Despite numerous sexual misconduct allegations, President Donald Trump has endorsed Roy Moore for the Alabama special senate election, which will take place on December 12.
Moore has faced numerous accusations of not only preying on teenagers when he was in his 30s, but of sexual harassment and assault.
Moore is running against Democrat Doug Jones.
Trump has shown hesitancy in supporting Moore since the accusations have surfaced. He also supported Moore’s opponent Luther Strange in the GOP primary.
Trump also had said he would not campaign for Moore, but now he will travel to Pensacola, FL, which is close to Alabama’s border. From CNN:
In the initial aftermath of the report, Trump remained mum in public and his staff suggested the President did not support Moore because he was not campaigning in Alabama. But last week, the White House announced that Trump will hold an event in Pensacola, Florida — just 25 miles from the Alabama border — later this week. Late last month, he all but endorsed Moore.”He denies it. Look, he denies it,” Trump said of Moore. “If you look at all the things that have happened over the last 48 hours. He totally denies it. He says it didn’t happen. And look, you have to look at him also.”
Others in the GOP have revoked their support for Moore, but as the election draws closer, some have changed their minds:
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, for instance, told reporters in November that he believed the women who accused Moore of sexual harassment, and urged him to withdraw from the Senate race. But on Sunday, he said the people of Alabama should “make the call” on Moore.
All of this came to light last November after The Washington Post heard about stories of Moore targeting young girls when he was in his 30s. The first that dropped was about Leigh Corfman, who said Moore assaulted her when she was just 14.
On Sunday, Professor Jacobson blogged that polls have shown Moore in the lead against Jones. Polls have also shown that Moore achieved what he needed to in order to survive: reasonable doubt. A WaPo poll found that 35% of likely votes in the Alabama electorate “think Moore did make unwanted advances on teenage girls.” The poll found that 37% of the votes “are unsure or have no opinion.”
A CBS/YouGov poll discovered that 53% of Alabama voters “say the allegations against Moore are a concern, but that other things matter more.
The Trump endorsement may boost Moore farther ahead of Jones since 96% of those who will vote Moore approve of Trump.
Last month, Gloria Allred placed one of Moore’s accusers, Beverly Nelson, in front of the camera and claimed the victim had a yearbook supposedly with Moore’s handwriting. At the time, Jacobson blogged about Allred’s “refusal to produce” the yearbook “for forensic inspection.” In his post yesterday, Jacobson noted that no one still has not handed over the yearbook and “Allred has gone to ground and hasn’t been heard from recently.”
This has given Moore a louder voice to deny all these allegations. There has also been no new accusations or evidence.
However, we are still a week away from the election. As we have learned, anything can happen.
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