Trump called ‘Access Hollywood’ tape ‘old news’ in deposition

Former President Donald Trump called the infamous 2005 “Access Hollywood” tape of himself “very old news” when questioned by lawyers for rape accuser E. Jean Carroll, according to a video of his deposition played in Manhattan federal court Thursday.

The jury overseeing Carroll’s ongoing civil trial against Trump, 76, on Thursday morning heard — for the second time — the notorious recording of the 45th president saying he would grab women “by the p—y” and they let him because he’s a star.

“This is very old news, fully litigated,” Trump told Carroll’s lawyer Roberta Kaplan at the Oct. 19, 2022 deposition, adding it was “Locker room talk.”

The “Access Hollywood” tape was played for Trump during his sworn testimony — which in turn was shown to the jury. Trump did not know that a mic was live when he was speaking to show co-anchor Billy Bush.

Kaplan asked about Trump saying in the recording that he could grab women because he’s a star.

“Well historically that’s true with stars,” Trump said in the deposition. “If you look over the last million years, I guess that’s been largely true not always but largely true — unfortunately or fortunately.”

Kaplan asked, “do you consider yourself a star?”

“I think you can say that, yes,” Trump responded.

Carroll, 79, sued Trump in November claiming he raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman fitting room around 1996. She also alleges that he defamed her after she went public with the claims in June 2019 when he denied knowing her, called her a liar, said the claim was a “hoax” and said she wasn’t his “type.”

During the deposition, Trump launched a series of barbs at Carroll and Kaplan including calling the former New York Magazine advice columnist “a nut job,” “a sick person” and calling her attorney “a political operative” as she was questioning him.

“This is a hoax too,” Trump said in the video. “This is a ridiculous situation. She a liar and she is a sick person in my opinion, really sick. Something is really wrong with her.”

Kaplan grilled Trump about publicly implying that his accusers are not physically his type.

Trump told Kaplan without prompting, “you wouldn’t be a choice of mine either. I would not under any circumstances have any interest in you.”

In deposition video, Trump was also shown a photo of Carroll whom he mistook for his ex-wife Marla Maples.

Carroll’s lawyers said during opening statements last week that this moment dispels Trump’s claim that their client wasn’t his “type.”

Later Thursday morning, Carroll’s longtime friend and retired television journalist Carol Martin told the jury about how Carroll confided in her about the alleged sexual assault by Trump.

Martin testified that she “was completely floored” when Carroll told her about the alleged attack while the two were at Martin’s house.

Martin recalled how the “Ask E. Jean” columnist seemed “agitated,” “anxious,” “frazzled” and in a “frenzy” when she laid out the details of how she had bumped into the real estate mogul in the Fifth Avenue department store, agreeing to help him pick out a gift for a woman.

“She was gesturing,” Carroll said. “She was in a state of remembering … and I think the more she spoke the worse it got.”

Carroll has testified that she and Trump exchanged banter in the upscale store before he lead her up to the lingerie section, where he found a lace negligee that he tossed at her telling her she should try it on.

Carroll said she joked back that Trump should try on the see-through one-piece — before he took her into a fitting room that was open and carried out the alleged assault.

Martin advised Carroll not to report the incident, she told jurors.

“I volunteered that I didn’t think she should do anything because it was Donald Trump and he had a lot of attorneys and I thought he would bury her,” Martin recalled on the stand.

“I have questioned myself more times than not over the years as to why I told her that,” Martin said. “I am not proud of that.”

Martin said that Carroll seemed to agree with her about staying quiet, and the pair had an unspoken understanding to not speak about it again with each other — which they didn’t until Carroll published her account of the alleged rape in a New York Magazine excerpt of her 2019 book “What Do We Need Men For?”

Martin told jurors that she was reluctant to be publicly identified as one of two people that Carroll opened up to about the alleged attack. She questioned Carroll’s choice to come forward and bring a lawsuit because she “felt like [Carroll] was being hammered” publicly.

Carroll’s other friend who she says she confided in, Lisa Birbach, testified Tuesday about how when Carroll called her moments after leaving Bergdorf’s she was “hyperventilating” on the phone.

Two other Trump accusers, Jessica Leeds and Natasha Stoynoff, were also called as witnesses by Carroll to speak of their own alleged sexual assaults by Trump, in an effort to show that the former commander-in-chief had a pattern of misconduct against women.

Trial has been underway since last week and testimony is expected to wrap up later Thursday, with the jury slated to begin deliberations early next week.

Trump has not been present at trial and his lawyer Joe Tacopina said his client doesn’t plan to attend.