How Trump came around to an accused child molester
The inside story of President Donald Trump’s full embrace of scandal-tarred Roy Moore.
By ELIANA JOHNSON and ALEX ISENSTADT 12/11/2017 05:00 AM EST
Mitch McConnell had publicly disavowed Roy Moore when the Senate majority leader received one of several phone calls from President Donald Trump. McConnell wanted Trump’s help to push Moore out of the Alabama Senate race after he’d been accused of harassing or molesting teenage girls.
Instead, the president's response left the straight-laced McConnell aghast.
Trump, according to three sources briefed on the discussions, cast doubt on the claims leveled by Moore's accusers. Who were these women, he asked, and why had they kept quiet for 40 years only to level charges weeks before an election?
Trump’s sentiment — he has also complained privately that the avalanche of charges taking down prominent men is spinning out of control — helps explain the president’s evolving attitude toward Moore over the past three weeks, when he has gone from uncharacteristic silence to a full-throated endorsement of the controversial candidate. The shift has benefited both men, helping the scandal-tarred Moore bounce back from what looked like a probable defeat to become a slight favorite in Tuesday’s special election — and offering the president a chance to claim credit if Moore ekes out a win.
Trump capped his endorsement at a Friday night rally in Pensacola, Florida, just 20 miles from the Alabama border. It was designed to be a crafty sleight-of-hand — a way for Trump to help Moore without venturing directly into Alabama. But by the time Air Force One touched down in the Florida Panhandle, a person close to Trump said, he might as well have been in Mobile or Birmingham. He was all in for the accused child molester.
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https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/11/roy-moore-trump-republicans-288769
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