Donald J. Trump was caught on tape bragging in vulgar terms about making sexual advances toward a married woman, aggressively kissing and groping other women, and boasting that “when you’re a star they let you do it.”
The remarkable recording, unearthed by Washington on Friday, was made in 2005 on the set of a soap opera where Mr. Trump was making a cameo appearance. Mr. Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, was captured on an open microphone that he apparently did not know was recording his conversation with Billy Bush, then the host of “Access Hollywood,” with whom he was sitting on a bus.
The lewd discussion offers more insight into how Mr. Trump has spoken about women in private and adds to evidence that he has a penchant for sexist behavior.
Mr. Trump said on Friday that he was sorry if his language offended anyone.
“This was locker room banter, a private conversation that took place many years ago. Bill Clinton has said far worse to me on the golf course — not even close,” Mr. Trump said in a statement. “I apologize if anyone was offended.”
It is not clear whom he was referring to, but Mr. Trump says in very graphic terms that he “moved on” the woman “very heavily,” taking her shopping for furniture as a way to spend time with her.
“But I couldn’t get there. And she was married,” Mr. Trump says.
Mr. Trump has been aggressively courting Christian conservative voters while making former President Bill Clinton’s history of infidelity an issue in the campaign. The recording could prove damaging to his efforts to seem presidential and could add to his problems appealing to female voters with a month to go before the election.
At one point, the conversation in the recording is interrupted when an actress arrives to escort Mr. Trump and Mr. Bush to the set.
“You know I’m automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them,” Mr. Trump says. “It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait.”
He goes on to explain that his celebrity had made such encounters possible.
“And when you’re a star they let you do it,” Mr. Trump says. “You can do anything.”
The release of the recording comes two days before Mr. Trump will face Hillary Clinton in the second presidential debate.
Mrs. Clinton said on Twitter that the recording was more evidence that Mr. Trump is unfit to lead the country.
“This is horrific,” she said. “We cannot allow this man to become president.”
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