Administration of Donald J. Trump, 2017

November 21, 2017

Alabama Special Election for U.S. Senate

Q. Mr. President, are you ready to talk about Roy Moore at all?

The President. Yes, I'll be talking about him. I can tell you one thing for sure: We don't need a liberal person in there, a DemocratâJones. I've looked at his record. It's terrible on crime. It's terrible on the border. It's terrible on the military. I can tell you for a fact, we do not need somebody that's going to be bad on crime, bad on borders, bad with the military, bad for the Second Amendment.

Republican Senatorial Candidate Roy S. Moore of Alabama

Q. Is Roy Moore, a child molester, better than a Democrat? He's an accusedââ

The President. Well, he denies it. Look, he denies it. I mean, if you look at what is really going on, and you look at all the things that have happened over the last 48 hours, he totally denies it. He says it didn't happen. And you know, you have to listen to him also. You're talking about, he said 40 years ago this did not happen. So you knowââ

Q. Are you going to campaign for Roy Moore?

The President. I'll be letting you know next week. But I can tell you, you don't need somebody who's soft on crime, like Jones.

Q. Mr. President, what is your message to women, sir, during this pivotal moment in our country where we're talking about sexual misconduct? You've had your own allegations against you. What do you say to women?

The President. Heâlet me just tell you, Roy Moore denies it. That's all I can say. He denies it. And by the way, he totally denies it.

Go ahead.

Q. And you believe him?

Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault

Q. Mr. President, what is your message to women? This is a pivotal moment in our nation's history.

The President. Women are very special. I think it's a very special time, because a lot of things are coming out, and I think that's good for our society, and I think it's very, very good for women. And I'm very happy a lot of these things are coming out, and I'm very happy it's being exposed.

Senator Alan S. Franken

Q. So Should Senator Al Franken resign? Should Al Franken resign now?

The President. I don't know. Look, I don't want to speak for Al Franken. I don't know what happened. I don't knowââ

Representative John J. Conyers, Jr./Senator Alan S. Franken

Q. What about John Conyers?

The President. I just heard about Conyers 2 minutes ago.

As far as Franken is concerned, he's going to have to speak for himself. I'd rather have him speak for himself.

Q. [Inaudible]

The President. What?

President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin of Russia

Q. What did you say to Vladimir Putin, sir?

The President. We had a great call with President Putin. We're talking about peace in Syria, very important. We're talking about North Korea. We had a call that lasted almost an hour and a half. We've just put out a release on the call. But we're talking very strongly about bringing peace to Syria. We're talking about very strongly about North Korea and Ukraine.

Q. [Inaudible]

The President. Can't hear you. Louder.

Proposed Merger Between AT&T and Time Warner Inc.

Q. The AT&T-Time Warner merger, sir, what do you think about it?

The President. Well, I'm not going to get involved in litigation. But personally, I've always felt that that was a deal that's not good for the country. I think your pricing is going to go up. I don't think it's a good deal for the country. But I'm not going to get involved. It's litigation.

Thank you, everybody. Have a very great Thanksgiving.

Republican Senatorial Candidate Roy S. Moore of Alabama

Q. Do you believe Roy Moore's denials? Do you believe him?

The President. Well, he denies. I mean, Roy Moore denies it. And by the way, he gives a total denial. And I do have to say, 40 years is a long time. He's run 8 races, and this has never come up. So 40 years is a long time. The women are Trump voters; most of them are Trump voters. All you can do is, you have to do what you have to do. He totally denies it.

Sexual Harassment Claims Against Members of Congress

Q. Do you believe Congress should release the names of lawmakers whoâthank you, Mr. President. Do you believe Congress should release the names of lawmakers who have settled on sexual harassment claims?

The President. I do. I really do. I think they should. Thank you. Have a good Thanksgiving, everybody.

NOTE: The President spoke at 3:16 p.m. on the South Lawn at the White House prior to boarding Marine One en route to Joint Base Andrews, MD. In his remarks, he referred to Alabama Democratic Senatorial candidate G. Douglas Jones.

Categories: Interviews With the News Media : Exchanges with reporters :: White House. Locations: Air Force One.

Names: Conyers, John J., Jr.; Franken, Alan S.; Jones, G. Douglas; Moore, Roy S.; Putin, Vladimir Vladimirovich.

Subjects: AT&T, proposed merger with Time Warner Inc.; Communications : News media :: Presidential interviews; Holidays and special observances : Thanksgiving; North Korea : Nuclear weapons development; Russia : President; Syria : Civil war and sectarian conflict; Ukraine : Political unrest and violence.

DCPD Number: DCPD201700866.