Access Hollywood: "Grab 'Em by the Pussy"
A 2005 recording captured Trump bragging about sexually assaulting women: "I don't even wait... Grab 'em by the pussy." Multiple women came forward with accusations consistent with his description. The tape was later linked to the hush money felony case.
On October 7, 2016, The Washington Post published a 2005 recording from an Access Hollywood bus in which Trump bragged about sexually assaulting women:
"I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything... Grab 'em by the pussy."
The tape surfaced one month before the 2016 election and two days before the second presidential debate. Trump issued a rare apology, calling it "locker room talk."
Multiple women subsequently came forward with accusations of sexual assault and harassment consistent with Trump's own description of his behavior. Trump denied all accusations and later reportedly questioned the tape's authenticity — despite having publicly apologized for it.
Prosecutors in the 2024 hush money trial called the tape the "catalyst" for the $130,000 Stormy Daniels payment — Trump's team scrambled to suppress additional stories after the tape's release, leading to the falsified business records that resulted in 34 felony convictions.