(WMC-TV) – District 9 Congressman Steve Cohen revealed he has daughter, whom he kept a secret for three years, and that she is the woman he tweeted from the State of the Union address.
It was a tweet seen around the country, even seen in video behind President Obama as he spoke to the nation during the SOTU address.
It was those tweets that made Congressman Steve Cohen's private life very public and forced him to expose a secret he has kept for years.
On Thursday, Congressman Cohen put rumors to rest with a bombshell.
"I'm a very happy father," he said. "I'm very pleased to have a daughter and I'm very pleased that she allowed me to come forward today."
His sweet tweets during the president's State of the Union address were not with a love interest. They were with a daughter did not know he had until three years ago.
"I think about her every day, and it's what I think about more than anything else," Cohen said.
Cohen says he learned he fathered 24-year-old model Victoria Brink after reconnecting with her mother.
"I said, ‘By the way your youngest daughter is absolutely gorgeous.' And she said, ‘Yes and every time I look at her I see the German Jew in her face.' That's me. I'm Lithuanian, but that's close enough," Cohen explained.
President Obama knew of Cohen's secret, as well as a few of his friends and colleagues. She has been to Memphis, to Washington D.C., and even the White House Christmas party.
During the president's speech Tuesday, Cohen was thrilled to learn via tweet that Brink was watching.
"I was doing the right thing to encourage my daughter to know about government and respond to her," he said.
Cohen says reporters and Republicans owe him and his daughter an apology for jumping to scandalous conclusions after the tweets he intended to be private went public.
"They didn't know she was spiritually beautiful and beautiful in so many other ways," said Cohen. "All they saw was her physical beauty, and all they did was zero in on the idea that this was a sexual relationship."
On Thursday, Brink gave her father the go ahead via text to go public with the truth. Cohen wants his constituents to know he is a proud father and has but one regret.
"Think about what I missed not seeing her grow up and my parents not knowing her but now I have a child and I'm very proud of her and it's a good thing," he said.
Cohen says he is relieved the secret is out. He is looking forward to being able to attend his daughter's wedding and to becoming a grandfather one day - things dads do - without anyone on her side saying, "Who is that guy?"
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