NEBRASCA CITY, Neb. Former President Donald Trump on Sunday made the final remarks on a Republican presidential candidate who has been accused of sexually assaulting many women, delving deeper into the Republican primary that divides Republicans in this highly conservative state. Trump appeared at a rally in Greenwood with Charles Herbster, a businessman who has advised the former president on agricultural policy and donated to his campaigns. The visit came after a recent report by the Nebraska Examiner in which eight women, including a state senator speaking at the archive, accused Herbster of touching them inappropriately. Last week, another of the eight women claimed on file that Herbster had stroked her. He denied the allegations. According to State Sen. Julie Slama (R), Herbster lifted her skirt without her consent and touched it inappropriately as she passed during a local Republican fundraiser at a packed ballroom in 2019. Elizabeth Todsen, a former state aide senator, Herbster said grabbed her buttocks after she stopped greeting her table at the same event. Many women told the Examiner that Herbster touched them inappropriately when greeting him or posing for a photograph. Both Trump and Herbster tried to dismiss the allegations on Sunday, taking a provocative stance without discussing the allegations in specific terms. The former president called Herbster a “very good man” who had been “despised”. Trump said Herbster was “innocent” of what he called “hateful accusations.” “I stand up for people when I know they are good,” Trump said. “Many people look at you and say, ‘You do not have to do this, sir. “I am defending my friends.” The former president invited Herbster to the stage during his remarks. The nominee’s governor used his time to say he was one of Trump’s first supporters in 2016. Trump, who has faced and denied multiple charges, from sexual harassment to rape, has backed other candidates accused of sexual misconduct or domestic violence and denied the allegations. They include Herschel Walker, a U.S. Senate nominee in Georgia who has been accused of threatening the lives of two women, and Sean Parnell, who ended his U.S. Senate campaign in Pennsylvania last year amid allegations of domestic and domestic violence. Roy Moore, 2017. A candidate for the U.S. Senate in Alabama, who was accused by two women of having unwanted sex when Moore was in his 30s and was between 16 and 14 years old. Speaking on stage before Trump spoke, Herbster referred briefly and sideways to the allegations, saying the “political establishment” did not want to win. “They are trying to scare me out of this fight and it is not going to happen,” Herbster said. “We will take Nebraska back.” He contrasted his vision of “making Nebraska great again” with Trump’s approach to the presidency, rolling up his sleeves to tackle illegal immigration and defend religious freedom. “This is my show,” Herbster added. Trump’s presence in the Nebraska race brings him face to face with outgoing Governor Pete Rickets (R), who has said that Herbster would be a “terrible governor” and backs a rival candidate, University of Nebraska Regent Jim P. Allegations of sexual assault against Herbster have become a contentious issue in the first trial. Herbster has suggested that Rickets was behind them, which the governor denied. Taking a similar stance to Trump, Herbster argued that both were falsely accused for political reasons. “It’s a playbook from the past,” Herbster told former Trump adviser Steven K. Bannon on the War Room podcast. “Look what they did to Clarence Thomas. See what they did to Donald Jay Trump. See what they did to Brett M. Kavanaugh. Now it’s Charles W. Herbster. “ Trump hinted at a personal reason for campaigning with Herbster – trying to prove, once again, that the candidates he backed were winners. He listed his preferred candidates in other states, including Ohio, which is conducting closely monitored qualifiers in the Republican Senate on Tuesday. Trump recently endorsed author and entrepreneur JD Vance, but on Sunday appeared to be briefly associating his name with rival Josh Mandel, a Republican nominee. “We supported JP, right? JD Mandel “, said Trump, who at the same rally mocked President Biden because he stumbled on his words. After telling the crowd how many of his preferred candidates had won their primary, Trump showed the slides produced by his poll, McLaughlin & Associates, with figures showing that more than 60 percent of his voters strongly supported him. ». “Strong support means you can do almost anything and they will support you,” Trump said. Herbster used Trump’s former White House chief of staff, Kelian Conway, to assist in his campaign last year, along