AP Photo/LM Otero
- A former British spy included the unverified claim in a collection of memos now known as the Steele dossier.
- Trump has repeatedly denied claims of the existence of the tape, and the dossier's claim is unsubstantiated.
- "I'm not into golden showers," said the former president on Thursday.
Former President Trump denied claims that he'd ever had any interaction with Russian sex workers during Thursday remarks to a group of Republicans in Palm Beach, Florida, according to Josh Dawsey and Michael Scherer of The Washington Post.
"I'm not into golden showers," he said, according to The Post. "You know the great thing, our great first lady - 'That one,' she said, 'I don't believe that one.'"
The "golden showers" comment refers to unverified claims made in what is now known as the Steele dossier - a collection of memos put together by former British spy Christopher Steele during the 2016 presidential election looking into Trump's ties to Russia.
While some of the dossier's claims have been substantiated, as Insider's Sonam Sheth breaks down in a very helpful piece, salacious claims of a pee-tape have not been verified.
"The dossier said Trump rented the presidential suite at the Ritz-Carlton in Moscow during a trip to Russia in 2013. While staying at the hotel, the document says, Trump hired Russian prostitutes to perform sexual acts in front of him which involved urination," Sheth previously explained. "The hotel is said to be monitored by Russian intelligence, and the dossier alleged that Russian authorities obtained footage of the events which they then used as leverage over Trump."
There is no evidence that this tape exists. Trump has denied the claims and called the dossier "a pile of garbage."
The dossier was referenced by both the FBI and the Senate Intelligence Committee when they were investigating Russia's interference in the 2016 election and whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia. (Special counsel Robert Muller found that Russia did interfere in the 2016 election but did not have sufficient evidence that the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia. Mueller's findings did not exonerate Trump on obstruction of justice, but left that question to Congress citing a DOJ policy.)
On Thursday, according to The Post, the former president brought up the claim during the National Republican Senatorial Committee donor retreat - without having been asked about the topic. The group included senators and GOP strategists.
The Office of Donald Trump and the NRSC did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
In addition to bringing up the "golden showers," Trump repeatedly made baseless claims about 2020 election fraud.
from Business Insider https://ift.tt/2YU7ihj
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