Pence denies mulling race exit, is ‘standing by’ Trump

Republican VP nominee says candidate showed ‘genuine contrition’ in Sunday’s debate for crude remarks he made in 2005 on grabbing women

By AP and ToI Staff 10 October 2016, 5:42 pm

Edit

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump points toward running mate Indiana Gov. Mike Pence after Pence's acceptance speech during the third day of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, Wednesday, July 20, 2016. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence said Monday that he is standing by running mate Donald Trump, saying he never considered leaving the ticket after a recording emerged of the presidential candidate boasting about grabbing woman by their genitalia.

Following the latest presidential debate, Pence said that he believed Trump was sorry for the crude and predatory language about women captured in the 2005 recording, which became public Friday.

Pence told Fox News that Trump “stepped up” during the second debate against Democratic rival Hillary Clinton: “He showed humility. He showed strength. He expressed genuine contrition for the words he had used” in the video, Pense said.

He later told CNN that he never considered dropping off Trump’s ticket, which he called “the greatest honor of my life.”

In the recording released by The Washington Post, Trump can be heard saying: “You know I’m automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait.” He added: “And when you’re a star they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the p—-. You can do anything.”

Pence said Saturday he could not defend the comments, which appeared to condone sexual assault.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMkiSn93wqk

He said in a statement: “As a husband and a father, I was offended by the words and actions described by Donald Trump in the 11-year-old video released yesterday. I do not condone his remarks and cannot defend them. I am grateful that he has expressed remorse and apologized to the American people.”

He added, “We pray for his family and look forward to the opportunity he has to show what is in his heart when he goes before the nation tomorrow night.”

A growing number of Republican politicians urged Trump to quit the presidential race on Saturday, while others said they would not vote for him.