Did you know that former President Donald Trump is part of an ongoing trial in which he is accused of raping a woman in 1996? It’s the kind of thing that’s been in the news a bit less than one would expect.
Jean Carroll, a prominent New York journalist, came forward in 2019 and claimed that Trump had forced himself on her in the dressing room of a Manhattan department store in 1996. Carroll repeated the claims, always denied by Trump, in a book, and went on to sue Trump, claiming that Trump has harmed her reputation by denying the rape, and had insulted Carroll in the process. The case went to trial last week.
It is a civil case and not a criminal matter, so jail time is not on the table. Nevertheless, as Trump ramps up his presidential campaign, a loss in the case would mean that a court had adjudicated that Trump committed rape. In the case of most people not named Donald Trump, a jury finding against them in a civil rape trial would almost certainly spell the end of any presidential aspirations.
How much will that matter, going forward? After all, Trump was accused of various forms of sexual misconduct by at least 20 women in the weeks after the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape during the 2016 campaign.
Reports about the trial see it going well for Carroll’s side. Trump’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, wrote a letter over the weekend demanding a mistrial in the case, also asking Judge Lewis Kaplan to “correct the record for each and every instance in which the Court has mischaracterized the facts of this case to the jury.” That motion was reportedly denied.
The New Republic looked into the political question this week.
“This is still entirely hypothetical, I realize, but it seems to me that it’s about time for someone to start asking Republican elected officials: If this jury in New York finds in favor of E. Jean Carroll, are you going to be OK with having a rapist as your presidential candidate?” Michael Tomasky wrote.
After all, supporting Trump up until now has meant either disregarding such accusations against Trump — as well as the other wrongdoing the 45th president has been accused of, and in one case indicted for — or arguing that they are lies or the result of an ongoing conspiracy against the former president.
Tomasky predicted exactly how Republicans will react when they’re asked about a potential verdict against Trump in the trial.
“We know what the answers will be. The main answer will be, ‘Oh, so sorry, I gotta run,’ as the doors on the Senate subway quietly close. A second answer will be, ‘I have to run to a meeting.’ A third answer will be, ‘I dispute your phrasing, this was just a defamation case, no more.’” He also predicted that die-hard MAGA politicians like Rep. Jim Jordan and Rep. Matt Gaetz will answer along the lines of, “This was a rigged case from the start! Of course, a bunch of Manhattan liberals found for the woman. Donald Trump is an innocent man!”
It’s virtually certain that no verdict in the Carroll trial will cause the GOP to drop Trump as their standard bearer. However, such a verdict would likely hurt Trump with women voters, a demographic with which he already struggles.
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Expertise and Experience:
Stephen Silver is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive. He is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.
