--- title: George H.W. Bush Accused of Groping by Second Woman description: Former President George H.W. Bush has been accused of inappropriate touching by a second woman in the wake of a similar allegation canonical: https://time.com/4998063/george-hw-bush-jordana-grolnick/ author: Aric Jenkins article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-10-26T01:20:54.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T18:00:19.359Z article:section: Politics og:title: George H.W. Bush Says He Has 'Patted Women's Rears' Amid Groping Allegations og:description: Another actress accused the former president of groping her during a photo op og:url: https://time.com/4998063/george-hw-bush-jordana-grolnick/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5f0f9c870c951534/6988e34bbc6cfc424c3e3ae7/george-h-w-bush.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3435 og:image:height: 1932 og:image:alt: George H.W. Bush og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: George H.W. Bush Says He Has 'Patted Women's Rears' Amid Groping Allegations twitter:description: Another actress accused the former president of groping her during a photo op twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5f0f9c870c951534/6988e34bbc6cfc424c3e3ae7/george-h-w-bush.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # George H.W. Bush Says He Has Occasionally 'Patted Women's Rears' Amid Groping Allegations > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. by [Aric Jenkins](https://time.com/author/aric-jenkins/) ## Aric Jenkins Oct 26, 2017 1:20 AM UTC  President George H.W. Bush arrives for the coin toss prior to Super Bowl 51 between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots at NRG Stadium on February 5, 2017 in Houston, Texas. President George H.W. Bush arrives for the coin toss prior to Super Bowl 51 between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots at NRG Stadium on February 5, 2017 in Houston, Texas. Patrick Smith—Getty Images by [Aric Jenkins](https://time.com/author/aric-jenkins/) ## Aric Jenkins Oct 26, 2017 1:20 AM UTC The office of George H.W. Bush said Wednesday that the former President occasionally “has patted women’s rears in what he intended to be a good-natured manner.” The statement [came as a a second woman accused Bush of groping her](http://time.com/4996794/george-h-w-bush-heather-lind/). “At age 93, President Bush has been confined to a wheelchair for roughly five years, so his arm falls on the lower waist of people with whom he takes pictures,” a [statement from Bush’s office released minutes before the second accusation was publicized](https://twitter.com/NBCNightlyNews/status/923334187620454401) reads. “To try to put people at ease, the president routinely tells the same joke — and on occasion, he has patted women’s rears in what he intended to be a good-natured manner. “Some have seen it as innocent; others clearly view it as inappropriate,” the statement continues. “To anyone he has offended, President Bush apologizes most sincerely.” New York-based actress Jordana Grolnick [told Deadspin](https://deadspin.com/second-woman-george-h-w-bush-groped-me-1819855977) that Bush groped her in August 2016 during the intermission of a play she was performing in at a Maine theater. A frequent patron of the theater, Bush came backstage with his wife, former first lady Barbara Bush, for a photo with the cast. “We all circled around him and Barbara for a photo, and I was right next to him,” Grolnick told Deadspin. “He reached his right hand around to my behind, and as we smiled for the photo he asked the group, ‘Do you want to know who my favorite magician is?’ As I felt his hand dig into my flesh, he said, ‘David Cop-a-Feel!’” an apparent sexualized reference to famed magician David Copperfield. Grolnick said the rest of her castmates “laughed politely and out of discomfort,” adding that Barbara Bush was nearby at the time of the incident. “\[She\] said something along the lines of, ‘He’s going to get himself put into jail!’ to which we laughed harder.” The actress added that prior to the photo — which was visible in a now-deleted Instagram post — other actors had told her that H.W. Bush had a reputation for groping while posing for photos, but she dismissed them without much thought. “I guess I was thinking, ‘He’s in a wheelchair, what harm could he do?’” Grolnick said. Earlier on Wednesday, Bush apologized following actress Heather Lind’s accusation that he touched her from behind and told a lewd joke during an encounter four years ago. “He didn’t shake my hand. He touched me from behind from his wheelchair with his wife Barbara Bush by his side,” Lind wrote in a now-deleted Instagram post. “He told me a dirty joke. And then, all the while being photographed, touched me again.” Bush spokesperson Jim McGrath wrote that “President Bush would never — under any circumstance — intentionally cause anyone distress, and he most sincerely apologizes if his attempt at humor offended Ms. Lind.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4998063/george-hw-bush-jordana-grolnick/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4998063/george-hw-bush-jordana-grolnick/"},"headline":"George H.W. Bush Says He Has Occasionally 'Patted Women's Rears' Amid Groping Allegations","datePublished":"2017-10-26T01:20:54.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T18:00:19.359Z","description":"Another actress accused the former president of groping her during a photo op","url":"https://time.com/4998063/george-hw-bush-jordana-grolnick/","keywords":["George H.W. 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