Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean gave a qualified apology Friday for insinuating that GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump might have a cocaine habit, saying he doesn’t think using “innuendo” is a good thing while also making sure to point out that Mr. Trump was tweeting about sex tapes in the wee hours of Friday morning.
“He was tweeting at 3 and 4 o’clock in the morning about sex tapes. This guy’s running for president of the United States,” Mr. Dean said on MSNBC.
“People who stay up at 3 and 4 and 5 o’clock in the morning tweeting about sex tapes — these are not normal people, and there is something the matter with him, and I don’t know what it is,” said Mr. Dean, a Hillary Clinton supporter and former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
“I would be very willing to apologize, not to Donald Trump, but I don’t think using innuendo is a good thing,” he said.
“I’m not unwilling to apologize for using innuendo — I don’t think that’s a reasonable thing to do,” Mr. Dean said. “Donald Trump has used innuendo from the day he got into this campaign and you, media, have not called him on it.”
Mr. Dean had tweeted on Monday, the day of the first presidential debate: “Notice Trump sniffing all the time. Coke user?”
“I did that on purpose so I could say just exactly what I said, and so I apologize for using innuendo,” Mr. Dean said Friday. “I don’t think it’s a good thing to do. I don’t think it’s the right thing to do. This entire campaign has been debased by innuendo.”
Mr. Dean also said he wants the media to apologize, saying there’s a double standard for Mr. Trump because his ratings are great.
“You think Tim Russert or Bob Schieffer would have let a candidate call into the talk shows in his pajamas?” he said, referring to Mr. Russert, the late former host of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” and Mr. Schieffer, the former host of CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
Mr. Trump has frequently participated in interviews on TV news shows during the presidential campaign via telephone.
Early Friday morning, Mr. Trump blasted Alicia Machado, the former Miss Universe who Mrs. Clinton had brought up at Monday’s debate. Ms. Machado has said the GOP nominee criticized her for gaining weight after winning the 1996 pageant crown.
“Did Crooked Hillary help disgusting (check out sex tape and past) Alicia M become a U.S. citizen so she could use her in the debate?” Mr. Trump had tweeted.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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