12 Sexist Things Donald Trump Has Done

Concerns over Donald Trump's allegedly sexist or misogynistic behavior and rhetoric have dominated the news now for more than a year. By now, there's a good chance you've heard his "grab them by the pussy" comment at least once and are more than familiar with his "slob," "dog," and "big fat pig" evaluations of women. The lists tracking all of Trump's alleged sexist comments and actions are long and seriously disheartening. With Women's History Month officially over, there seems like no better time to brush up on some of Trump's sexist moments.

As allegations of groping, inappropriate comments, and sexual assault mounted during the 2016 presidential election, Trump appeared to be just as obsessed with talking about his respect for women as he was with discussing his penchant for winning. "I have more respect for women than Hillary Clinton has," he boasted to Fox News in January of 2016. "Nobody has more respect for women than Donald Trump," he declared in a tweet published March 26, 2016. Two months later, he relied on his daughter as an attempt to increase his credibility, telling a crowd gathered in Oregon, "My daughter Ivanka always says, 'Daddy nobody respects women more than you, Daddy, what are they talking about?'" However, despite his repeated claims that "nobody has more respect for women" allegations of sexism have followed Trump to the White House.

Here are 12 sexist things you may have forgotten Donald Trump did:

1. You Can Pay A Woman In Dresses

In a profile of Trump published by Vanity Fair in 1990, the real estate mogul is quoted as announcing he was making his first wife, Ivana, president of the Plaza hotel and giving her a salary of "one dollar a year and all the dresses she can buy." Because why pay a woman a fair wage when all she really wants is clothing?

2. She's Got Problems Because Of Her Looks

In the early 90s then-Vanity Fair writer Marie Brenner (who wrote the Trump profile mentioned above) claimed Trump poured wine on her and told her, "You have to treat women like shit." When asked about the incident in another interview two years later in an interview for ABC's Primetime Live, Trump dismissed Brenner as someone with "lots of problems because of her looks." "I didn't say that," Trump said in regards to Brenner's allegation. "The woman's a liar, extremely unattractive."

Trying to cast a reporter (or anyone) as untrustworthy because of her looks is not only ridiculous, but offensive.

3. Putting A Wife To Work Is A Very Dangerous Thing

In a 1994 interview with ABC News, Trump (who was at that time married to Marla Maples) claimed he wasn't entirely comfortable with having a wife who worked. "I think that putting a wife to work is a very dangerous thing," Trump said. He went on to add, "I think that [her working] was the single greatest cause of what happened to my marriage with Ivana." In that same interview, Trump also credited himself with making both Ivana and Maples into "stars." "Unfortunately, after they're a star, the fun is over for me," he said.

4. I Don't Want My Wife Shouting

In that same interview, Trump talks about an alleged change in his first wife's demeanor. "Ivana would get angry at somebody over the telephone, all of a sudden, who was at the casino, and she'd start shouting," Trump told ABC News. "And I'd say, 'I don't want my wife shouting at somebody like that, I really don’t want that.'" While it's understandable to have concerns about hearing someone shout at employees, Trump's comments suggest it was more his concern about having a spouse who raises her voice.s

5. What Do You Expect Putting Men & Women Together?

In 2013, amid reports of women in the military being sexually assaulted, Trump issued a statement via Twitter that seemed to imply sexual assault was a natural result of men and women working side by side. "26,000 unreported sexual assaults in the military-only 238 convictions," he tweeted. "What did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together?"

6. How Can She Satisfy America?

In April 2015, Trump tweeted this totally gross insight about Hillary Clinton in a tweet that has since been deleted: "If Hillary Clinton can't satisfy her husband, what makes her think she can satisfy America?"

7. The Bully Schtick

When Trump and Clinton squared off in the first presidential debate last September, in the first 26 minutes of the debate, he interrupted Clinton a whopping 25 times, according to Vox's tally. Trump would go on to interrupt his female rival another 26 times during the debate for a total of 51 interruptions.

While the act of interrupting someone may seem harmless enough, research shows women have long been interrupted far more often than men. Moreover, cutting off a woman from speaking is known to be an example of the subtle sexist biases women often come up against in the workplace.

8. Signing Policy That Impacts Women's Health While Surrounded By Men

Trump took a lot of heat Jan. 24 when he, surrounded by men, signed and executive memorandum to reinstate the controversial Mexico City Policy, which blocks any U.S. government funding from going to NGOs that provide abortion services. It's important to note that there is already a block on U.S. government money going to pay for abortion services, but this step goes further, barring any funds that could be used for health screenings or contraception because the group that administers them also provides abortions. While some may not see this as sexist, I would argue that the impact this policy will have one women's health makes it an attack on women. The vice president and director of international operations for Marie Stopes International, a leading women's health NGO, said of the Mexico City Policy, "over the next 4 years, the loss of our USAID-funded services alone will lead to 6.5 million unplanned pregnancies, 2.2 million abortions, and 21,700 maternal deaths."

9. Still No Women At The Table

Similarly, Tump and Pence left women out of the discussion again when they met with members of the House Freedom Caucus to discuss the GOP health care plan. (While Kellyanne Conway was reported to have been in the room, no female legislatures were present.) Among the topics discussed at that meeting was stripping the Republican health care bill of a provision that would require insurance plans to cover maternity health services as an essential benefit.

10. Do You Want To Have A Handshake?

In his two previous visits with foreign leaders – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – Trump was all too eager to shake hands for the traditional Oval Office photo op. Yet when German Chancellor Angela Merkel, one of the world's most powerful political leaders, visited in March, Trump didn't offer up his hand. Worse, when Merkel asked him, "Do you want to have a handshake?" Trump wouldn't even look at her, let alone shake her hand.

While some might want to credit Trump's missed handshake moment with Merkel as a symptom of his lack of political experience, I'd argue his business dealings should have made him more than familiar with the art of the handshake. Rather, Trump's unwillingness to acknowledge Merkel or shake hands with her is a subtle, but, to me, still sexist, tactic employed by men seeking to deny powerful women a common gesture of respect.

11. What Can Look So Beautiful At 30?

While speaking at the unveiling of Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner in Charleston, South Carolina in February, President Trump subtly insulted women of a certain age by implying that even hunks of painted aluminum were more beautiful than them. "What can look so beautiful at 30?" Trump asked the crowd. The answer was not 46-year-old former model and First Lady Melania Trump. Nor was it 35-year-old Ivanka Trump. No, the answer was an airplane.

"I'm being very, very serious – the new Air Force One, that plane, as beautiful as it looks, is 30 years old," President Trump said at Boeing's unveiling Friday. "Can you believe it? What can look so beautiful at 30? An airplane."

12. A Cabinet Full Of Women

While speaking at a Women's Empowerment Panel at the White House on March 29, Trump claimed "my Cabinet is full of really incredible women leaders." Apparently Trump and I have completely different understandings of what the word "full" means. Women hold only four of the 24 Cabinet and cabinet-level positions in Trump's administration and none of those are positions within the "inner Cabinet."

In fact, Trump's Cabinet has been described by the New York Times as "more white and male than any first Cabinet since Reagan's." What makes this especially disturbing is that Trump and his administration seem completely oblivious to their failure to make space at the table for women when it comes to both policy making and representation.