Controversial ex-US President Donald Trump has a long history of making derogatory comments about women.
The Republican candidate, 78, holds a significant advantage with male voters, while Democratic Party leader Kamala Harris, 60, commands a lead with female electorates. This stark gender divide is playing a huge role in the 2024 US election.
Just last week, a Harris campaign left Republicans gobsmacked as it encouraged wives to vote differently from their Trump-supporting husbands. Actress Julia Roberts voiced the ad and said: "You can vote any way you want. And no one will ever know."
Two women can be seen making knowing eye contact before voting Harris, then assure their other halves they "made the right choice". But some conservatives have likened the move to "having an affair" and "violating" the trust in marriage.
Meanwhile, Trump was recently slammed for making a "threatening" statement in which he vowed to protect women - even if they didn't like it. He said at his MAGA rally that he'd been warned by staff to not make his "inappropriate" comments - but he did it anyway.
Impersonating a staffer begging him not to say the follow-up, he continued in a bizarre speech: "'Sir, please don't say that... we think it's very inappropriate to say so'. Why? I'm President, I want to protect the women of our country.. Well, I'm going to do it whether the women like it or not."
The statement, as warned, did not go down well. One person wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "It's actually hilarious how he somehow made his pandering sound threatening."
Despite claiming that he's desperate to protect women, his track record suggests anything but. So, what else has the former president said about the opposite sex? Here, the Mirror takes a look...
Image:
AFP/Getty Images)#MeToo movement
Trump has previously described forcing himself upon women and has advised men to deny sexual harassment no matter the truth. In 2018, as the #MeToo movement was brought back into force, Trump said: "It's a very scary time for young men in America, where you can be guilty of something you may not be guilty of... women are going great."
That same year, he said: "You've got to deny, deny, deny and push back on these women. If you admit to anything and any culpability, then you're dead. … You've got to be strong. You've got to be aggressive. You've got to push back hard. You've got to deny anything that's said about you. Never admit."
Abortion
In 2016, Trump was interviewed on MSNBC News and shared his strong views on abortion. He was asked to confirm if he believes in 'punishment' for abortion, and he responded: "There has to be some form of punishment." When questioned what type, he was unable to give an answer - but confirmed it's women who should be punished in his view.
The Apprentice stars
The former Apprentice businessman made many shocking comments about female contestants during his time on the show. He belittled their qualifications in a way that many view as open sexism, and attempted to repeatedly embarrass them. In 2004, he said: "All of the women on The Apprentice flirted with me - consciously or unconsciously. That's to be expected."
That same year, he said: "It's certainly not groundbreaking news that the early victories by the women on The Apprentice were, to a very large extent, dependent on their sex appeal." And in 2013, he said to a contestant: "That must be a pretty picture, you dropping to your knees."
Hillary Clinton
Trump has long had a political rivalry with Hillary Clinton and made vile comments about her sexually. Back in 2015, Trump slammed the then-presidential candidate on Twitter and posted: "If Hillary Clinton can't satisfy her husband, what makes her think she can satisfy America?"
Carly Fiorina
That same year, he told Rolling Stones that then-presidential candidate Carly Fiorina shouldn't be taken seriously because of her gender. He said: "Look at that face. Would anybody vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president? I mean, she's a woman, and I'm not supposed to say bad things, but really, folks, come on. Are we serious?"
Ivanka Trump
Trump has a long track record of making inappropriate comments about his own daughter, Ivanka Trump. In a 2006 radio interview with Howard Stern, he discussed if Ivanka had gotten breast implants. He said: "She's actually always been very voluptuous. She's tall, she's almost 6 feet tall and she's an amazing beauty."
In another interview, which CNN uncovered from 2004, Stern asked Trump if he could call Ivanka "a piece of ass", to which Trump responded: "Yeah". He also said: "She does have a very nice figure... if she weren't my daughter, perhaps I'd be dating her."
Image:
Getty Images)Melania Trump
It's not just his daughter's breasts that Trump feels comfortable discussing, but his wife's too. In 2005, Trump was asked if he would stay with Melania Trump if she was disfigured in a car crash. He grimly responded: "How do the breasts look?"
In Melania's 2024 memoir, she wrote that she does not align with "all of Donald's decisions" in a cryptic dig to his outspoken beliefs. She also explained that while they "may share the same last name", the Trumps are all on different "paths" of their own.
Kim Kardashian
In 2014, Trump was on The Howard Stern Show when he was crudely asked to choose between Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Lopez - and chose neither. He said: "I'd pass on both of them." Asked if "Kim's butt was big", he said: "Well, absolutely. It's record-setting. In the old days, they'd say she has a bad body."
Princess Diana
Back in 1997, Trump gloated that he believed he could have slept with the late Princess Diana. Just three weeks after her death, he was asked if he could have "nailed" the British princess, and he gloated: "I think I could have."
Miss Universe
As well as celebrities, Trump has openly commented on the appearances of journalists. Discussing the judging of the 2014 Miss Universe competition, Trump said to a female reporter: "We could say, politically correct, that the look doesn't matter, but the look obviously matters. Like you wouldn't have your job if you weren't beautiful."
Kamala Harris
Trump has repeatedly mocked Kamala Harris for being a woman. Speaking about the Vice President on Fox News earlier this year, Trump said: "They put her in, and she somehow - a woman - somehow she's doing better than [President Joe Biden] did."
Women's rights have featured significantly in the Democrats' campaigning, having defended the right to abortion and protecting women's health. Among those helping to spread the message is former First Lady Michelle Obama, who said in a fiery speech that Trump does not have the "emotional maturity" to rise to the challenge.
She said: "Do you think Donald Trump is thinking about the consequences for the millions of women who will be living in medical deserts? Does anyone think he has the emotional maturity and foresight to come up with a plan to protect us?"
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