Trump attacks women accusing him of misconduct, days before his debate with Harris

WASHINGTON (AP) — Shortly after appearing in court to appeal a verdict in which he was found guilty of sexual assault, Donald Trump went before television cameras Friday and brought up a series of past allegations of other cases of sexual misconduct, potentially reminding voters of incidents that were little known or forgotten.

The former president has made hitting back at his opponents and accusers a central part of his political identity, but his appearance in the Manhattan office tower that bears his name was astonishing even by Trump’s combative standards.

At times, he seemed to enjoy using the figurative language and characterization of the case made by advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, which could expose the former president to further legal challenges from Carroll’s lawyers. His remarks were particularly notable because they came four days before Trump’s debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, just as early voting begins in some parts of the country and Election Day is just two months away.

Trump is doing his best to stay in the public eye while Harris prepares privately for the debate and meets with her advisers in Pittsburgh, a reflection of their different campaign styles: Trump frequently chats with reporters — though often in friendly settings — while Harris has given just one interview and no press conferences since taking President Joe Biden’s place at the top of the Democratic ticket.

His team had announced Friday’s appearance as a press conference, and Trump repeatedly addressed Harris’ lack of attendance at press conferences. But Trump did not answer any questions and instead spoke for an hour about the allegations against him, barely mentioning campaign issues.

“I’m running for president and suddenly all these cases are popping up,” he said. “And they’re false cases.”

Trump’s campaign has raked in tens of millions of dollars from his previous indictments, convictions and court appearances. But it’s unclear how focusing on his legal troubles will help him now as he tries to win over undecided voters – including independents and undecideds in key swing states – ahead of a pivotal debate on Tuesday that is likely to draw tens of millions of viewers.

Trump has ignored his advisers’ advice to focus on politics

Trump’s attempt to use the allegations against him to go on the political offensive is reminiscent of 2016, when in the weeks before Election Day he tried to dismiss a recording in which he bragged about groping, forcibly kissing and sexually harassing women as mere “locker room talk,” which subsequently led to allegations of misconduct by several women.

But as he stood Friday in Trump Tower, where he lived for decades before moving to Florida, Trump experienced many moments that recalled an even more distant past.

He claimed that women had accused him of misconduct because he was famous. Three times he mentioned that he was famous in some circles as early as the 1970s and talked about his work in real estate and construction in the 1980s – before millions of today’s voters were born. At one point he referred to the New York Post’s famous gossip section “Page Six,” whose writers covered him for decades, as the Internet of his time.

Trump called Carroll’s indictment against him “Monica Lewinsky Part II,” referring to the then-White House intern who had a sexual relationship with President Bill Clinton and recalling an infamous dress that played a key role in Clinton’s impeachment in the late 1990s.

Trump’s supporters and advisers urged him to focus on policy differences with Harris rather than personal attacks in the closing stages of what remains an extremely close race. But as Trump spoke, two of his top political advisers were on the phone with Republican members of Congress, criticizing the media for being too soft on Harris and saying they were confident about the race for the White House.

The former president was accompanied at Trump Tower by his lawyers, some of whom also spoke in defense of their client.

Trump faces unprecedented criminal and civil risks for a major candidate

His appearance came after Trump was in court, where his lawyers argued for the overturning of a jury’s $5 million verdict that found him guilty of sexually abusing Carroll in 1996.

Jurors have now awarded Carroll large sums twice after Trump claimed she made up a story about his attack on her in a department store dressing room in 1996 to help her sell her memoirs. But that hasn’t stopped Trump from continuing to make nearly identical statements to reporters. At his press conference on Friday, he again said Carroll was telling a “fabricated, made-up story.”

Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, warned in March after a jury awarded Carroll an additional $83 million that she would continue to monitor Trump’s comments and would consider suing again if he continued. In a swift response to his comments Friday, Kaplan said in a statement, “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: All options are on the table.”

Meanwhile, as a major party candidate, Trump faces unprecedented criminal and civil consequences.

He was also found guilty on 34 counts in a New York state case involving hush money payments to a porn star. The judge in that case announced Friday that he would delay sentencing until after Election Day on Nov. 5.

Trump was also sentenced to pay large fines for lying about his wealth for years.

And he still faces cases accusing him of misusing classified documents, his actions after the 2020 election and his activities during the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 – although none of those cases are likely to go to trial before Election Day.