Karen McDougal Once Subtly Called Out Donald Trump in a Risqué Bathroom Photo

Earlier this year, Karen McDougal, a former Playboy Playmate, made a suggestive statement on social media. McDougal, who previously claimed to have had an affair with Donald Trump, subtly called him out just hours before he appeared in court for another day in his hush money trial. The post, shared on May 5, featured McDougal soaking in a bubble bath, with her legs visible, and a glass of wine on a tray beside Ronan Farrow's book Catch and Kill, Radar Online reported.

Farrow's best-selling book detailed the practices of tabloid newspapers in suppressing negative stories about celebrities, a tactic known as 'catch and kill'. American Media Inc., the owner of The National Enquirer, has been implicated in assisting Donald with various catch-and-kill operations over the years. McDougal, who American Media Inc. allegedly paid $150,000 to acquire the rights to her story about the purported affair with Donald, never saw her story published. Instead, she was offered a job at one of the company's magazines. At the time, on her X account, McDougal typically wrote about Jesus or sports, avoiding directly mentioning Donald, according to the Daily Mail.

In November 2016, sources close to McDougal alleged that she had engaged in an affair with Donald from 2006 to 2007, lasting approximately 10 months. McDougal later confirmed this account during an interview with Anderson Cooper. She stated that she met Donald in June 2006, at a pool party held at the Playboy Mansion. At the time, Donald, aged 60, had recently married Melania Trump and had their son, Barron Trump. McDougal claimed that after their initial sexual encounter, Donald attempted to give her money and that she visited him many times throughout their relationship.

According to the former model, she first met Donald back when he was hosting Celebrity Apprentice, at a pool party by Hugh Hefner at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles. McDougal made an impression on the future president by wearing a see-through dress over her swimsuit, which caught his attention. She said, "He called a few days later and asked me to have dinner with him at the Beverly Hills Hotel. I'm ashamed about it now because I knew he was married but at the time it was out of sight, out of mind. I was a different girl then, having fun and not thinking about things too deeply."

Additionally, during an interview, McDougal also offered an apology to Melania. She said, “What can you say except, I’m sorry? I’m sorry. I wouldn’t want it done to me, I’m sorry. Going through it when I look back at where I was back then, I know it’s wrong, I am really sorry for that. I know it’s the wrong thing to do." She added, “There was a real relationship there. There were real feelings between the two of us, not just myself, not just him…Deep inside, I did have a lot of guilt but I still continued." 

This article originally appeared 6 months ago.