USA Today: Trump 'is not fit to clean the toilets' in Obama's presidential library

AP

• The USA Today editorial board wrote a scathing editorial rebuking President Donald Trump after he attacked Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand on Twitter.
• Gillibrand earlier called on Trump to resign from office over sexual misconduct allegations. 
• This isn't the first time USA Today has come out in strong opposition to Trump.

The USA Today editorial board published a scathing critique of President Donald Trump on Tuesday after many inferred that a tweet he sent suggested Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand would trade sexual favors for campaign contributions.

"A president who would all but call Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand a whore is not fit to clean the toilets in the Barack Obama Presidential Library or to shine the shoes of George W. Bush," USA Today said.

"Rock bottom is no impediment for a president who can always find room for a new low," the editorial board added.

On Tuesday, Trump tweeted that Gillibrand, Democratic Senator from New York, "who would come to my office 'begging' for campaign contributions not so long ago (and would do anything for them) is now in the ring fighting against Trump."

The tweet came after Gillibrand called on Trump to resign on Monday over sexual misconduct alleged by at least 19 women.

"President Trump has committed assault, according to these women, and those are very credible allegations of misconduct and criminal activity, and he should be fully investigated and he should resign," Gillibrand told CNN's Christiane Amanpour.

After Trump's attack, Gillibrand called the president "a bully." Gillibrand's Senate colleague, Elizabeth Warren, also rushed to her defense, accusing the president of attempting to "slut-shame" the senator.

"Are you really trying to bully, intimidate and slut-shame @SenGillibrand? Do you know who you're picking a fight with? Good luck with that, @realDonaldTrump. Nevertheless, #shepersisted," Warren wrote.

During the 2016 election, USA Today sidestepped tradition and told its readers to not vote for Trump. The editorial board urged voters to "stay true to your convictions," whether that meant voting for Clinton, a third-party candidate, or a write-in.

"Whatever you do, however, resist the siren song of a dangerous demagogue," the editorial concluded.

Although USA Today stopped short of fully endorsing Clinton, its rebuke of Trump was particularly noteworthy. It was the first time the paper ever took a stand in a US presidential election.

"A president who shows such disrespect for the truth, for ethics, for the basic duties of the job and for decency toward others fails at the very essence of what has always made America great," the editorial board concluded on Tuesday.

Read the full editorial here »