Conservatives have had to explain away a lot in the interest of supporting Donald Trump as the GOP nominee. After the Washington Post on Friday published audio of an extremely lewd conversation Trump had with a former “Access Hollywood” host in 2005, in which he made predatory comments, they had a much tougher time of it.
For some, the strategy was deflect, deflect, deflect, choosing to focus on what sins Democrats have committed or spinning Trump’s comments as locker room talk:
Your periodic reminder: Ted Kennedy killed a woman & was treated as a hero by the Democratic Party through his death in 2009.
— Dan McLaughlin (@baseballcrank) October 7, 2016
Trump up 5 points among the ungrabbed.
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) October 7, 2016
Really? “Flight logs show Bill Clinton flew on sex offender’s jet much more than previously known” https://t.co/Q2imJGo6Pz https://t.co/pGsRxvFiKU
— Tammy Bruce (@HeyTammyBruce) October 7, 2016
Considering Trump is not in prison for sexual assault, I’m guessing this was just talk and not something he made a habit of doing.
— Bill Mitchell (@mitchellvii) October 7, 2016
This just in: Donald Trump is a flawed man! We ALL sin every single day. What if we had a “hot mic” around each one of us all the time?
— David Brody (@TheBrodyFile) October 7, 2016
Who knew it just took a Trump to make the left turn so conservative about sex!
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) October 7, 2016
For the #NeverTrump crowd and those who hadn’t already hopped on board the Trump train, on the other hand, the leaked audio was another reason to decry the party’s nominee:
I have six brothers, and three sons. This isn’t boys will be boys stuff. This is him celebrating his ability to sexually assault someone.
— Matthew Dowd (@matthewjdowd) October 7, 2016
“But the Supreme Court!” you scream. Better tell Trump to get out of the race now.
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) October 7, 2016
I hope this absolutely DEMOLISHES Trump. If this doesn’t, nothing can. If you’re a GOPer, I hope you vote Hillary, Johnson, or McMullin.
— Benji Backer (@BenjiBacker) October 7, 2016
This godforsaken election. This vile excuse for a nominee. I cannot find the humor in any of this.
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) October 7, 2016
Trump folks:I know you’re upset about a changed America and you hate Hillary, but have an ounce of integrity and call out Trump forcefully.
— Matthew Dowd (@matthewjdowd) October 7, 2016
Meh: Bawdy talk among dudes.
Worse: Bragging about trying to bang a married woman.
Repulsive: ‘I’m famous, so they’re chattel/playthings.’
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) October 7, 2016
America deserves far better than @realDonaldTrump
— Jeff Flake (@JeffFlake) October 7, 2016
As for former Fox News anchor Greta Van Susteren, it was a relief not to be responsible for analyzing such comments from the GOP nominee anymore:
My thought? I am glad I am taking time off 🙂 https://t.co/RA6DXOMVs9
— Greta Van Susteren (@greta) October 7, 2016
Although Donald Trump is a creepy pervert who likes to hang around teenage beauty contestants, he is the darling of religious conservatives and evangelicals because he a wonderful christian with very high moral standards. Indeed he has the highest moral standards of any Republican candidate including the sainted Ronald Reagan (PBUH).
Donald Trump has openly expressed a fervent desire to bang his daughter Ivanka Trump and has been accused of raping a 13-year old girl with his hedge fund pal Jeffrey Epstein. Therefore all this should come as no surprise.
Yep the GOP and Women–they go together like fish and bicycles.
Republican pushback:
oh! he’s older now and he’s matured…
and he never said it either…
trump will forever be known as a perve from today forward.
with apologies to Monty Python:
Man 1: “Look, are you insinuating something?”
Man 2: “Oh, no, squire! No, no, no, no, no…yes.”