The newly elected US Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) just won the election by a small margin in a state where a Republican hasn’t won for 25 years. Jones was pegged as a “liberal” and a “pro-abortion” by his opponents in the highly contentious race against the accused sexual predator, and ultra-conservative candidate, Roy Moore. Jones, however, is no dummy. In a deep-red state who voted overwhelmingly for President Trump in 2016, Jones knows that he will be a one-term senator unless he gets behind the wildly popular Donald Trump, and based on his first interview with the press, that’s exactly what he plans to do.

Senator-elect Doug Jones is already breaking with some prominent Democrats by refusing to call for President Trump to step down over ongoing sexual harassment allegations.

“I don’t think that the president ought to resign at this point,” Jones (D-Ala.) told CNN’s “State of the Union.”

In his first round of Sunday show interviews since securing a stunning victory in red state Alabama over accused sexual predator Roy Moore, Jones said he doesn’t want to get bogged down in Trump’s sexual harassment allegations and would rather work on “real issues.”

“I think we need to move on and not get distracted by those issues,” Jones added. “Let’s get on with the real issues that are facing the people of this country right now.”

That’s at odds with some high-profile Democrats like Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (NY) and Cory Booker (NJ) who believe the president should step down because at least 19 women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct.

Unlike other politicians who have stepped down, like Sen. Al Franken and Rep. John Conyers, Jones said the difference is the voters knew about these allegations and still elected Trump to the highest office.

“Those allegations were made and he was elected president of the United States,” Jones said. “I think the American people spoke.”

Jones said he’s willing to work with Republicans on passing some of Trump’s priorities like infrastructure investment said the sexual harassment allegations are not reason to get on Trump’s bad side.

“We need to move on and try to work with some real issues that are facing the country and not worry about getting at odds with the president any more than we have to,” Jones said.

Gillibrand last week said Trump “committed assault” according to the “very credible allegations” and “he should resign.”

Trump, who has routinely denied any wrongdoing, shot back at the junior senator with what was widely panned as a sexually suggestive tweet Tuesday – the same day Democrats turned out in droves for Jones in Alabama to defeat a Trump-backed candidate. –NYP

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