DFL Leaders held a Sunday morning conference to discuss the vulgar remarks about women Donald Trump made in 2005. The video was uncovered just this past Friday. DFL party chair Ken Martin and several female DFL legislators spoke.
Martin started the press conference with a statement
We came together today not to call upon Republicans to disavow these comments, it’s too late for that – the Republican party and its elected officials embraced him, they enabled him and they fueled his hateful, bigoted, misogynistic comments for months.
The Republican Party stood by him when he called Mexicans murderers and rapists.
The Republican Party stood by him when he said he would ban all Muslims from entering the country.
They stood by him when he viciously attacked a Gold Star family.
The Republican Party stood with him when he made fun of people with disabilities.
They stood with him when he attacked and demeaned war heroes like John McCain.
The Republicans stood by when he attacked women time and time again from Megyn Kelly to Alicia Machado.
Now, after months of condoning, embracing, enabling and standing by Donald Trump’s outrageous behavior, Republicans like Erik Paulsen, Jason Lewis, and Stewart Mills act surprised as if this is the first time they were confronted with his completely unacceptable behavior.
No, Republicans don’t get to shed any responsibility by conveniently condemning Donald Trump’s actions now. Where were Erik Paulsen, Jason Lewis, Stewart Mills and the rest of the Republican Party for the last year as their candidate and now standard-bearer made these comments? Where was their outrage as Trump engaged in the most divisive, hate-fueled, misogynistic, bigoted, and racist campaign we have seen in modern history?
Several female DFL lawmakers spoke about Trump’s comments as well.
People who label the lewd comments Donald Trump made about women as “locker room talk” are disrespecting men and threatening women says Minnesota State Representative Laurie Halverson.
She was responding to a comment former Congresswoman Michele Bachmann made about what Trump had said about women that was captured on tape in 2005 and just recently released.
” I would also say that disrespects men in this country. My husband would never talk like that about a woman…in his life. My son will never talk about a woman like that in his life. And to say that’s the way men behave and men talk, again that is more enabling of this kind of behavior that perpetuates violence against women, that make women unsafe in their homes, that make women unsafe in public spaces and that has to end. Period.
Scheduled to speak are:
DFL Chair Ken Martin
Rep. Erin Murphy
Rep. Sandy Masin
Rep. Laurie Halverson
Rep. Peggy Flanagan
Rep. Patricia Torres Ray
Rep. JoAnn Ward
Sen. Sandy Pappas
Sen. Susan Kent
Sen. Kari Dziedzic