MS Now anchor repeatedly corrects guest insistent on calling President Trump a ‘rapist’
Former Trump White House lawyer Ty Cobb was corrected on air by MS NOW anchor Jonathan Capehart after calling President Donald Trump a "rapist" during a live discussion on The Weekend. Capehart pointed out that this was legally inaccurate, as Trump has not been convicted of rape, prompting a back-and-forth in which Cobb insisted a federal judge had said Trump was "guilty of rape," while Capehart maintained the correct term was "sexual assault."
The exchange stems from the case brought by writer E Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of sexually assaulting her at a New York department store in the 1990s, an allegation Trump has always denied. A jury found in 2023 that Trump had sexually abused Carroll and ordered him to pay $5 million in damages, with a separate defamation case later adding $83 million; Trump has vowed to appeal both to the Supreme Court. Cobb also branded Trump a "malignant narcissist" and "convicted felon" during the segment, while the article notes Trump has faced sexual misconduct allegations from more than two dozen women, though the Carroll case is the only one to reach a jury.
- Ex-Trump lawyer Ty Cobb called Trump a "rapist" on live TV.
- Anchor Jonathan Capehart repeatedly corrected the legal characterisation.
- Row centres on 2023 jury verdict in E Jean Carroll's sexual abuse case.