This year's presidential election has brought with it a media storm of coverage that's arguably unlike anything American politics has seen before. At least partly (read: mostly) responsible for this uproar is the celebrity of hotel-and-steak-tycoon Donald Trump, who is enjoying a rebirth as the Republican nominee.
Through all of the sensationalism, it's become easy to lose sight of who Trump is, and, in particular, how he treats and relates to women.
With the Republican presidential nominee intentionally (and routinely) making outlandish statements and creating countless distractions throughout his campaign, it's no surprise that the real story can get lost amidst this Trump-induced madness. But that's precisely why it's so helpful to take stock of what Trump has said throughout the years, as opposed to the multitudes that have been written about him.
Take a look at some notable (and some more obscure) Donald Trump quotes relating to women, and decide for yourself what his own words reveal about the type of president he would make.
We think you'll agree that it isn't pretty.
First, there's the lewd and sexist remarks Trump made to Billy Bush while on the set of "Access Hollywood." During their conversation, which The Washington Post first reported on, Trump boasts about trying to sleep with a married woman and also has this to say about his male celebrity status:
"You know I'm automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the p***y — you can do anything.”
Trump made it clear in an interview with Esquire that he doesn't care what public opinion of him is as long as he has a beautiful woman on his arm. Spoiler: He used a different word for “woman”:
“You know, it doesn't really matter what [the media] write as long as you've got a young and beautiful piece of ass.”
He even referenced the women he's been with as a differentiating factor between him and the other candidates for president:
“I think the only difference between me and the other candidates is that I'm more honest, and my women are more beautiful.”
After a long history of making disparaging comments against former Miss Universe Alicia Machado, Donald trumped himself with a recent 3 am tweet that alleged she had recorded a sex tape, a debunked (and bizarre) claim that has no factual basis:
"Did Crooked Hillary help disgusting (check out sex tape and past) Alicia M become a U.S. citizen so she could use her in the debate?"
But more than objectifying the women in his life, Trump has never hesitated in taking down public female figures. Just look at what he famously said about Rosie O'Donnell on Entertainment Tonight:
“Rosie O'Donnell is disgusting — both inside and out. If you take a look at her, she's a slob. How does she even get on television? If I were running 'The View,' I'd fire Rosie. I'd look her right in that fat, ugly face of hers and say, 'Rosie, you're fired.'”
Or how he attacked Angelina Jolie's appearance on Larry King Live after being asked about Jolie's falling out with her father, Jon Voight:
“I really understand beauty. And I will tell you, she's not — I do own Miss Universe. I do own Miss USA. I mean, I own a lot of different things. I do understand beauty, and she's not.”
Megyn Kelly bore the brunt of it, of course, after Trump attacked her on CNN for asking him about his history of sexist comments during one of the Republican presidential debates. Obviously her astute question was dictated by that time of the month:
“There was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever.”
If you're one of his female opponents, watch out. The jabs get more personal, like this one he lobbed at his Republican primary opponent, Carly Fiorina:
“Look at that face. Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president? I mean, she's a woman, and I'm not supposed to say bad things, but really, folks, come on. Are we serious?”
It's more than just the personal attacks, though. It's about the outrageous things he's said about political issues concerning women. For example, when discussing his desire to overturn Roe v. Wade, here's how he said he'd deal with women who seek abortions:
“There has to be some form of punishment.”
Let's also not forget when Trump blamed the rape of military women on all members of the United States Armed Services, not just the men who sexually assaulted their fellow service members, as he did in this 2013 tweet:
“26,000 unreported sexual assaults in the military — only 238 convictions. What did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together?”
And finally, here's how Trump reacted when a woman told him at a town hall she wanted equal pay:
“You're gonna make the same if you do as good a job.”
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