--- title: Donald Trump Rape Controversy Erupts After Michael Cohen Comments description: Presidential campaign disavows aide's comments amid controversy canonical: https://time.com/3974560/donald-trump-rape-ivana-michael-cohen/ author: Tanya Basu article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-28T15:02:43.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T03:37:58.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Donald Trump Lawyer Sorry for Saying 'You Can't Rape Your Spouse' og:description: Presidential campaign disavows aide's comments amid controversy. og:url: https://time.com/3974560/donald-trump-rape-ivana-michael-cohen/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7259fa75f42f2adf/69885cc62dce0126629e4d15/donald-trump26.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5184 og:image:height: 2916 og:image:alt: Donald Trump og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Donald Trump Lawyer Sorry for Saying 'You Can't Rape Your Spouse' twitter:description: Presidential campaign disavows aide's comments amid controversy. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7259fa75f42f2adf/69885cc62dce0126629e4d15/donald-trump26.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Donald Trump Lawyer Sorry for Saying 'You Can't Rape Your Spouse' > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tanya Basu](https://time.com/author/tanya-basu/)  ## Tanya Basu Updated: Dec 13, 2023 3:37 AM UTCPublished: Jul 28, 2015 3:02 PM UTC  Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a news conference on July 25, 2015, in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a news conference on July 25, 2015, in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Charlie Neibergall—AP  by [Tanya Basu](https://time.com/author/tanya-basu/)  ## Tanya Basu Updated: Dec 13, 2023 3:37 AM UTCPublished: Jul 28, 2015 3:02 PM UTC Donald Trump’s lawyer and top aide [apologized](http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/28/politics/donald-trump-adviser-michael-cohen-rape/index.html) Tuesday after he ensnared the candidate in fresh controversy by responding to years-old rape allegations against Trump — since retracted — by [saying that sexual intercourse with a spouse can never legally be considered rape](http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/27/ex-wife-donald-trump-made-feel-violated-during-sex.html). “As an attorney, husband and father there are many injustices that offend me but nothing more than charges of rape or racism,” Michael Cohen told CNN. “They hit me at my core. Rarely am I surprised by the press, but the gall of this particular reporter to make such a reprehensible and false allegation against Mr. Trump truly stunned me. In my moment of shock and anger, I made an inarticulate comment — which I do not believe — and which I apologize for entirely.” Cohen had responded angrily earlier to questions about a 1989 incident, and his comments quickly sparked an uproar. “You’re talking about the frontrunner for the GOP, presidential candidate, as well as a private individual who never raped anybody,” Michael Cohen, Trump’s special counsel and a longtime aide, reportedly told the Daily Beast in response to its reporting on allegations in the early 1990s that Trump raped his then wife Ivana Trump. “And, of course, understand that by the very definition, you can’t rape your spouse.” “It is true,” Cohen added. “You cannot rape your spouse. And there’s very clear case law.” Prohibitions against spousal rape were actually enacted in the 1970s, and it was illegal in all 50 states by the early 1990s. [It became illegal in New York State in 1984](http://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/23/weekinreview/new-york-joins-17-states-that-deny-wives-are-property-rape-marriage-no-longer.html). Ivana originally made the comments in a deposition surrounding their divorce, she told CNN in a statement Tuesday, saying at the time that she felt “violated” by a 1989 incident between the couple. But Ivana disavowed the accusation Tuesday in response to the Daily Beast report. “I have recently read some comments attributed to me from nearly 30 years ago at a time of very high tension during my divorce from Donald,” she told CNN. “The story is totally without merit. Donald and I are the best of friends and together have raised three children that we love and are very proud of. I have nothing but fondness for Donald and wish him the best of luck on his campaign. Incidentally, I think he would make an incredible President.” The controversy over Cohen’s comments come as Donald Trump has ridden incendiary rhetoric on immigration and other issues to the top of national polls for the Republican nomination. The latest batch of polls showed no sign of his momentum being halted, even as Republican leaders have condemned him in growing numbers after he said Arizona Senator and Vietnam War–era POW John McCain is “not a war hero.” ### See the 2016 Candidates Looking Very Presidential  Sen. Ted Cruz is surrounded by stars