In 2016, when Donald Trump was first elected president, today’s 18-year-olds were only 10. So when Trump leaked footage of himself bragging about sexually assaulting women in a truly horrifying October surprise that year, they didn’t quite understand what the tape meant. Or know what to do with it, if they are even aware of it.
Now, Gen Z’s new voters are rediscovering the infamous Access Hollywood tape, with some hearing it in full for the first time. Young TikTokers are creating Video of Trump reacting to the audio of the tape with a sad face“Grab ’em by the pussy,” she laughs as she approaches the infamous line. The most popular one has almost 1 million views.
“It’s actually pretty crazy,” Surprised one commenter on such a video. Another added, “Why isn’t it blowing up more?!” Another: “I can’t even process it.” Dozens and dozens of them say: “Boost.” You can tell that new viewers and legions of commenters find the tape important and want more people to see it, because it’s one of those Trump things that most of the rest of us have stopped talking about.
It’s become a truism among adults — especially older, angry Democrats — who have lived through the Trump era that “attacks don’t matter.” No matter how bad Trump’s words and actions are, nothing seems to stop his relentless, exhausting political momentum. That’s the power of his countless scandals: so many of them so far to the point where we simply thought the line of acceptable behavior was it’s easy to become numb. It’s easy to let yourself forget Donald Trump’s numerous sins.
Seeing Gen Z absorb this particular Trump scandal anew for the first time, though, is a reminder that Trump’s misdeeds, especially his decades of blatant, unapologetic sexual misconduct, can and should still shock. It’s worth keeping specifics in mind before we head into the voting booth in 2024, an election that will almost certainly see millions voting for a known sex offender and end up with him in the White House.
So don’t forget.
Let’s not forget that Donald Trump bragged on a hot mic about sexually assaulting women, boasting, “And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Catch them by the pussy. You can do anything. “
Let’s not forget that last year journalist E. Trump was held civilly liable for sexually assaulting Jean Carroll, with a jury concluding that a preponderance of the evidence showed he violently and nonconsensually forced himself on her.
Let’s not forget that at least 21 women have accused Trump of sexual harassment.
Let’s not forget that one of Trump’s accusers was his ex-wife Ivana, who said under oath that he violently and vindictively raped her. (He later said he did not want his words to be taken “in a literal or criminal sense.”)
Let’s not forget that Donald Trump put a judge on the Supreme Court who was accused of sexual harassment by multiple women.
Let’s not forget that Donald Trump elected that justice and two others to the court with an express purpose Undermining women’s right to reproductive freedom. Let’s not forget that his Supreme Court did what it was designed to do and got rid of legal protections for abortion.
Let us not forget that after the courts struck down this right, Trump bragged That their decision “was only possible because I delivered on everything I promised, including nominating and confirming three highly respected and powerful constitutionalists to the Supreme Court of the United States. It was my great honor to do so!”
This is just some of what Trump has done to women. There are many other things to remember.
One of the values of the new generation of political actors is that they can help the rest of us see tired old atrocities again clearly and clearly. The moral clarity of youth can be strong; When the country is on the brink of re-electing a sex offender, this becomes invaluable.
Maybe nothing matters. But let’s at least not forget any of it.
