Major 2020 presidential candidates remain largely silent on latest sexual assault allegation against Trump

Elle columnist E. Jean Carroll accused President Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her in a department-store dressing room in the mid-1990s.
Yet, in the wake of Carroll’s scathing accusations, most major 2020 presidential contenders are largely silent on the issue.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio have said they were less than shocked by the latest allegations.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio urged Carroll to report the alleged attack so that police could investigate. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, meanwhile, questioned the effectiveness of a congressional probe.
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Several Democratic presidential contenders have weighed in on recent sexual assault allegations against President Donald Trump, but most remained silent in the 24 hours since the latest bombshell accusations were published.

Elle columnist E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of attacking her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in the mid-1990s. She made the allegations in an excerpt from her new book, "What Do We Need Men For?" published in New York Magazine on Friday.

"The moment the dressing-room door is closed, he lunges at me, pushes me against the wall, hitting my head quite badly, and puts his mouth against my lips," Carroll wrote of her encounter with Trump. "He seizes both my arms and pushes me up against the wall a second time, and, as I become aware of how large he is, he holds me against the wall with his shoulder and jams his hand under my coat dress and pulls down my tights."

She continued:

"The next moment, still wearing correct business attire, shirt, tie, suit jacket, overcoat, he opens the overcoat, unzips his pants, and, forcing his fingers around my private area, thrusts his penis halfway — or completely, I’m not certain — inside me. It turns into a colossal struggle. I finally get a knee up high enough to push him out and off and I turn, open the door, and run out of the dressing room."

Major 2020 presidential contenders are largely silent on the issue

New York Magazine confirmed Carroll’s account with two close friends, both female journalists, whom she confided in decades ago. The president vehemently denied Carroll’s allegations, going so far as to say he’s never met the columnist (despite photo evidence of them together.)

While at least 23 other women have, since the 1970s, accused Trump of sexual misconduct, including assault, Carroll’s rape allegation is among the most serious public allegations to emerge against the president thus far.

Yet, in the wake of Carroll’s scathing accusations, major 2020 presidential contenders are largely silent on the issue. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts is among the only to comment.

When asked if she believes Congress should investigate, Warren responded: "Look, we know Donald Trump’s character and it’s revealed every single day. There aren’t any real surprises here just the details."

Several other candidates, like Warren, appeared less than shocked by the allegations. Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio said it was "worrisome" that so little outrage has erupted.

"There are a lot of people who aren’t surprised by anything he does, which has happened over time," Ryan said, according to The Washington Post. He added that if the allegations "seem legitimate, we should move forward with some kind of hearings and further investigate."

But Washington Gov. Jay Inslee questioned whether any type of congressional probe would reveal something about Trump that hadn’t already been known.

"You probably don’t need another thing to prove that this is a person who is deceptive, repeatedly, lies as a matter of habit, and is a backstabber, cork-screwer, and dirty dealer par excellence," Inslee told The Post. "So is that necessary to add to that pile? I don’t know the answer to that."

Carroll says she doesn’t want to pursue rape charges

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio was also asked by reporters about Carroll, and said her allegations were "incredibly troubling" and that the New York Police Department was "ready to do a full investigation" if Carroll requests one.

"We need a formal complaint so we can act, but we are ready immediately to do a full investigation," de Blasio said, according to The Washington Post. "When you think about the fact that there have been, I think, 14 women who have come out previously alleging harassment and abuse of one kind or another, and there has still not been an investigation of that? I do not understand where our justice system is right now."

But Carroll said in an interview with MSNBC that she won’t pursue a rape charge against the president because she "would find it disrespectful to the women who are down on the border who are being raped around the clock down there without any protection."

"Mine was three minutes, I’m a mature woman, I can handle it, I can keep going, my life has gone on, I’m a happy woman," Carroll said. "For the women around the world… it seems disrespectful, it doesn’t make sense to me."

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