Senator Al Franken apologises after photo emerges of him groping radio presenter

US Senator Al Franken has apologised after a radio anchor accused him of forcibly kissing her and a photo emerged of his hands on her breasts as she slept.

The Senator was responding to allegations made by KABC radio host Leeann Tweeden who claimed that he had “aggressively” kissed her without her consent during a 2006 US overseas tour in Afghanistan.

The radio host said that the incident occurred while they rehearsed a comedy skit together.

Ms Tweeden, from Los Angeles, said that the Democratic Minnesota Senator had then groped her during a flight back to the US and posted photographic evidence of the incident on the KABC website.

She told The Associated Press that Mr Franken wrote a skit for the pair that was filled with "sexual innuendo," and that he had brought a women's thong as a prop that he waved around during their performance. Part of the skit included a kiss, she said, and he insisted they practice kissing during a rehearsal despite her protests.

"We did the line leading up to the kiss and then he came at me, put his hand on the back of my head, mashed his lips against mine and aggressively stuck his tongue in my mouth," she wrote.

The photo that she included was taken on the trip home from Afghanistan. Mr Franken is shown grinning and staring at the camera while reaching out as if to grope Ms Tweeden's breasts as she sleeps. Ms Tweeden said she didn't discover the photo until she returned home.

Mr Franken apologised for groping Ms Tweeden but has said that he does not remember the kiss.

He said: "While I don't remember the rehearsal for the skit as Leeann does, I understand why we need to listen to and believe women's experiences.

"Coming from the world of comedy, I've told and written a lot of jokes that I once thought were funny but later came to realise were just plain offensive."

Speaking about the photo he said: "It was clearly intended to be funny but wasn't. I shouldn't have done it."

He said: "I look at it now and I feel disgusted with myself. It isn't funny. It's completely inappropriate. It's obvious how Leeann would feel violated by that picture."

Ms Tweeden spoke about the incident on her radio show on Thursday morning. She said that had not come forward sooner as she feared that her career, which included her stint as a swimsuit model, would cause others to discount her story.

She said: "I felt belittled. I was ashamed. I've had to live with this for 11 years,"

She explained that she though that "somehow it was going to be my fault. It was not going to be worth the fight."

Before becoming Senator of Minnesota, Mr Franken was a comedian for US show Saturday Night Live.

During his campaign for Senate he drew criticism for joking about rape when discussing a sketch idea for SNL.

Ms Tweeden’s allegations against Mr Franken could lead to an ethics review in the Senate.

Majority leader Mitch McConnell called on Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to join him in pressing for a review.

"Regardless of party, harassment and assault are completely unacceptable- in the workplace or anywhere else," the Kentucky Republican said.

Mr Franken said that he welcomed the investigation.