In an incident that echoes Donald Trump's "pussy-grabbing" controversy, a Republican politician has been arrested and charged with sexual assault after an altercation with a woman ended with him grabbing her crotch.

Christopher von Keyserling, a 71-year-old member of the Representative Town Meeting in Connecticut (a form of local government), is accused of insulting and then assaulting a staffer during a disagreement over none other than Donald Trump himself.

According to local media, the arrest warrant alleged von Keyserling responded to the woman's comment that it's "a new world politically" by telling her "I love this new world, I no longer have to be politically correct."

The conversation descended into name-calling, and von Keyserling followed the woman into her office where he allegedly reached between her legs and "pinched her groin area".