US presidential elections: Trump&Co sink to new low with ugly sexual slurs against Kamala

WASHINGTON: Former US President Donald

Trump

's

misogynistic depredations

hit a new low this week after he posted yet another crude sexual slur against Kamala Harris, amplifying ugly smears from his sleazy followers.
Trump used his social-media platform on Wednesday to repost an image of Kamala Harris with Hillary Clinton suggesting they traded sexual favors in their political journey.

“Funny how blowjobs impacted both their careers differently…” the caption from the Trump fan read.
It was the second time that Trump has amplified such disgusting attacks from followers once described as "deplorables" by Hillary Clinton, who lost the 2016 presidential elections to him in the electoral college despite polling nearly three million more popular votes. Earlier this month, Trump shared a video from a right wing "Meme Team" that parodied an Alanis Morissette song “Ironic” to attack Kamala Harris as “moronic,” and who “spent her whole damn life down on her knees” -- at which point a photo of Willie Brown, a former San Francisco Mayor with whom Harris had a relationship 30 years ago appears.
The former President's supporters in the right-wing ecosystem seemed to take the cue for similar sick innuendos, including one Trump fanboy who posted photos of Harris in a party dress to claim she was once an "escort." In another cheap shot, Fox News anchor Jesse Watters argued on his program that Kamala Harris is not the leader the US is looking for because “she’s going to get paralyzed in the Situation Room while the generals have their way with her.”

The remark drew instant rebuke from his female co-hosts even as he clarified with a leery smile that he was speaking "figuratively" and "wasn’t suggesting anything of a sexual nature." Kerstin Emhoff, the ex-wife of second gentleman Douglas Emhoff, was among those who defended Harris, tweeting, “There are many things to worry about, but Kamala being manhandled in the situation room is not one of them."
The former President, who is himself an adjudicated rapist and a convicted felon awaiting sentencing, also reposted provocative memes from his followers showing Biden, Harris, Hillary Clinton, Bill Gates, Antony Fauci in prison in orange jumpsuits. The repugnant attacks piled on as polls continue to show Harris surging ahead of the Trump in battleground states, even though he and his followers insist, without evidence, that the polls are fake and he is ahead by a long way.

The general perception among political pundits is Trump and his followers are setting the stage for rejecting the elections results on November 5 if he loses, as it looks likely if the current trend continues. Polls show he is rapidly losing support among female voters, with Harris racking up a 10 to 15 point lead in some surveys. Trump has already suggested that any result that does not result in his victory may not be fair.
Time after time over the years, Trump has denigrated female opponents, critics, and journalists, often calling them "nasty" and "stupid" when faced with tough questions, even though he has been accused of sexual misconduct and was found liable last year for sexual abuse and defamation. In an Access Hollywood tape that surfaced before the 2016 election, Trump described his attempt to seduce a married woman, and went on to claim, "I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. ... Grab 'em by the pussy. You can do anything." He has also been accused of paying off a porn star to buy her silence in order to win the 2016 elections.
Recent surveys indicate he may pay the price for his chronic and repulsive sexism in a country where female voters outnumber males. A poll by Fairleigh Dickinson University released last week that had Harris in the lead by a seven-point margin (50 to 43) overall, said "when voters are made to think about the race or gender of the candidates, Harris’ lead grows substantially; when they’re not, support is essentially tied."
Among voters who were not primed to think about the race or sex of the candidates, Harris and Trump are tied (47 to 48). When the list of issues mentions the sex of the candidates, Harris pulls ahead, 52 to 42.
“Trump has built his political career around a very specific performance of whiteness and masculinity. In the past, that’s been seen as a strength, but it’s no longer clear that it’s working, Dan Cassino, a professor of Government and Politics at Fairleigh Dickinson and the Executive Director of the poll, said.
“When voters are thinking about race or sex, Trump’s support just plummets. All the time, we hear strategists and pundits saying that Democratic candidates shouldn’t talk about identity, but these results show that making race and sex salient to voters is bad for Trump and boosts Harris,” he added.