San Diego Mayor Bob Filner's resignation agreement is welcome news to a woman who would have been the 19th accuser to confront the politician over his behavior.
It means she now won't have to go public and put her family through the drama and trauma of such a revelation.
The resignation agreement as announced Aug. 23, just as a woman contacted WND was preparing to go public with her story of what she says Filner did while he was in Congress.
Insisting on anonymity, she told WND, "I'm sure there are so many more women out there who Filner had inappropriate contact with; but they don't want to come forward out of embarrassment, and they don't want to hurt their families and others around them."
She cried as she watched his resignation speech.
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"I almost felt sorry for him. He is delusional and believes he is the victim in all of this," she said. "Lives were so corrupted by this man. He brutalized so many souls and he didn't acknowledge any of the victims he left in his path."
She said it affected her life so much that she couldn't even work.
"Hopefully, this will become a place where I can begin to heal."
From the scandal's beginning, WND has reported the details surrounding Filner's tumultuous time in office: The steady stream of accusers who have come forward, his far-left affiliations, his demands that taxpayers fund his legal defense and the difficulty of removing him from office.
No one was expecting the scandal, however, to vanish with Filner's departure.
A spokesman for the state attorney general said a criminal probe into Filner's treatment of women is under way. The criminal case is not covered in the settlement reached Friday, but attorney James Frantz told the San Diego Union-Tribune that "just getting him out is a good deal for the city legally."
Some say that taxpayers are getting a raw deal for having to defend the mayor, but Frantz explained that as Filner's employer, the city is liable.
"They're not really giving anything up, because they would have had to pay (monetary damages) under the law anyway."
The agreement between Filner and the city requires his resignation in exchange for the city aiding in his legal defense. The city agreed to pay up to $98,000 for his defense and will pay any settlement or award to his accuser excepting any punitive damages.
Kathleen Willey, one of the targets of Bill Clinton's escapades, understands the hurt felt by the victims.
"Coming forward is not easy," she told WND. "I planned to take my story to the grave."
Willey accused Clinton of sexually assaulting her in the Oval Office.
"I was in denial that this could happen to me in my own country," she said.
Regarding Filner’s accusers, Willey said: "I applaud the women who came forward. This is the only way this kind stuff is going to stop in the political world."
Willey says other Clinton accusers approached her after her public testimony but were afraid to come forward. She speculates that there are several more Filner victims than the 18 who have been brave enough to make their accusations public.
Willey and others believe Bill Clinton's legacy led to the sex scandals of today. She holds Hillary and Bill Clinton responsible for the continued abuse of women by the likes of Filner, Eliot Spitzer and Anthony Weiner.
Filner's resignation speech started out as an apology.
"To all the women that I offended, I had no intention to be offensive, to violate any physical or emotional space," he said.
But he quickly turned it into a critique of the media, his opponents and "well-organized interests" who he said created a "lynch mob" to push him out of office.
Sully Sullivan, radio host for KOGO in San Diego, told WND it's not a time for celebration.
"The 'emperor's' resignation speech told us everything we needed to know about this man – a sociopath who refuses to take accountability for his actions; yet apologizes and then cries 'lynching,' and admits to absolutely no wrongdoing."
Sullivan said the scandal has been "a complete disaster, and our city's reputation is in shambles as a result. "
"As far as the 'deal' goes, it is the lesser of two evils and allows our city to heal and move forward," he said.
The reaction from his listeners is "bittersweet," he added.
"They're relieved that this nightmare is finally over, but angry at having to pay good tax dollars for his bad behavior."
Tony Krvaric, chairman of the San Diego County Republican Party, told WND the real story is how long it took for many Democrats to call for Filner to resign.
"Politics was put ahead of common decency," he said.
Elisa Brent, founding member of the Recall Bob Filner campaign, considers the result a victory.
"It would be nice to get a final tally on the signature count, but I already know in my heart that the recall was a huge success. We won this battle thanks to the amazing volunteer army we built. Filner's alleged war on women is hopefully over and we can put this dark part of San Diego history behind us," she said.
The San Diego city charter calls for a special election to be held within 90 days of the vacancy. Until then, city council president Todd Gloria will step in to temporarily fill the post.