Donald Trump's sexual relationship with the porn actress Stormy Daniels, at the heart of the trial that opened in New York on Monday, April 15, took place in 2006 when the businessman's third wife, Melania, had just given birth. Trump denies the incident, like all the others, but his entire adult life projects an image of a man whose sole loyalty lies in his appetite for conquest.
Roberta Kaplan will forever hold a special place in the scandals that have dogged him for decades. This illustrious New York lawyer and corporate law specialist has represented several prestigious universities and been heavily involved in defending same-sex marriage. But she is now associated with another famous client: former newspaper columnist E. Jean Carroll.
In 2023 and then again in 2024, Trump was found liable for sexual abuse and defamation against the writer, and was ordered to pay first $5 million and then $83.3 million in compensation. This was the first major crack in the impunity that the 77-year-old entrepreneur has seemed to profit from, one that tells the truth about a man, a career and the era that preceded the #MeToo movement.
In October 2022, Kaplan went to Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida to question him under oath. Did he rape Carroll in late 1995 or early 1996 in the Bergdorf Goodman luxury store on 5th Avenue, not far from Trump Tower? "She's not my type," the ex-president retorted, according to the New York Times. He then pointed his finger at the lawyer sitting opposite him. "Believe me, she would not be my first choice, that I can tell you," he added. "You don't know, that would not be my first choice."
Objects of desire, trophies or hostile, evil figures: Such is how Trump sees women. Beyond the importance of the reparations decided by the courts, Kaplan performed a form of exploit: Forcing the former president – twice divorced, often unfaithful, long surrounded by models – to answer for his toxic relationships with the other sex. This adjective is particularly relevant to his pre-political life. He also made dozens of sexist, contemptuous or violent remarks against rivals, such as Hillary Clinton, judges and victims accusing him of assaults.
Since he first appeared on the public stage over 40 years ago, Trump has always banked on his image as a conqueror when it comes to his affairs, whether financial or sexual. In his eyes, women are either "hot" – like the Playboy hostesses in sexy bunny suits haunting the American male's imagination since the 1960s – or "ugly" and "fat." Looks are his primary criterion for judgment. He observes women as if he were presiding over a jury examining bikini-clad candidates. His opponents, on the other hand, are mocked when they are not called "nasty." "If Hillary Clinton can't satisfy her husband, what makes her think she can satisfy America?" Trump wrote in 2015 on Twitter before later deleting the message.
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