Last week, in a sometimes quavering voice,Christine Blasey Ford testifiedthat as Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh was allegedly sexually assaulting her when the two were teenagers, she “tried to get away from him, but his weight was heavy.”
Tuesday night,Donald Trumpmocked Ford as hesarcastically mimickedher testimony at a rally in Mississippi,riling a crowdthat applauded and laughed along.
“How did you get home? ‘I don’t remember.’ How did you get there? ‘I don’t remember.’ Where is the place? ‘I don’t remember.’ How many years ago was it? ‘I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know,’ ” Trump said, acting out a misrepresentation of Ford’s testimony during the hearing.
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The president’s biting theatricsdrew rebukesfrom both sides of the political spectrum Wednesday. But this isn’t the first time Trump has resorted to such tactics. He’s used a similar strategy at rallies to mock some of the women who have accused him of sexual assault and misconduct — a total now at 22,according to Business Insider.(Trump has denied all of the allegations against him.)
Courtesy of Jessica Leeds
JESSICA LEEDS
Soon after Donald Trump claimed during a presidential debate that he’d never kissed a woman without her consent, Jessica Leedsalleged in an October 2016 interviewthat Trump had tried to kiss her, fondle her breasts and put his hand up her skirt while on a flight to New York in the early 1980s.
Days later, Trumpbullied Leedsat a rally in North Carolina. “Believe me, she would not be my first choice,” Trump said in an apparent reference to Leeds’ appearance.
The 75-year-old Leeds tells PEOPLE now that Trump’s mimicking of Ford is part of a cruel pattern of ridiculing behavior “indicative of his personality and makeup.”
“He always does this in front of a crowd,” she says. “It’s theater, it has no meaning except that is revealing a personal side where he doesn’t believe the women. It’s back to deny, deny, deny.
“I think it was crueler for Dr. Ford,” she continues, “because this event has caused her a lifetime of pain.”
Melanie Acevedo
NATASHA STOYNOFF
“I was grateful when Trump’s longtime butler burst into the room a minute later, as I tried to unpin myself,” she wrote at the time.
At a campaign rally, Trumpaccused Stoynoff of being ‘a liar’and implied she was not attractive. “Check out her Facebook page, you’ll understand,” he said.
RELATED VIDEO: PEOPLE Writer Natasha Stoynoff Breaks Silence, Accuses Donald Trump of Sexual Attack
(At the time of the alleged incident, a shaken and upset Stoynoff shared details of the alleged attack with colleagues and close friends, whichthey’ve since publicly corroborated.)
JESSICA DRAKE
Adult film star Jessica Drakewas the 11th woman to come forwardwith sexual assault allegations against Trump.
In response, Trump impliedin a radio interview, as he proclaimed his innocence, that Drake could not have been sexually assaulted due to her choice of work.
“And she’s a porn star. You know, this one that came out recently, ‘he grabbed me and he grabbed me on the arm.’ Oh, I’m sure she’s never been grabbed before,” he said.
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SUMMER ZERVOS
FormerApprenticecontestantSummer Zervos came forwardin October 2016 to allege that Trump kissed her very aggressively and put his hand on her breast without her consent in 2007.
Trump also promised to sue his accusers. He has not. Instead,Zervos sued him— claiming he defamed her when he accused her and the other women of “lies” and “total fabrication.” Zervos is seeking$2,914 in damagesfrom the suit, whichcontinues to move forwardthrough the courts despite numerous legal challenges from Trump.
source: people.com
