Refraining from drinking one of my only good traits: Trump

Image
Press Trust of India Washington
Last Updated : Oct 02 2018 | 1:05 AM IST

US President Donald Trump Monday jokingly said that abstaining from drinking was one of his only good traits, in an apparent reference to his Supreme Court nominee Justice Brett Kavanaugh who talked about his drinking habits while testifying before a Senate Committee on sexual assault allegations.

"I'm not a drinker. I can honestly say I never had a beer in my life, OK? It's one of my only good traits. I don't drink," Trump told reporters jokingly, resulting in a burst of laughter from some reporters at a White House news conference.

"Whenever they're looking for something, I'm going to say, 'I never had a glass of alcohol'. I've never had alcohol. ... Can you imagine if I had what a mess I'd be? I'd be the world's worst. But I never drank. I never drank," Trump said.

The President was responding to a question on the drinking habits of his Supreme Court nominee Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who is facing allegations of sexual assault when he was in high school and college.

Kavanaugh testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on sexual assault allegations, wherein he also talked about his drinking habits. His critics have expressed concern that he lied about his drinking habits.

Trump, however, said he did not think so.

"So, if he did lie about his drinking, does that mean you'll pull his nomination?" Trump was asked.

"I don't think he did," answered the US President.

"But I can tell you, I watched that hearing and I watched a man saying that he did have difficulty as a young man with drink. The one question I didn't ask is how about the last 20 years? Have you had difficulty the last 20 years? Because nobody said anything bad about him in many, many years," Trump said.

"They go back to high school. You know, I graduated from high school, and while I did not drink, I saw a lot of people drinking. They'd drink beer and they'd go crazy and, you know, they were in high school. They were 16, 17 years old, and I saw a lot of it. Does that mean that they can't do something that they want to do with their life?" he asked.

"So it's a very tough thing. I really believe that he was very strong on the fact that he drank a lot and so I don't know where there'd be big discrepancy," Trump said.

Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content

*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Exclusive premium stories online

  • Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Oct 02 2018 | 1:05 AM IST

Next Story