Australian Senate candidate Steve Dickson quits over leaked strip club video

Canberra: A candidate in Australia’s upcoming general election quit his anti-Muslim political party on Tuesday after video of him groping and propositioning dancers in a US strip club was broadcast on national television.

Steve Dickson had been Queensland state president of the One Nation Party and a Senate candidate in May 18 elections.

The 56-year-old resigned from the party after Nine Network television on Monday night broadcast his antics in the Washington, D.C., club in September that were secretly videoed by Al Jazeera. It was the second time that Dickson and his party have been embarrassed and politically damaged by the Qatar-owned broadcaster.

Dickson said on Tuesday that his political career was over. He said the strip club video “shows a person who was drunk and not in control of his actions and I take full responsibility for allowing that to happen.”

An Al Jazeera documentary broadcast in March reported that Dickson and One Nation official James Ashby flew to the United States for meetings with pro-gun interests including the National Rifle Association and political donors Koch Industries seeking money to undermine Australian gun laws. Dickson visited the strip club during the same trip.

One Nation's leader Pauline Hanson said Dickson's behavior was unacceptable.