President Donald Trump lashed out at the Obamas, among other Democrats, during a press conference Tuesday morning, connecting them to Hollywood mogul-turned-convicted sex offender Harvey Weinstein in a vicious, pointed attack.
The Washington Examiner reported that Trump called out Michelle Obama specifically, noting her cozy relationship with Weinstein, who was a frequent guest of the Obama White House and a prominent Democratic bundler and donor.
“I will say the people who liked him were the Democrats. Michelle Obama loved him — loved him. Hillary Clinton loved him, and he gave tremendous money to the Democrats,” Trump said during a presser in India.
“I was never a fan of Harvey Weinstein, as you know,” he added. “In fact, he said he was going to work hard to defeat me in the election.”
Trump went on to call Weinstein’s conviction a “great victory” for women that “sends a very strong message” to high profile men in the entertainment industry, casually sidestepping the several sexual harassment and sexual assault claims that he’s fought off over the decades.
Weinstein was convicted on one count of first degree sexual assault and one count of third degree rape on Monday, shocking the former movie mogul, who prosecutors claimed had been stalking, sexually harassing, and even sexually abusing women for decades. Weinstein now faces up to three decades in jail and, shortly after the jury read its verdict, was remanded to Rikers Island to await his sentencing on March 11.
Monday morning, Weinstein’s attorneys claimed that Weinstein was suffering from chest pains and high blood pressure, and the police escort taking him to Rikers was rerouted to Bellevue Hospital, where he remains under observation.
Weinstein will likely remain in jail in New York until early spring, when he will stand trial on similar charges of sexual assault and rape in Los Angeles County.
The Obama family certainly had a good relationship with Weinstein. Video resurfaced Monday of Michelle Obama praising Weinstein as a “wonderful human being,” “a good friend and just a powerhouse” at a White House event in 2013, before the “#MeToo” movement gained momentum. The Obama’s daughter, Malia, served as an intern for Weinstein’s production company, Miramax, and Weinstein bundled millions for Obama’s election and re-election campaign.
Shortly after the allegations against Weinstein surfaced in 2017, the Obamas made every effort to distance themselves from the digraced movie producer, telling reporters, in a statement, that they were “disgusted” by Weinstein’s alleged behavior.
Hillary Clinton was also a good friend of Weinstein’s, joining him for a number of Democratic fundraisers, cashing checks written and bundled by Weinstein for her 2016 presidential campaign, and even palling around with the mega-producer following her epic loss to now-President Donald Trump. At one time, Clinton and Weinstein were working together on a potential documentary about Clinton’s life, but those plans went by the wayside after Weinstein’s fall from glory.
In a newly released Hulu documentary, Clinton addressed her relationship with Weinstein, claiming that it was impossible to know about Weinstein’s personal life, according to Fox News, even though some of her top advisors — including marquee feminist Lena Dunham — have said they warned Clinton about Weinstein’s history of improper behavior.