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Rolling Stone
Published: October 12, 2016
From walking into a teen dressing room to joking about his obligation to sleep with contestants, Trump’s a storied pageant creep
Donald Trump was forced to sell the Miss Universe Organization – which also includes sister scholarship programs Miss USA and Miss Teen USA – in 2015 after his incendiary comments about Mexicans drove away broadcasters NBC and Univision. But Trump owned the pageant for nearly two decades, during which time he would have had the opportunity to come into contact with nearly 4,000 beauty queens.
On the heels of the damaging videotape on which Trump and former Access Hollywood host Billy Bush salivated over Days of Our Lives actress Arianne Zucker, and joked about sexually assaulting women, came allegations that Trump entered the Miss Teen USA changing room where girls as young as 15 were in various states of undress.
Mariah Billado, Miss Teen Vermont 1997 told BuzzFeed, “I remember putting on my dress really quick because I was like, ‘Oh my god, there’s a man in here.’” Three other teenage contestants from the same year confirmed the story. The former pageant contestants discussed their memories of the incident after former Miss Arizona Tasha Dixon told Los Angeles’ CBS affiliate that Trump entered the Miss USA dressing room in 2001 when she was a contestant.
“He just came strolling right in,” Dixon said. “There was no second to put a robe on or any sort of clothing or anything. Some girls were topless. Others girls were naked. Our first introduction to him was when we were at the dress rehearsal and half-naked changing into our bikinis.”
Dixon went on to say that employees of the Miss Universe Organization encouraged the contestants to lavish Trump with attention when he came in.
“To have the owner come waltzing in, when we’re naked, or half-naked, in a very physically vulnerable position and then to have the pressure of the people that worked for him telling us to go fawn all over him, go walk up to him, talk to him, get his attention…”
The Trump campaign did not offer a response to either story, but in a 2005 appearance on Howard Stern’s show, Trump bragged about doing exactly what the women describe.
“I’ll go backstage before a show, and everyone’s getting dressed and ready and everything else,” he said.
His position as the pageant’s owner entitled him to that kind of access, Trump explained, seemingly aware that what he was doing made the women uncomfortable.
“You know, no men are anywhere. And I’m allowed to go in because I’m the owner of the pageant. And therefore I’m inspecting it… Is everyone OK? You know, they’re standing there with no clothes. And you see these incredible-looking women. And so I sort of get away with things like that,” he said.
(Billado told BuzzFeed she mentioned the incident to Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, who shrugged it off, saying, “Yeah, he does that.”)
Other “Highlights” from Trump’s History as a Pageant Owner
1996
When he bought the Miss Universe pageant family, Trump told Stern in 2005, the pageant was “a sick puppy.” He explained that contestants had become less attractive because judges were focusing too much on brains over beauty.
“They had a person that was extremely proud that a number of the women had become doctors,” Trump said. “And I wasn’t interested.”
That year’s Miss Universe, Alicia Machado of Venezuela, was repeatedly mocked by Trump. Hillary Clinton invoked Machado during the 2016 debate. Trump allegedly called her “Miss Piggy” and “Miss Housekeeping.” He invited reporters to watch her exercise. According to Machado:
“I was about to cry in that moment with all the cameras there. I said, ‘I don’t want to do this, Mr. Trump.’ He said, ‘I don’t care.’”
1997
Miss Universe Brook Antoinette Mahealani Lee recalled Trump saying:
“‘Don’t you think my daughter’s hot? She’s hot, right?’” referring to Ivanka Trump.
Miss Utah Temple Taggart said Trump kissed her on the lips without her consent while married to Marla Maples. He allegedly did it again at Trump Tower months later and told her:
“We’re going to have to tell them you’re 17,” to help her career.
2005
On Howard Stern, Trump said it “might be his obligation” to sleep with contestants:
“It could be a conflict of interest. … But, you know, it’s the kind of thing you worry about later…”
2009
Carrie Prejean, Miss California, wrote in her memoir about Trump inspecting contestants:
“He would stop in front of a girl, look her up and down, and say, ‘Hmmm.’ … After he did this, Trump said: ‘O.K. I want all the girls to come forward.’”
Trump then asked Miss Alabama to identify the most beautiful woman in the room. When she answered, Trump replied:
“I don’t care if she’s sweet. Is she hot?”
Many contestants found this humiliating. Some sobbed backstage.
A TMZ audio recording from the same year captured Trump saying:
“We get to choose a certain number [who will make it through the first round]… We call it the Trump Rule.”
He also told the women:
“I have a son, he’s very handsome; he’s 6-foot-6, and he was number one in his class in school.”
2010
Trump told David Letterman:
“I made the heels higher and the bathing suits smaller.”
2013
Cassandra Searles, Miss Washington, said on Facebook that Trump:
“treated us like cattle” and “lined [us] up so he could get a closer look at his property.”
She added:
“He continually grabbed my ass and invited me to his hotel room.”
Paromita Mitra, Miss Mississippi, confirmed the account, saying:
“I literally have nightmares about that process.”
2015
Three weeks after launching his campaign by calling Mexicans rapists, the Miss USA pageant collapsed. Hosts, sponsors, and networks withdrew. Trump sold the organization in September 2015.
Update – October 13, 10:30 a.m. ET:
The Trump campaign issued a statement to Rolling Stone denying the allegations, accusing political motivations behind the reporting, and claiming:
“Mr. Trump has a fantastic record of empowering women throughout his career, and a more accurate story would be to show how he’s been a positive influence in the lives of so many.”