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| How the Roy Moore Sexual Misconduct Scandal Has Evolved | How the Roy Moore Sexual Misconduct Scandal Has Evolved |
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| Since a news report came out that accused Roy S. Moore, the Republican Senate candidate in Alabama, of sexual misconduct, the issue has come to dominate a Dec. 12 election that has moved swiftly from being a slam dunk for Republicans to a tight race with major implications for his party’s ability to govern in Washington. | Since a news report came out that accused Roy S. Moore, the Republican Senate candidate in Alabama, of sexual misconduct, the issue has come to dominate a Dec. 12 election that has moved swiftly from being a slam dunk for Republicans to a tight race with major implications for his party’s ability to govern in Washington. |
| As Republican officials increasingly distanced themselves from Mr. Moore, a former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, they have explored the limited and unattractive range of options open to them in handling what has become a national political story. | As Republican officials increasingly distanced themselves from Mr. Moore, a former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, they have explored the limited and unattractive range of options open to them in handling what has become a national political story. |
| Mr. Moore has long been a popular figure in Alabama, and a divisive one — now more than ever, as our reporters learned in talking with residents in Gadsden, his hometown. Despite the controversy, he could still win the special election to fill the seat vacated early this year by Jeff Sessions, who became attorney general. | Mr. Moore has long been a popular figure in Alabama, and a divisive one — now more than ever, as our reporters learned in talking with residents in Gadsden, his hometown. Despite the controversy, he could still win the special election to fill the seat vacated early this year by Jeff Sessions, who became attorney general. |
| Last week, The Washington Post reported that four women said Mr. Moore had pursued them sexually or romantically when they were 18 or younger and he was in his 30s, and one of them said that he touched her sexually when she was 14, below the age of consent. | Last week, The Washington Post reported that four women said Mr. Moore had pursued them sexually or romantically when they were 18 or younger and he was in his 30s, and one of them said that he touched her sexually when she was 14, below the age of consent. |
| Mr. Moore, 70, remains defiant, trying to discredit the accusers while denying the most serious charges against him and insisting that the women are part of a conspiracy to stop him from putting God at the center of American politics. But he has not categorically denied that before he was married, he pursued teenage girls who were much younger than he was. | Mr. Moore, 70, remains defiant, trying to discredit the accusers while denying the most serious charges against him and insisting that the women are part of a conspiracy to stop him from putting God at the center of American politics. But he has not categorically denied that before he was married, he pursued teenage girls who were much younger than he was. |
| On Monday, a woman accused Mr. Moore of sexually assaulting her when she was 16. On Wednesday, four more women accused him of sexual misconduct or unwanted overtures. | On Monday, a woman accused Mr. Moore of sexually assaulting her when she was 16. On Wednesday, four more women accused him of sexual misconduct or unwanted overtures. |
| Republican responses to the allegations have evolved. Alabama party officials have staunchly defended Mr. Moore, while national party leaders said he should drop out of the race if the claims proved to be true. | Republican responses to the allegations have evolved. Alabama party officials have staunchly defended Mr. Moore, while national party leaders said he should drop out of the race if the claims proved to be true. |
| Since then, a growing list of elected Republicans have said flatly that he should step aside, be blocked from running or be prevented from taking office if he wins. The National Republican Senatorial Committee, a fund-raising arm of the national party, severed ties with Mr. Moore. | Since then, a growing list of elected Republicans have said flatly that he should step aside, be blocked from running or be prevented from taking office if he wins. The National Republican Senatorial Committee, a fund-raising arm of the national party, severed ties with Mr. Moore. |
| On Monday, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican majority leader, said “I believe the women.” Mr. McConnell is a sharp-elbowed partisan who is already having trouble passing legislation with his 52-vote Republican majority, but he has, as Carl Hulse reported, shown little tolerance for sexual misconduct that he thinks reflects badly on Republicans or the Senate. | |
| President Trump has not weighed in on the storm surrounding Mr. Moore, whose nativist, grievance-fueled conservative populism has much in common with the president’s own. | President Trump has not weighed in on the storm surrounding Mr. Moore, whose nativist, grievance-fueled conservative populism has much in common with the president’s own. |
