Trump describes Bill Clinton past behavior as 'rape'

Washington: Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump has accused former president Bill Clinton of "rape," ramping up the attacks on the husband of his expected rival for the presidency at a time when his own conduct with women is under scrutiny.

In an interview with Fox News, Trump said the allegations of sexual misconduct that have dogged Clinton for decades were far worse than claims aired by The New York Times that the real estate mogul has a past of harassing women.

"It's not like the worst thing," Trump, the GOP's presumptive presidential nominee, said late Wednesday of what he called the "minor stuff" he has done, including kissing a model on the lips.

"OK, you look at what Clinton has gone through with all of the problems and all of the things that he's done," Trump told Fox's Sean Hannity.

The reporter then wondered to Trump whether the Times would interview women who in the past had accused Clinton of sexual assault or unwanted advances.

"In one case, it's about exposure. In another case, it's about groping and fondling and touching against a woman's will," Hannity said.

"And rape," Trump added.

"And rape," echoed Hannity, who is also a conservative political commentator.

The campaign of Hillary Clinton, the Democrat likely to face Trump in a general election showdown in November, responded by accusing Trump of trying to change the subject following the focus on his own treatment of women and his refusal to release tax returns.

"Trump is doing what he does best, attacking when he feels wounded and dragging the American people through the mud for his own gain," Hillary Clinton's spokesman Nick Merrill said.

In 1998, Bill Clinton paid an $850,000 settlement in a civil complaint filed by Paula Jones, who had accused him of sexually harassing her in a hotel room in 1991 while the Democrat was still governor of Arkansas. He admitted no wrongdoing.

In 1999, Juanita Broaddrick accused Clinton of having raped her in 1978, when she was a volunteer for one of his election campaigns. Clinton's attorney at the time denied the allegations.

She repeated her claims in January in a tweet.

"I was 35 years old when Bill Clinton, Ark. Attorney General raped me and Hillary tried to silence me," Broaddrick said on Twitter.

"I am now 73.... it never goes away."

Former White House aide Kathleen Willey alleged that Clinton sexually assaulted her in November 1993. She maintains her allegations.

On several occasions in recent months, Trump said Bill Clinton's past was a matter of legitimate debate in the 2016 race.

Earlier this month, Trump accused Hillary Clinton of being an "enabler" of Bill's infidelities.

"She's married to a man who was the worst abuser of women in the history of politics," Trump said on May 7.