President Trump wants Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore to “step aside” if allegations of sexual misconduct against him are proven true, the White House said Friday.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters traveling with Trump in Asia he does not believe “a mere allegation” from many years ago should “destroy a person’s life.”
“However, the president also believes that if these allegations are true, Judge Moore will do the right thing and step aside,” she said. {mosads}
The comment came in response to a bombshell report published by The Washington Post, in which an Alabama woman said Moore initiated a sexual encounter with her when she was 14 years old and he was 32.
Three other women said they had similar experiences with Moore, the GOP’s Senate nominee in Alabama, when they were teenagers.
Moore’s campaign denied the report, saying in a statement “this garbage is the very definition of fake news and intentional defamation.”
The former chief judge of the Alabama Supreme Court has refused to quit the race. “I will NEVER GIVE UP the fight!” he tweeted Thursday evening.
Trump’s response was in line with most congressional Republican leaders, who also called on Moore to quit the race if the allegations were proven true.
A handful of Senate Republicans, including John McCain (Ariz.), said unequivocally that Moore should step aside as the nominee.
The woman, Leigh Corfman, spoke to The Washington Post on the record and her account was backed up by her mother. The other women also gave on-the-record interviews to the newspaper.
Trump endorsed Moore’s rival, incumbent Sen. Luther Strange, in the Alabama GOP primary. The men ran to fill the seat vacated by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
After Moore defeated Strange, Trump threw his support behind the former judge.
“Spoke to Roy Moore of Alabama last night for the first time. Sounds like a really great guy who ran a fantastic race. He will help to #MAGA!” the president tweeted in September.
The allegations cast a cloud over the president’s marathon trip to Asia. They become public just as Trump was set to arrive in Vietnam for a major economic summit with Asian leaders.
“The president must and will remain focused on representing our country on his historic trip to Asia, where he has been treated with great respect and made unprecedented progress in further strengthening alliances and promoting America’s interest above all else,” Sanders said.