Trump weighs in on sexual assault allegations against Roy Moore

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday commented on the sexual assault allegations against Alabama Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore. The POTUS stressed that Moore has totally denied the claims.

"He denies it; look, he denies it," Trump told reporters on the South Lawn of the White House. He pointed out that Moore said the claims did not happen and that “you have to look at him also.”

Trump suggested that Moore's opponent, Democrat Doug Jones, must be out of the Senate. He said one thing for sure is that “we don't need a liberal Democrat in there.”

It was the first time Trump has commented about sexual assault allegations involving Moore since The Washington Post published allegations by some women against the Alabama Republican Senate candidate. One of the women said she was 14 when Moore sexually assaulted her. Another five women came forward about sexual advances allegedly done by Moore that made them uncomfortable. At one point, when he was working as a prosecutor in the District Attorney's office, Moore was allegedly banned from a local mall in Gadsden, Alabama, due to his aggressive sexual pursuit of young girls.

When asked about his message for women, Trump said women are "very special,” and that he appeared pleased that the media has been focusing heavily on sexual harassment allegations. The US leader left open the chances that he would campaign for Moore ahead of a special election on December 12. Since the news of the allegations broke, the latter has fallen in the polls, notes CNBC.

"I'll be letting you know next week about campaigning," Trump told reporters. As the POTUS prepared to board Marine One, he added that “we don’t need someone who's soft on crime” in the Senate.

Men from multiple industries were recently at the centre of allegations of sexual harassment, including Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, Democratic leaders John Conyers and Al Franken and former CBS News host Charlie Rose. Trump believes the Congress must publicise the names of lawmakers who have settled harassment claims.

Trump refused to comment on allegations of sexual misconduct against Franken. He said he did not want to speak for Franken as he did not know what happened. The president maintained that the latter has to speak for himself.