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Twitter reacts to Donald Trump’s lewd audio recording

Donald Trump Holds Campaign Rally In Nevada
Donald Trump Holds Campaign Rally In Nevada
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Libby Nelson
Libby Nelson was Vox’s editorial director, politics and policy, leading coverage of how government action and inaction shape American life. Libby has more than a decade of policy journalism experience, including at Inside Higher Ed and Politico. She joined Vox in 2014.

Donald Trump can still shock us.

The Washington Post posted a secret recording Friday evening of Trump talking about women in 2005 — “When you’re a star, they let you do it. … Grab ’em by the pussy. You can do anything.” And Twitter let out a collective gasp.

Over the 15 months Trump has campaigned for the presidency, he’s lied; he’s insulted vast groups of people, including Mexicans and Muslims; he’s encouraged violence at his rallies; and he’s spread conspiracy theories.

But for many, his comments about women — in which he described sexual assault — went even further. Twitter exploded.

As many pointed out, while Trump’s non-apology tried to brush off the comments as “locker room talk,” not all men talk that way:

And Trump’s comments weren’t just crude — they were describing sexual assault:

Some argued that we already knew who Trump was, and it hadn’t hurt him before:

But it’s also not clear how much more there is that could come out before the election, one month and one day away:

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