LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Attorney General and Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Dustin McDaniel said Wednesday that he stands behinds his comments about an extramarital relationship, despite suggestions from the woman involved that he wasn’t entirely truthful.
A day after apologizing publicly for an inappropriate relationship with Hot Springs attorney Andrea L. Davis, McDaniel said he regretted the effect the relationship had on her life. McDaniel, who has been married since 2009, admitted to the relationship last month and said it was a limited interaction.
“I know Ms. Davis never wanted to be a public figure, and I regret that unwanted public attention is a consequence of my actions,” McDaniel said in a statement released by a campaign spokesman. “I specifically alluded to that in my statement yesterday, which I stand behind.”
Davis has said she was disappointed with McDaniel’s comments at a Tuesday news conference in which he apologized for the relationship and vowed to continue with his 2014 campaign for governor.
“I hope he rethinks his answers and presents them as they occurred,” she wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press late Tuesday afternoon. Davis did not immediately return a call or e-mail Wednesday morning.
McDaniel has said he met Davis during his 2010 re-election bid and the two had a “limited,” inappropriate relationship in 2011. He said the two were in each other’s presence less than half a dozen times, including at public events and that the relationship did not compromise any of the cases. He said he has not had any other affairs.
