As Donald Trump goes after the physical appearance of the woman who have accused him of sexual misconduct, his running mate Mike Pence on Sunday would not join Trump in attacking the women.
During a Sunday interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Pence dismissed the 2005 tape revealing Trump’s vulgar comments about women as “just talk.” NBC’s Chuck Todd noted that Trump has now attacked the women who have accused him of sexual misconduct and asked Pence if he really believes Trump’s 2005 tape was “just talk.”
“I really do,” Pence replied, calling the women’s stories “unsubstantiated allegations.”
Todd then asked if women who come out with accusations of sexual assault should be ignored, prompting Pence to acknowledge that he would not try to discredit a women who made such allegations.
“I wouldn’t say anything to disparage any woman who believes they’ve had an experience like this. But Donald Trump’s made it clear that these allegations are categorically false,” Pence said.
And during an interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Pence dodged several questions on whether it was appropriate for Trump to attack the physical appearance of the women who accused him of groping. As CBS’ John Dickerson peppered Pence with questions, the vice presidential nominee kept changing the subject to Hillary Clinton, at one point bringing up her “basket of deplorables” comment.
Pence also broke with Trump slightly on the GOP nominee’s repeated warnings about a “rigged election.”
“We will absolutely accept the results of the election. Look, the American people will speak in an election that will culminate on November the 8th,” Pence said when asked about Trump’s claims on “Meet the Press.” “But the American people are tired of the obvious bias in the national media. That’s where the sense of a rigged election goes here.”
And Pence distanced himself from Trump’s insistence that it’s not clear that Russia is behind hacks into the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton campaign.
“I think there’s more and more evidence that implicates Russia. And there should be serious consequences,” he said on “Meet the Press.”
