Donald Trump Was 'Obligated' To 'Inspect' Miss Universe Participants in Dressing Rooms

Donald Trump justified his widely backlashed action during the 1997 Miss Universe Pageant. In a series of audios retrieved by CNN, the former President chatting with Howard Stern insisted that he was "obligated" to go and check the Miss Universe candidates. While checking up on the candidates isn't any wrong, the participants later confessed they were naked when Trump barged in on them. 

Invading the privacy of the pageant candidates led to immense outrage against the ex-POTUS when he told Stern, "I’ll tell you the funniest is that I’ll go backstage before a show and everyone’s getting dressed. No men are anywhere, and I’m allowed to go in because I’m the owner of the pageant and therefore I’m inspecting it." He shared how he justified his deed, "‘Is everyone OK?’ You know, they’re standing there with no clothes. ‘Is everybody OK?’ And you see these incredible-looking women, and so I get away with things like that." The statement drew huge flak from people calling it an act of indecency. Four women who competed in the 1997 Miss Teen USA later came forward with their confessions on the incident. 

"I remember putting on my dress really quick because I was like, ‘Oh my god, there’s a man in here,’" said Mariah Billado, the former Miss Vermont Teen USA. According to a report by Buzzfeed in 2016, Billado recalled that Trump said something like, "Don’t worry, ladies, I’ve seen it all before." Another contestant Bridget Sullivan recalled, "The time that he walked through the dressing rooms was really shocking. We were all naked." Comparing Trump to a "creepy uncle" she said, "He’d hug you just a little low on your back."

The audio clip dates back to 2005 when Stern made an objectionable statement about pageant girls saying, "You own this pageant, you go over, you're meeting the girls. One of them comes up to you and says, 'Mr. Trump, you're a very sexy man. You're a beautiful man. You have fantastic hair. You're a powerful man... I want to sleep with you.' Now, you're not the type that would say no." To this Trump replied, "I don't want to hurt their feelings." Stern then asked, "Right. No, but you see a beautiful woman, you want to have that. You're a guy that likes to have everything, right?" Robin Quivers, who was also present with them adds, "Couldn't that be construed, however, as [conflict]?" Stern said, "I don't see it as conflict."

The Republican frontrunner for upcoming elections finally replied, "...could be a conflict of interest, but you know, it's the kind of thing you worry about later." Stern carried on with the inappropriate conversation saying, "You know, some of these girls, 'Mr. Trump, in my country, we say hello with the vagina.'" Trump defended himself by saying, "Well, you could also say as the owner of the pageant, it's your obligation to do that." 

This article originally appeared 2 months ago.