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NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump’s behavior toward women, long a source of flashpoints in his political career, now faces a new level of scrutiny: a trial in a lawsuit accusing him of rape.
Jury selection is set to start Tuesday in the case filed by former advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, who says Trump raped her in a luxury New York department store dressing room in the 1990s.
Trump, who is unlikely to attend the trial, has called the accusations “a complete con job.” Carroll, who is seeking unspecified damages, casts the case as a #MeToo-inspired quest for accountability from the epitome of prominent men.
“I’m filing this lawsuit not just for myself but for every woman in America who has been grabbed, groped, harassed, sexually assaulted and has spoken up and still has been disgraced, shamed or fired,” Carroll said early on.
The lawsuit is putting Trump’s history with women under a microscope as he runs to return to the White House. But if a trial over a rape accusation would be a crisis for most candidates, with Trump, it remains to be seen.
“To the extent that the chaos around Trump is his biggest challenge, this reinforces that narrative,” said Alex Conant, a Republican strategist who worked on Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign. “The No. 1 thing I hear in focus groups of Republican voters is that they’re tired of the constant drama that comes with Trump.”
https://apnews.com/article/trump-carroll-columnist-rape-lawsuit-trial-d42b3034c049cecd10718746ca87e1e4