President Trump sometimes tells the story of how Reince Priebus reacted to his Access Hollywood tape 'for laughs'

(Image credit: Aude Guerrucci-Pool/Getty Images)

published 29 March 2017

Things did not look good for Donald Trump's presidential campaign in October of last year, when a 2005 Access Hollywood tape of Trump bragging about forcing himself on women was leaked. "When you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything," said Trump shortly after he had married his current wife, Melania. "Grab them by the p---y. You can do anything."

Trump's comments disturbed Democrats and Republicans alike, with House Speaker Paul Ryan calling them indefensible. But today, Trump "laughs" at the reaction of his chief of staff, Reince Priebus, The Associated Press reports:

For laughs, Trump will sometimes recount a tense exchange with Priebus at one of the campaign's lowest moments: the release of a video in which Trump is heard making predatory comments about women. During an emergency campaign meeting, Priebus told Trump he should either drop out of the race or risk dragging down Republican candidates across the country. [The Associated Press]

Chief strategist Stephen Bannon claims that it isn't Preibus' prediction that Trump finds funny, but the fact that he showed up to talk to Trump at all. "Reince had the courage to get on a train in Washington, D.C., go to Penn Station, go to Trump Tower and come to the meeting," Bannon told AP. "That's courage."

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.