In news that will surprise no one, Donald Trump has apparently been questioning the honesty of the numerous women who have accused Roy Moore, currently running for senator of Alabama, of sexual assault. According to a Tuesday report in POLITICO, the president has cast doubts on the allegations during “animated conversations” with White House aides and senior members of the Republican party.
In addition to wondering why Moore’s accusers have come forward so close to election day, Trump’s skepticism is reportedly rooted in feeling he relates to Moore — White House advisers told POLITICO that Trump has repeatedly brought up how Moore’s situation mirrors what he went through during the late stages of the 2016 presidential election when he was accused of sexual assault by over a dozen women.
Seeing the number of Republican legislators withdrawing support from Moore is reportedly another reason the president feels he relates, as many of them also denounced Trump after the release of the Access Hollywood tape in which he was recorded bragging about sexually harassing and assaulting women.
Moore has been accused of sexual assault and misconduct by more than five women, with at least two of them alleging that Moore approached them when they were underage. While Moore denies the accusations, damning material, such as a passage from his 2005 memoir in which he admits to first noticing his current wife when she was roughly 15 or 16 years old, has come to light.
To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
Trump made headlines on Tuesday after coming just short of explicitly endorsing the Alabama Republican. “He denies it. Look, he denies it,” he told reporters. “If you look at all the things that have happened over the last 48 hours. He totally denies it. He says it didn’t happen. And look, you have to look at him also.”
Trump then proceeded to attack Moore’s opponent, Doug Jones. “We don’t need a liberal person in there, a Democrat, Jones. I’ve looked at his record. It’s terrible on crime. It’s terrible on the border. It’s terrible on military,” he said. “I can tell you for a fact we do not need somebody who’s going to be bad on crime, bad on borders, bad for the military, bad for the Second Amendment.”
When asked if he planned to campaign for the Moore, Trump did not rule out the idea, telling reporters, “I’ll be letting you know next week.†At this point, it would be more surprising if he didn’t join Moore on the campaign trail.
