Donald Trump declared Saturday that each of the women accusing him of sexual misconduct are “liars,” whom he intends to sue after the election. If the Republican candidate follows through on the threat, his lawyers will apparently be quite busy — with another woman coming forward soon after Trump delivered his speech.
Adult film star Jessica Drake alleged at a Los Angeles press conference that in 2006 Trump hugged and kissed her and two female companions in his hotel room without permission. She also charged that after she left the room, Trump or someone acting on his behalf called her and offered her $10,000 to return.”Collectively, his words and his actions are a huge testament to his character: That of uncontrollable misogyny, entitlement and being a sexual assault apologist,” said Drake.
The Trump campaign, as in every previous instance, denied the allegations, calling Drake’s claims “false and ridiculous.” For her part, Drake insisted on Saturday she’s seeking neither money nor attention. “I understand that I may be called a liar or an opportunist,” she said. “But I will risk that in order to stand in solidarity with women who share similar accounts that span many, many years.”Her allegations follow related claims from Karena Virginia on Thursday, which Trump’s campaign also dismissed. “Give me a break,” Jessica Ditto, Trump’s deputy communications director said in a statement. “Voters are tired of these circus-like antics.”As for just how many women have now raised allegations of sexual misconduct against Trump, I’ve seen a couple of different counts, but I think this is the full list to date:1. Kristin Anderson2. Rachel Crooks
4. Jill Harth
5. Cathy Heller
10. Karena Virginia
11. Summer ZervosThere were some reports that included a 12th accuser, Cassandra Searles, who wrote on Facebook about an incident when she was Miss Washington in 2013, but she has not made any public appearances about her claims since and has not responded to media inquiries for additional information.Katie Packer, an MSNBC contributor, noted over the weekend that she’s spoken to “several reporters who say there are many, many more women” who’ve privately raised allegations about Trump, “but they’re afraid to go public for fear of getting sued.” USA Today‘s Heidi Przybyla added soon after that she “can confirm” that these yet-unpublished claims exist, though they may never reach the public.
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Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."