Senior figures in the US Republican Party say Donald Trump’s sexist comments do not represent their party, which usually makes at least some sort of effort to dress its sexism up as something else.
House Speaker Paul Ryan said he could not support a candidate who spoke of women in such a blatantly vulgar way. “What he said is uncouth, it’s unrefined, and frankly it’s un-Republican. I never used a word like ‘pussy’ when promoting laws that restrict a woman’s right to get an abortion after being raped. And certainly not when I voted against equal pay”.
Jeb Bush – brother of former President George W Bush – agreed. “I once said an alternative to welfare was for women to find a husband. But I never used the f-bomb for goodness sake”.
Primary candidate Ted Cruz also distanced himself for Trump’s comments, saying “I would never brazenly tell a woman what’s good for her. I would instead vote for a law that does it on my behalf”.
