Sen. Jeff Sessions clarifies comment on Trump sexual assault question

MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions is pushing back following a report published in the Weekly Standard in which he reportedly said he doesn't believe the actions Donald Trump described in a lewd conversation that was caught on video in 2005 would constitute sexual assault.

"I don't characterize that as sexual assault. I think that's a stretch," Sessions told The Weekly Standard Sunday night shortly after the second presidential debate.

Now, Sessions is seeking a retraction from the Weekly Standard saying its "characterization of comments I made following Sunday's Presidential debate is completely inaccurate."

Alabama's junior U.S. senator, an early and staunch supporter of Donald Trump, added, "My hesitation was based solely on confusion of the contents of the 2005 tape and the hypothetical posed by the reporter, which was asked in a chaotic post-debate environment."

According to The Weekly Standard, Sessions made the comment in the spin room after the debate.

"So if you grab a woman by the genitals, that's not sexual assault?" the reporter asked.

Sessions responded with "I don't know. It's not clear that he—how that would occur."

"I regret that it resulted  in an inaccurate article that misrepresented my views," Sessions said Tuesday. "Of course it is crystal clear that assault is unacceptable. I would never intentionally suggest otherwise."

Trump has come under fire and lost support from some Republican members of congress and governors, including Rep. Martha Roby and Gov. Robert Bentley, after a video from 2005 was released Friday.

In the video, Trump was caught on a live microphone speaking to Billy Bush, who worked for Access Hollywood at the time, talking about making sexual advances on women.

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