Thread by @jentiphansen

@realDonaldTrump @GOP
A thread about false sexual assault & rape allegations:
Let's consider for a moment that every one of the 20+ allegations against Donald Trump are false. In my estimation there are 3 basic reasons people give for why women would lie about such a thing: /1

1. Fame- This one is unlikely, because the vast majority of accusers are forgotten (how many can you name?) and those that are remembered are harassed and threatened to the point of literally going into hiding for years. /2

2. Money: A possibility. When wealthy men are accused there is a chance that the accuser could receive money in the form of a payoff or a successful civil lawsuit. The problem there is that they would have to have a credible case with enough evidence to compel a payment. /3

Another motive that could be used by these women combines money and the 3rd motive, Politics. A political rival or special interest group could have paid a woman to make an accusation. That leads us to... /4

3. Politics: Also a possibility. The negative publicity from a sex scandal has successfully ended political careers...sometimes. But some rich, famous, or powerful men can be accused of dozens of assaults over decades and it goes unnoticed or unbelieved indefinitely. /5

So, back to the theory that all of Trump's accusers are lying. Bill Clinton also has multiple credible accusers & over the last few years we've seen many famous men publicly accused of assault or rape. Because I am making the assumption that all of these accusations are false /6

I will not consider justice as a motive for these accusations, but only the 3 main arguments: Fame, Money, and/or Politics. Here is my question: If one or all of these motives encourage women to make false accusations, then why are there multiple credible accounts /7

against both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, but none against Barack Obama, George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, etc.? (Please correct me if there are allegations I am missing). /8

Even as it appears that every famous man is being accused of sexual misconduct lately, it really is a very small percentage. Don't get me wrong, it is still a pervasive problem with many accused and even more accusers. /9

But, again, if the motives are not justice or, more likely, a concern for stopping a predator from attacking anyone else, because we are still assuming all the accusations are false and motivated by fame, money, or politics, then why /10

are a small fraction of men accused multiple times, but most are not accused at all? I've heard the arguement and seen the SNL sketch with Tom Brady that attractive men are not accused because their sexual advances are welcome, when unattractive men are not. /11

However, that does not explain why there are accusations against Ben Affleck and Michael Weatherly, but none against Paul Giamatti or Danny Devito (I understand that attractiveness is subjective and my apologies to Paul Giamatti and Danny Devito for using you in this example) /12

So, in conclusion, if women are falsely accusing famous, wealthy, and powerful men of sexual misconduct, then why aren't almost all men who fit that description facing accusations? Why are many of the accused facing multiple accusations, but most men have zero?/13

Note: Based upon personal experience, the VAST MAJORITY of sexual assaults and rapes are never reported, so I am not implying that everyone who has not been accused, is not a perpetrator, or that the number of accusations against one man is an accurate count. END