with former Trump campaign chief Corey Lewandowski. In December, he parted ways with Lewandowski when the adviser was accused of sexual harassment. Trump was scheduled to hold a rally with Herbster on Friday, but the event was delayed due to weather. Sunday’s rally included two conservative activists who falsely claimed that the 2020 election was stolen by Trump: MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell and Republican activist David Bossi, the producer of a titled Rog. Trump approved Herbster last year, sparking tensions among local Republicans, starting with Rickets, who had urged the former president not to support the candidate. In January, the governor approved Pillen. “I respect the many achievements of President Trump,” Rickets said. “But we will disagree on this.” The allegations against Herbster cast more uncertainty on what pollsters see as a triple race between him, Pillen and state Sen. Brett Lindstrμm (R), with State Senator Theresa Thibodeau (R) not far behind. While Trump beat Nebraska by 19 points in 2020 and remained overwhelmingly popular with Republicans in the state, some qualifiers said they were not sold out in support of Herbster. The Herbster campaign, which did not respond to a request for comment, had other problems. Last July, Herbster’s original vice president, Thibodeau, resigned from the ticket, saying the candidate was “chaotic and disorganized” and unprepared for the top state post. “I never saw a real desire to learn about Nebraska or to learn about Nebraska politics,” said Timbodo, who went on to run in the by-elections. “These leadership characteristics simply do not exist.” Herbster, who has spent $ 5 million of his own fortune on his campaign, appeared to be leading a tough race when Slama accused him of cheating on her in 2019. Herbster sued for defamation, saying that “the false accusations and the attacks on my character “. it was “part of a bigger plan” to defeat him. “We will show this lawsuit for what it is: a trivial and bad faith attempt to intimidate a sexual assault victim into silence,” a Slama lawyer told the Washington Post. At a parade in Nebraska City Saturday to celebrate the 150th annual Arbor Day, Herbster ran back and forth along the route, shaking hands and telling a family not to believe “all the nonsense” they heard. Some voters grabbed signs for the Herbster campaign, with the words “Trump Supports” under his name. Many were skeptical of the allegations against Herbster. “He’s the best job,” said Terry Coen, 36. “I don’t think it really matters. “I do not think there is a body in it.” “People will say whatever they want to say, no matter who they are,” said Summer’s wife, 43. Republican opponents did not ask Herbster to leave the race, but criticized his response to the allegations. In a brief interview, Pillen rejected his opponent’s suggestion that he was merely the last in a series of conservatives to face false accusations. “Because I’m a veterinarian and a pig farmer,” said Pillen, “I would call this a piglet.” Lindstrμm said he did not believe in a “crisis rush” but was “disgusted” by the allegations. He knew and trusted the two defendants, Slamas and Tonzen, he added. “When I look at people who have come out, I tend to take their word for it,” he said after speaking to supporters on Saturday. “Personally, having daughters and being in the political world, it’s a little disappointing to hear that someone who is a candidate for governor would, or could have, be involved in this kind of activity.” Opposing candidates are not the only ones challenging Herbster’s defense or explanations. When the allegations were first reported, all 13 women in the Nebraska Senate signed a letter describing the allegations as “acceptable” and “completely unacceptable.” “Sexual assault is abhorrent and harmful,” wrote state Sen. Carol Blood (D), who is seeking the anointing of Democrats as governor. “This is not a matter of politics. It is a matter of character and basic human decency. “ Herbster released a TV commercial denying the allegations, noting that Slama once worked for Ricketts. In a recent press conference, Herbster explained that he “followed in the footsteps of lawyers to protect my name and my reputation.” ““I respect all women, all women in this country,” Herbster said. “The number of calls and text messages and prayers that came to me was absolutely overwhelming.” On Tuesday, four Republican senators, all women, set up a Herbster Victim Witness Victims Advocacy Fund. In a joint statement, they accused Herbster of trying to “use the judiciary as a weapon to silence its victims” and avoid accountability, adding that “sexual assault survivors and witnesses should be free to come.” .
