restaurant and feeding the homeless. >> so i really feel like we did a good thing. most of them were over the moon appreciative. so it really feels good. >> the two friends are documenting their adventures for a project they call "one list, one life." hoping to raise funds and

awareness and maybe even find a life-saving bone marrow match for chris. good for them. it was helen keller who said, walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light. thank you for watching abc news. and as always, we're online at abcnews.com and our "nightline" facebook page. thanks for the company, america. good night.

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