Donald Trump Apologizes For Lewd Comments

Donald Trump issued a late-night statement apologizing about the conversation he had in 2005 where he was caught boasting about grabbing, kissing, and trying to have sex with women. 

“I never said I’m a perfect person,” Trump said in a Facebook video released after midnight Saturday. “Nor pretended to be someone that I’m not. I’ve said and done things I regret and the words released today on this more than a decade old video are one of them. Anyone who knows me knows these words don’t reflect who I am. I said it. I was wrong and I apologize.”

Trump continued to attack both Bill and Hillary Clinton in his statement, saying Bill Clinton “actually abused women” and Hillary Clinton “bullied women.” 

Trump signed off by saying “see you at the debate on Sunday.” 

Two people close to the Trump campaign had similar reactions to the video released by the Washington Post. They’re minimally hopeful Trump can weather yet another self-inflicted wound but conceded the magnitude and severity of his comments. What emerged Friday, both agreed, was both different and worse, and by Friday evening, neither had a sense of what a viable path forward would look like, CBS News Arden Farhi reported.

Earlier Friday, Trump had been dismissive. “This was locker room banter, a private conversation that took place many years ago,” Trump said shortly after the Washington Post published video of the conversation. “Bill Clinton has said far worse to me on the golf course - not even close. I apologize if anyone was offended.”

Paul Ryan, GOP leaders rebuke Trump over lewd tape

The video, obtained by the Washington Post, showed Trump talking with Billy Bush, then of “Access Hollywood,” on a bus with the name of the entertainment television program scrawled across its side. The bus was rolling into a studio lot, where Trump was set to film cameos on the set of the “Days of Our Lives” soap opera program.

The two were caught on a hot microphone discussing in lewd terms how Trump had attempted to “move on” an actress, who later made an appearance in the video.

Soon after the story broke, Hillary Clinton’s campaign tweeted a response to the Post story Friday, calling it “horrific.”

The Clinton campaign had already released an ad stringing together the “Access Hollywood” comments and urged women to vote.

 The Associated Press contributed to this report.