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Constituents: Rep. Weiner Cannot Save Himself, Must Resign

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Congressman Anthony Weiner has been serving in the House of Representatives for more than 12 years. He represents Brooklyn and Queens, where there were plenty of people on Monday sounding off on the Twitter scandal.

The Forest Hills section of Queens has been a staunch supporter of Rep. Weiner, but now it appears that support is crumbling. The embattled Democrat admitted to posting lewd photos on Twitter during a wild Monday press conference. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi later called for an ethics probe into whether Weiner broke House rules. He said Monday's he's not resigning, but that's not sitting too well with many of his constituents.

PHOTOS: Weiner Admits Sending Lewd Pictures (Warning: Some Graphic)

"We have problems. We have Alan Hevesi. Now we have Anthony Weiner. This is nothing new in Forest Hills," resident Patricia Malon said, adding when asked by CBS 2's Pablo Guzman if he should resign, "Of course he should."

"They have everything they need in the world, beautiful wives, money, and they do stupid stuff like this to bring themselves down, I don't understand," constituent Kathy Corwin told CBS 2's Derricke Dennis.

"I'm a little disappointed basically with his MO in regards to these things. He's a very well respected politician, especially in this area, and I'm somewhat taken aback by this whole thing," one man said.

Others said the reaction to Rep. Weiner's saga has been overblown.

"He's a good guy, this is being overblown completely, and it's just a shame, it really is a shame," Willie Moore said.

"Yeah, in the grand scheme of things, I think it's his problem and it's something he has to work out with his wife. I don't think it's a big deal."

"Well, at least he owned up to it and admitted to it. He did the right thing coming forward," Ken Mathis said.

The mixed emotions expressed by some were dwarfed by the numbers of people who were nowhere near as forgiving.

"I think he should resign because he should have been truthful from the very beginning," Diane Mathis added. "It just shows a little bit of dishonesty there."

"I think he should resign. If I were in his place I would resign immediately," resident Alla Tolokunsky said.

"I would like to separate it, because I think he's a great congressman, but he did a stupid thing, and people do stupid things," Marilyn Hertz added.

New York's senior senator, Chuck Schumer, said in a statement that he was "deeply pained and saddened by today's news. By fully explaining himself, apologizing to all he hurt and taking full responsibility for his wrongful actions, Anthony did the right thing. He remains a talented and committed public servant, and I pray he and his family can get through these difficult times."

Earlier Monday before Weiner's public admission, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was asked whether the congressman could continue to effectively represent New Yorkers.

"It's always up to the constituents," Bloomberg said, adding that it was "time to get back and focus on the serious things."

A recent CBSNewYork.com poll revealed that 82 percent of New Yorkers believed Weiner was hiding something. It turns out he was.

Now, the question is, how long will he try to fight the court of public opinion?

Please offer your thoughts in the comments section below.

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