Republicans Cut Ties With Trump Adviser After Sexual Misconduct Claim -- Yet Stick By Trump

A GOP donor said Corey Lewandowski harassed her at a recent charity event in Las Vegas.
A GOP donor has accused Corey Lewandowski, who served as Donald Trump's campaign manager in 2015 and 2016, of sexually harassing her at a recent event.
A GOP donor has accused Corey Lewandowski, who served as Donald Trump's campaign manager in 2015 and 2016, of sexually harassing her at a recent event.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Associated Press

Several Republicans have cut ties with Corey Lewandowski, once a top adviser to Donald Trump, after a GOP donor accused him of sexually harassing her at a recent event.

Yet those same Republicans have no problem standing by the former president himself, a man who has faced far more sexual misconduct allegations.

On Wednesday, Politico reported that Trashelle Odom, the wife of Idaho construction executive John Odom, said Lewandowski harassed her ― both physically and verbally ― at a charity event Sunday in Las Vegas.

“He repeatedly touched me inappropriately, said vile and disgusting things to me, stalked me, and made me feel violated and fearful,” she said. Multiple attendees confirmed Odom’s account of events.

An attorney for Lewandowski told Politico, “Accusations and rumors appear to be morphing by the minute and we will not dignify them with a further response.”

The fallout has been swift for Lewandowski, who served as Trump’s first presidential campaign manager.

After the report, a pro-Trump super PAC said Lewandowski would no longer be overseeing the committee and would “no longer be associated with Trump World.”

But Trump himself is facing sexual misconduct allegations from at least 26 women ― far more than Lewandowski. Women have accused Trump of grabbing their breasts and putting his hands up their skirts, forcibly kissing them and other forms of sexual assault.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) also broke off ties with Lewandowski this week, as did Nebraska gubernatorial candidate Charles Herbster. Noem has stood by Trump and worked to cultivate her ties to the former president, and Herbster has boasted about his long friendship with Trump and his deep, intense loyalty ― all despite the many sexual misconduct accusations.

Lewandowski has angered Trump’s circle in the past, including conflicts with the former president’s family. Yet Trump has not completely cut him off, and it’s not clear whether it will happen this time either.

In 2016, Lewandowski ― then Trump’s campaign manager ― was charged with a misdemeanor count of battery for forcibly grabbing reporter Michelle Fields and yanking her away from Trump. Lewandowski and Trump both denied the interaction had taken place, even though video later backed up Fields’ complaint.

Trump nevertheless stuck by his staffer, saying, “I don’t discard people. I stay with people.”

The charges were later dropped.

In 2017, a pro-Trump singer named Joy Villa also filed a complaint saying that Lewandowski slapped her on the buttocks during an event at the Trump International Hotel in Washington.

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot