Billy Bush tells Stephen Colbert about his infamous Access Hollywood bus ride with Trump

President Trump's private assertions that it wasn't actually him bragging about groping women in 2005 on the Access Hollywood bus have been met with public reminders from both Access Hollywood and Billy Bush that yes, it was Trump on the bus. Bush spoke to Stephen Colbert on Monday's Late Show about the op-ed he wrote in The New York Times about the bus incident, his subsequent firing by NBC, Matt Lauer, and what Trump's odd brags mean. "By the way," Bush said to Trump, "I would also like to say that's not me on the bus. You don't get to say that, because I was there and the last 14 months of my life I have been dealing with it. You dealt with it for 14 minutes and went on to be the president."
Colbert said that Trump denying being on the bus was "the dumbest thing he could have done," because "no one would have printed" Bush's op-ed and "I couldn't show this footage of the bus unless he denied it again, too. I don't think CBS would let me." Trump's denial "infuriated me on the personal front, and then I ended up googling, and I read an article with all these women's accounts [of Trump harassment], because when that article first came out, it was 13 days after I'd been fired, so I was in my own personal shock," Bush said. "You're reopening wounds on them, too. Enough's enough. Stop playing around with people's lives."
Colbert played the Access Hollywood tape, and Bush called it a "gut punch" now, as it was the first time he heard it, three days before it leaked. In 2005, however, he said he assumed it was crass standup braggadocio. "If I had thought there was a man detailing a sexual assault strategy to me, I would have called the FBI, not just reported it to my executive producer," he said. Watch below. Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
5 exclusive cartoons about Trump and Putin negotiating peace
Cartoons Artists take on alternative timelines, missing participants, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The AI arms race
Talking Point The fixation on AI-powered economic growth risks drowning out concerns around the technology which have yet to be resolved
By The Week UK Published
-
Why Jannik Sinner's ban has divided the tennis world
In the Spotlight The timing of the suspension handed down to the world's best male tennis player has been met with scepticism
By The Week UK Published
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster show
Speed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar take top Grammys
Speed Read Beyoncé took home album of the year for 'Cowboy Carter' and Kendrick Lamar's diss track 'Not Like Us' won five awards
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The Louvre is giving 'Mona Lisa' her own room
Speed Read The world's most-visited art museum is getting a major renovation
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Honda and Nissan in merger talks
Speed Read The companies are currently Japan's second and third-biggest automakers, respectively
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Taylor Swift wraps up record-shattering Eras tour
Speed Read The pop star finally ended her long-running tour in Vancouver, Canada
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Drake claims illegal boosting, defamation
Speed Read The rapper accused Universal Music of boosting Kendrick Lamar's diss track and said UMG allowed him to be falsely accused of pedophilia
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Wicked' and 'Gladiator II' ignite holiday box office
Speed Read The combination of the two movies revitalized a struggling box office
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Jussie Smollet conviction overturned on appeal
Speed Read The Illinois Supreme Court overturned the actor's conviction on charges of staging a racist and homophobic attack against himself in 2019
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published