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Rudy Giuliani has been accused of groping by an aide to former President Donald Trump during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection.
According to reports, former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson alleges in her upcoming book, Enough, that the incident occurred as she and the former mayor of New York stood backstage as Trump spoke to supporters at the Ellipse on the day of the attack on the U.S. Capitol. She writes that she felt Giuliani inch closer to her: “‘By the way,’ he says, fingering the fabric, ‘I’m loving this leather jacket on you.’ His hand slips under my blazer, then my skirt.”
Hutchinson was the former aide to then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and her memoir describes her path as a supporter of Donald Trump to working in the administration and her disillusionment afterward. The allegation is one of the book’s bombshell moments, taking place on a day that would see Trump supporters storm the Capitol building, fueled by his false claims about the 2020 presidential election.
“I feel his frozen fingers trail up my thigh,” she continues. “He tilts his chin up. The whites of his eyes look jaundiced. My eyes dart to [Trump adviser] John Eastman, who flashes a leering grin. I fight against the tension in my muscles and recoil from Rudy’s grip … filled with rage, I storm through the tent, on yet another quest for Mark.”
The 27-year-old would eventually testify as a key witness for the House Select Committee investigating the events of Jan. 6, providing damning evidence on the behavior of Trump, Giuliani and Eastman among others. Enough is scheduled to be available to the public next week. The excerpt comes from The Guardian, which obtained an advance copy.
Ted Goodman, a representative for Rudy Giuliani, said in a statement: “This is a disgusting lie against Mayor Rudy Giuliani—a man whose distinguished career in public service includes taking down the Mafia, cleaning up New York City, and comforting the nation following September 11th.”
The accusation comes as the former Trump lawyer faces a slew of legal challenges. He is one of 18 co-defendants indicted with Trump in Georgia for attempts to interfere with the 2020 election there, in addition to being sued by a law firm that once represented him and a former assistant alleging that he sexually assaulted her.
