Sen. Kamala Harris said she believes President Donald Trump’s accusers and that “there should be some inquiry into the veracity of their claims.” | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Kamala Harris says Trump should resign

Kamala Harris on Thursday called for President Donald Trump to resign over accusations of sexual harassment and assault, becoming the seventh senator to publicly call for Trump’s resignation.

“I think he should resign in the best interest of the country,” the California Democrat told POLITICO in an interview.


Harris’ remarks come as Trump faces renewed scrutiny over past accusations of sexual misconduct. At least 16 women have accused Trump of inappropriate behavior, and he inflamed critics again this week when he said in a tweet that Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) used to “come to my office ‘begging’ for campaign contributions” and that she “would do anything for them.”

Harris, like Gillibrand a potential presidential contender in 2020, said Trump’s tweet “was completely inappropriate on every level.”

“First of all, we know he’s not going to resign,” Harris said. “So let’s just be clear about that. But if he were going to make a decision that was in the best interest of the country, I think he should. He should seriously consider it.”

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Harris follows Gillibrand and Sens. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in calling for Trump’s resignation.

Trump has repeatedly denied accusations of sexual misconduct, taking to Twitter this week to deride what he called “false accusations and fabricated stories.”

Harris said she believes Trump’s accusers and that “there should be some inquiry into the veracity of their claims.”

Asked if the country had reached a turning point on issues of sexual harassment, Harris said, “I don’t think we have arrived at that point.”





“I’ll give you a specific example,” Harris said. “You can talk to a lot of women senators who will talk about what it’s been like around here for the last few weeks, when we’re debating a tax bill – we haven’t seen tax reform attempted since 1986 – and that’s not the question that is the lead question or any question that’s being asked of women.”

Instead, Harris said, female senators are primarily asked about sexual harassment.

“There have been people saying, ‘Well, this is the issue for the women of the Senate,' which is ridiculous,” she said. “We still have a lot of work to do on having people understand this is everyone’s issue.”