Donald Trump has been dogged by wild allegations about his receiving a “golden shower” from sex workers in Russia ever since the aftermath of the 2016 election, the rumour refusing to go away in part because he keeps bringing it up.
He last revisited the sordid subject at an Iowa rally on Saturday 18 November.
Speaking in Fort Dodge, the former president brought up the mostly-debunked 2016 dossier in which ex-British spy Christopher Steele alleged that Mr Trump had paid sex workers to urinate on him in a Moscow hotel.
The Republican gave a rambling retelling of his conversation with his wife Melania after the claims first emerged.
“‘He was with four hookers’ — you think that was good that night to go up and tell my wife? ‘It’s not true darling, I love you very much, it’s not true,’” Mr Trump said.
"Actually, that one she didn’t believe because she said, ‘He’s a germaphobe, he’s not into that, you know. He’s not into golden showers as they say’.”
This was hardly the first time Mr Trump has disputed the contents of the Steele dossier, which was funded by Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
He gave similar remarks about Melania’s response in a speech last November, saying she had told him: “I know that’s not your thing.”
The research in question alleged that Russian authorities had covertly filmed Mr Trump’s interaction with prostitutes on a hotel bed once used by Barack Obama and Michelle Obama.
In March 2022, the Federal Election Commission fined the Clinton campaign and the DNC for not properly disclosing the more than $1m it funneled into the research.
The Democrats funded the research through law firm Perkins Coie, which hired research outfit Fusion GPS, the group that then tasked Mr Steele to pursue his research.
The former intelligence agent has maintained that his work was unverified, warranted further investigation and was not meant for public consumption.
However, the contents of the dossier leaked in January 2017, just as Mr Trump was set to take office.
There is no evidence that the video described by Mr Steele exists.
He defended his research in October 2021, claiming the tape “probably exists” but is being withheld by the Russian government.
The Independent’s Josh Marcus and the Associated Press contributed to this report