| The state Republican Party has weighed whether to rescind Mr. Moore’s nomination, but the ballots have been printed with his name on them, and some people have already cast their votes. If the nomination were taken away from him, any votes for Mr. Moore could be rendered null and void, even if he collected more than any other candidate. | The state Republican Party has weighed whether to rescind Mr. Moore’s nomination, but the ballots have been printed with his name on them, and some people have already cast their votes. If the nomination were taken away from him, any votes for Mr. Moore could be rendered null and void, even if he collected more than any other candidate. |
| Mr. McConnell and others have floated the idea of a write-in candidacy for another Republican — possibly none other than Mr. Sessions, whose standing with the president has been shaky. For Republicans, the problem with the idea is that with Mr. Moore remaining an option on the ballot, a write-in candidate could split the conservative vote and hand the election to the Democratic candidate, Doug Jones. | Mr. McConnell and others have floated the idea of a write-in candidacy for another Republican — possibly none other than Mr. Sessions, whose standing with the president has been shaky. For Republicans, the problem with the idea is that with Mr. Moore remaining an option on the ballot, a write-in candidate could split the conservative vote and hand the election to the Democratic candidate, Doug Jones. |
| National Democratic organizations and the party’s most prominent figures have largely steered clear of the race, acutely aware of how unpopular they are in a very conservative state that last elected a Democratic senator in 1990. The national groups have not even spent money on ads supporting Mr. Jones. | National Democratic organizations and the party’s most prominent figures have largely steered clear of the race, acutely aware of how unpopular they are in a very conservative state that last elected a Democratic senator in 1990. The national groups have not even spent money on ads supporting Mr. Jones. |
| Since the allegations against Mr. Moore became public, Mr. Jones has said little about them, content to let the story unfold without his input. The Jones campaign released an ad making only indirect references to the charges, questioning Mr. Moore’s decency. | Since the allegations against Mr. Moore became public, Mr. Jones has said little about them, content to let the story unfold without his input. The Jones campaign released an ad making only indirect references to the charges, questioning Mr. Moore’s decency. |
| The national Republican Party has never really embraced Mr. Moore, and the feeling is mutual — he has railed against Mr. McConnell as a creature of a malevolent Washington establishment. During the Republican primary, Mr. McConnell and Mr. Trump endorsed the incumbent, Senator Luther Strange, who lost to Mr. Moore. | The national Republican Party has never really embraced Mr. Moore, and the feeling is mutual — he has railed against Mr. McConnell as a creature of a malevolent Washington establishment. During the Republican primary, Mr. McConnell and Mr. Trump endorsed the incumbent, Senator Luther Strange, who lost to Mr. Moore. |
| Mr. Moore has long courted controversy, making incendiary comments about gays, Islam and race, and portraying himself as a defender of Christianity under siege in America. Even some of his fellow conservative officials in Alabama are wary of him, and he was twice removed from office as the state’s highest judge. | Mr. Moore has long courted controversy, making incendiary comments about gays, Islam and race, and portraying himself as a defender of Christianity under siege in America. Even some of his fellow conservative officials in Alabama are wary of him, and he was twice removed from office as the state’s highest judge. |
| In 2001, shortly after taking office as chief justice, he installed a one-ton granite Ten Commandments monument in the State Supreme Court building, and refused to move it even after federal courts ordered it taken out. In 2003, a judicial ethics panel stripped him of his post, and the court he had led later upheld his removal. | In 2001, shortly after taking office as chief justice, he installed a one-ton granite Ten Commandments monument in the State Supreme Court building, and refused to move it even after federal courts ordered it taken out. In 2003, a judicial ethics panel stripped him of his post, and the court he had led later upheld his removal. |
| He was elected chief justice again in 2012, and within a few years he was again defying federal court orders, telling lower-court judges not to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Last year, the ethics panel again removed him from the bench, and again, the State Supreme Court later upheld that decision. | He was elected chief justice again in 2012, and within a few years he was again defying federal court orders, telling lower-court judges not to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Last year, the ethics panel again removed him from the bench, and again, the State Supreme Court later upheld that decision. |