Startling comments about the former president from one Democratic guest left an MSNBC host flustered and temporarily speechless on Saturday.
Democratic National Committee Women's co-chair Lindy Li went on a tirade against President Trump and several Republicans who spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) last week, blasting the gathering as a group of "sexual predators" and Trump a "serial rapist."
"Let’s also not ignore the fact that CPAC has become a gathering of sexual predators. Let’s be honest," she said. Li also lambasted Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., calling the former an "adulteress."
The Democratic operative made her controversial remarks on Saturday's "Yasmin Vossoughian Reports," ahead of Trump's keynote address.
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After calling GOP 2024 candidate Nikki Haley a "sellout" for unearthed comments she made defending the Confederate Flag as part of South Carolina's heritage in 2010, Li attacked the conference's focus on "woke" curriculum in schools.
The Democratic operative's comments about the former president led to an awkward pause on the network.
"Tonight, we have Trump, a serial rapist," Li said. "So, this is the party that claims to be the party of Christian family values, and I have nothing to say or do but laugh at that!"
A few seconds of silence passed as Vossoughian gathered her thoughts.
Taking a deep breath, the host gently corrected the record.
"I, I just — I just want to be clear here, though, you know, that – it’s important to put out there, we, we understand the accusations that have been made against, of course, the former president, Lindy," she began.
"And of course, I understand your passion in this topic as well. But I want to be clear, of course, that that — none of that has actually rung true as of yet. Just, they’ve all been accusations — so far," Vossoughian said before closing the segment.
Writer E. Jean Carroll has filed two lawsuits against the former president after she claimed he damaged her reputation by denying that he raped her in the 1990s.
Trump overwhelmingly was the preference for Republican 2024 presidential nominee in a straw poll conducted among attendees at the conservative conference. The former president won 62% support while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis came in as second choice with 20% support.
He is making his third bid for the White House after being defeated in his re-election bid by Joe Biden in 2020. Republicans have never nominated the same person three consecutive times for the presidency.
