Terry O'Neill Slams Trump's Expectation That His Daughter Would “Find Another Job” If Sexually Harassed

NOW's O'Neill: “That Is Exactly Why Sexual Harassment Is Such A Huge Problem In The Workplace”

From the August 2 edition of MSNBC Live:

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TERRY O'NEILL: The question to Donald Trump was what would you do? And his response is what Ivanka would do and the same with Ivanka's brother Eric. It was Ivanka's job, it's her problem, she needs to handle it. That is exactly why sexual harassment is such a huge problem in the workplace. And you know the typical sexual harasser in the workplace is predatory and calculating. And what we've seen of the allegations against Roger Ailes indicates that if true, he is exactly the predatory, calculating sexual harasser that is typical. And yet Donald Trump values his friendship with Mr. Ailes more than he values actually considering what would he do in the face of sexual harassment of the kind that Roger Ailes is accused of.

CHRIS JANSING (HOST): Well, he should say that this question was indeed asked in the context of the accusations against Roger Ailes which he has denied. But we just saw a tweet a little while ago from Gretchen Carlson who filed a lawsuit in the whole Roger Ailes situation, and she wrote, “Sad in 2016 we're still victim-blaming women. Trust me I'm strong. #StandWithGretchen.” What is the legal responsibility of a business owner if someone comes and says, I've been sexually harassed? 

O'NEILL: The legal responsibility is to immediately investigate. Sexual harassment is a violation of federal law. The legal responsibility is to investigate, to remove the harasser from the workplace, to ensure that the person who's been harassed is able to get back on track with her job. Because quite a few times harassment is really aimed at throwing a woman off her pace. Throwing her off and not allowing her to focus mentally and emotionally on the job at hand. So that is what HR needs to do. The problem is that harassers, being predatory and calculating, they utilize their power to isolate their victim and to make sure that the victim will not be believed, or to ensure that their behavior is such that -- in a workplace where women are constantly needing to pick our battles, you just really don't necessarily know, is this the battle I need to pick? Is this the battle I should be picking? It's very difficult.

JANSING: We're just about out of time but we all know that particularly suburban women voters are going to be very critical in this upcoming campaign. Is this going to be resonate or is is this going to to be something else that they may think about or even talk about but they don't vote about? 

O'NEILL: I can tell you as a suburban mom myself, when I think about what would happen if my daughter was in that position, I would much rather have Hillary Clinton as president than a man like Donald Trump who just quite frankly doesn't seem to care. 

Previously:

Amid Ailes Scandal, Trump Tells Fox Contributor Women Harassed At Work Should Find “Another Career Or … Company”

A Guide To Trump’s “Love” And Support For Alleged Serial Sexual Harasser Roger Ailes

Former Trump Business Associate Speaks Out About Sexual Assault Allegations Against Trump, As Media Blackout Continues