and stripes at the 2014 Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C. on September 26, 2014. Mark Peterson—Redux  Hillary Clinton Hillary Clinton gazes pensively into the distance at Iowa Senator Tom Harken'a annual Steak Fry in Indianola, Iowa on September 14, 2014. Brooks Kraft—Corbis for TIME  Jeb Bush Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush flashes a power watch before giving his keynote address at the National Summit on Education Reform in Washington on Nov. 20, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Bernie Sanders waves to supporters after officially announcing his candidacy for the U.S. presidency during an event at Waterfront Park in Burlington, Vermont, on May 26, 2015. Win McNamee—Getty Images  Chris Christie New Jersey Governor Chris Christie strikes a presidential power stance at the ceremony for the opening of the 206 bypass in Hillsborough, New Jersey on October 28, 2013. Mark Peterson—Redux  Former Hewlett-Packard Co Chief Executive Officer Carly Fiorina listens to her introduction from the side of the stage at the Freedom Summit in Des Moines, Iowa on Jan. 24, 2015. Jim Young—Reuters  Rand Paul Sen. Rand Paul works a crowd during a campaign stop on October 24, 2014 in McDonough, Georgia. Jessica McGowan—Getty Images  Rick Perry Texas Gov. Rick Perry looks powerfully patriotic during the National Anthem before an NCAA college football game on Nov. 27, 2014, in College Station, Texas. David J. Phillip—AP  Bobby Jindal Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal looks to the future during The Family Leadership Summit on Aug. 9, 2014, in Ames, Iowa. Charlie Neibergall—AP  Martin O'Malley Maryland Governor Martin OíMalley ponders decorating ideas in front of his possible future home on CBS's Face the Nation on Feb. 23, 2014. Chris Usher—AP  Marco Rubio Sen. Marco Rubio looks determined the morning after the State of the Union address in Washington, D.C. on January 29, 2014. Melissa Golden—Redux  Ben CarsonBen Carson at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference on March 8, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Jim Webb Retiring Sen. Jim Webb imitates the presidential wave during a rally in Virginia Beach, Va. on Sept. 27, 2012. Steve Helber—AP  John Kasich Ohio Gov. John Kasich practices his presidential victory pose at the Ohio Republican Party celebration on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014, in Columbus, Ohio. Tony Dejak—AP  Rick Santorum Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum looks resolute at CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Conference on March 7, 2014. Brooks Kraft—Corbis  Scott Walker Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker practices the presidential point on March 3, 2014 in Milwaukee. Jeffrey Phelps—AP  Mike Huckabee Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee fine-tunes his presidential oratory at the Conservative Political Action Committee annual conference in National Harbor, Md. on March 7, 2014. Susan Walsh—AP  Lincoln Chafee, Former Rhode Island Governor, poses for a selfie with a student after announcing he will seek the Democratic nomination for president in Arlington, Va. on June 3, 2015. Jonathan Ernst—Reuters  Lindsey Graham Lindsey Graham announced his plans to join the 2016 presidential race. Alex Wong—Getty Images  George Pataki Former New York governor George Pataki listens to a question at the First in the Nation Republican Leadership Conference in Nashua, New Hampshire, in this April 17, 2015 file photo. Brian Snyder—Reuters Ivana’s original comments about feeling “violated,” according to the Daily Beast, were originally published in the 1993 book, _Lost Tycoon: The Many Lives of Donald J. Trump._ But even before that book was published, she walked back the notion that what happened between them was “rape.” “During a deposition given by me in connection with my matrimonial case, I stated that my husband had raped me,” she reportedly said at the time. “On one occasion during 1989, Mr. Trump and I had marital relations in which he behaved very differently toward me than he had during our marriage. As a woman, I felt violated, as the love and tenderness, which he normally exhibited towards me, was absent. I referred to this as a ‘rape,’ but I do not want my words to be interpreted in a literal or criminal sense.” Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski told CNN that the candidate “didn’t know of \[Cohen’s\] comments but disagrees with them.” Cohen, for his part, threatened the Daily Beast with legal action and financial ruin, the website reported. “I will make sure that you and I meet one day while we’re in the courthouse,” Cohen was quoted as saying. “And I will take you for every penny you still don’t have. And I will come after your Daily Beast and everybody else that you possibly know. So I’m warning you, tread very f—ing lightly, because what I’m going to do to you is going to be f—ing disgusting. 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