Trump Blames Democrats for Fueling Sexual Abuse Claims

 

Donald Trump¹ is blaming opposition² lawmakers for fueling stories that he abused women before becoming president of the United States.

On Monday, 56 members of the U.S. House of Representatives called on House leaders to investigate reports of sexual wrongdoing by Trump. All 56 are female and members of the Democratic Party.

Tuesday, the president denied knowing any of the women who claim he abused them. He published the denial on the social networking website Twitter.

Trump wrote that the Democrats⁴ have been unable to prove his presidential election campaign worked with Russia. He added that “they are moving on to the false accusations⁵ and fabricated stories of women who I don’t know and/or have never met.”

Trump also criticized New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat³. On Monday, Gillibrand told CNN she believed Trump’s accusers. She said many of their stories “are heartbreaking.”

Gillibrand joined three other Democratic senators in calling on Trump to resign from the presidency⁶ immediately. She said if he does not do so, Congress “should have appropriate investigations⁷ of his behavior and hold him accountable.”

On Twitter, Trump called Gillibrand a “lightweight.” He said she has “begged” him for campaign donations “and would do anything for them.”

On Monday, the 56 lawmakers sent a letter to Republican Congressman⁸ Trey Gowdy, who heads the House Committee on Oversight⁹ and Government Relations. The letter was also sent to Elijah Cummings, the top Democrat on the committee.

The letter noted¹⁰ that “at least 17 women have publicly accused the president of sexual misconduct.” It said “The American people deserve a full inquiry¹¹ into the truth of these allegations. The president’s own remarks appear to back up the allegations...(He) feels at liberty to perpetrate such conduct against women. We cannot ignore the multitude of women who have come forward with accusations against Mr. Trump.”

The letter invites Trump to provide evidence that will show he did not do what the women accuse him of doing.

Three women who accused Trump last year of making unwanted sexual advances repeated their claims on Monday. They called on Congress to investigate. They noted that many other powerful men have been punished recently for their mistreatment of women.

During the 2016 election campaign, at least 12 women accused Trump of sexual misconduct. He denied all of the accusations.

On Sunday, Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, spoke¹² in support of the growing number of women who have reported abuse.

Haley told CBS News that any woman who has felt violated or mistreated by a man has every right to stand up, even if she is accusing Trump.

“Women who accuse anyone should be heard,” Haley said. “They should be heard, and they should be dealt with.”

In a statement on Monday, the Trump administration again rejected the women’s claims against the president.

Also on Monday, administration spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said “we feel these allegations have been answered” by the results of the election. “The American people knew this and voted for the president,” she added.

I’m John Russell.

Words in This Story

fabricate – v. to create or make up (something, such as a story) in order to trick people

accountable – adj. required to explain actions or decisions to someone

lightweight – n. someone or something that has little importance or power

inquiry – n. an official effort to collect and examine information about something

at liberty – expression able to act or speak freely (followed by to + verb)

perpetrate – v. to do (something that is illegal or wrong)

multitude – adj. a great number of things or people (often + of)

advance – n. the act of speaking to someone in an effort to start a sexual relationship

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

3 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

4 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

6 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

7 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

8 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

9 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

12 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。