After a member of Congress got caught tweeting a Valentine’s message to a daughter he believed he had, it turned out that he wasn't the only man who thought he had fathered that young woman. INSIDE EDITION has the story.
Victoria Brink is the stunning model at the center of a political mystery.
It began when Congressman Steve Cohen, a Democrat from Tennessee, was spotted tweeting during the president's State of the Union address last February.
One tweet said: “Happy Valentines beautiful girl. ilu.”
Congressman Cohen’s Valentine was 24-year-old Victoria Brink. It was meant just for her, but he accidentally tweeted it to all his followers.
Brink said, “I sometimes wish I had handled everything differently but I can't take it back.”
He quickly tried to quash rumors of a scandal in the making. He said, “The young lady is my daughter and it's appropriate I tell her I love her, which I do.”
Cohen's story was that he had a relationship with Victoria's mother, Texas attorney Cynthia Sinatra, way back in 1989. Several years ago he discovered Cynthia had a daughter. Cynthia revealed that she believed the congressman was the father, so he reached out to Victoria.
Brink said, “Overwhelming is the best way to describe it.”
She started getting to know Cohen, the man she now believed was her biological father. She spoke to INSIDE EDITION’s Diane McInerney.
Victoria said, “He introduced me as his daughter.”
McInerney asked, “What was the coolest thing that happened?”
She said, “It was going to the White House Christmas party.”
He even took her to the White House Christmas party and introduced her to the president and first lady.
She said, “Michelle said she liked my dress. Then we took a picture and that was it.”
But after that notorious State of the Union tweet, their secret was out and became a joke for the late night comics.
Jay Leno joked, “When did Washington become the Jerry Springer show? When did that happen?”
Another key player in this story was John Brink, the ex-husband of Cynthia Sinatra. For the first 21 years of Victoria’s life, he naturally thought he was her dad. Suddenly, he was told he was not.
He said, “Crushed. Crushed.”
But the Texas businessman demanded a DNA test. The shocking result was it turned out that he, not Congressman Cohen, is Victoria’s real dad.
He said, “I cut Victoria’s umbilical cord. I knew from the second she was born that she was my daughter.”
Victoria said, “I'm happy that I learned the truth and I don't have this big secret any more.”
Congressman Cohen is crestfallen that Victoria is not his long-lost daughter after all. He said, “I loved her, did everything in the world for her. Showed her what I can of my world.”
But Victoria said she still wants to be his friend.
She said, “I feel really bad for Steve. I know it's been very hard for him. He seemed really excited about having a daughter.”
