Miss Universe Contest Staff Once Claimed, Trump Eliminated the Finalists Who 'Snubbed His Advances'

According to alleged evidence furnished by a member of the Miss Universe organization, President Donald Trump habitually discriminated against competitors who were "too ethnic" or "too dark-skinned." Back in 2018, extracts from the book, Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of Putin's War on America by journalists Michael Isikoff and David Corn were published by Mother Jones and it claimed that Trump rejected competitors from Miss Universe pageants on the basis of race.

Isikoff and Corn found that Trump was always the deciding vote in the beauty contest. If there were too many people of color competing, Trump would veto them, according to the writers. It has been revealed that Trump studied the competitors and made his final round picks for the 2013 Miss Universe pageant a day or two before the competition began.

The authors claimed, "In short, no woman was a finalist until Trump said so." As reported by Newsweek, a staff member was quoted in the book as saying, "He often thought a woman was too ethnic or too dark-skinned. He had a particular type of woman he thought was a winner. Others were too ethnic. He liked a type. There was Olivia Culpo, Dayanara Torres [the 1993 winner], and, no surprise, East European women. When a contestant 'snubbed his advances,' Trump would sometimes eliminate them."

Several past Miss Universe candidates have claimed that Trump made an unexpected visit to their dressing rooms. In 2016, Alicia Machado, a former Miss Universe, said that Trump had called her names like "Miss Piggy," "Miss Housekeeping," and "an eating machine." As reported by BuzzFeed, four ladies who participated in the 1997 Miss Teen USA pageant claimed that Donald Trump entered the changing room while the candidates, some as young as 15, were getting ready.

Miss Vermont Teen USA stated, "I remember putting on my dress really quick because I was like, ‘Oh my god, there’s a man in here,’" and she added Trump told them, "Don’t worry, ladies, I’ve seen it all before." The other three women who chose to stay anonymous stated that the females quickly covered up, with one describing the experience as "shocking" and "creepy."

Miss Teen USA 2010 and native of Maryland's minority community Kamie Crawford tweeted about meeting Donald Trump. She said she was "totally caught off guard" when she was informed he "doesn't like black people."

As reported by HuffPost, she tweeted at the time, "The most Trump tea I'll spill for the day is this... when I was 17, I met Mr. Trump for the first time as Miss Teen USA. To win the title in almost a decade - I was forewarned prior to meeting him that, 'Mr. Trump doesn't like black people. So don't take it...the wrong way if he isn't extremely welcoming towards you. If he is, then u just must be the "type" of black he likes'." 

She continued, "Needless to say, I was totally caught off guard and super nervous bc this is supposed to be my boss I'm meeting - &he might not like me ALREADY? Sure enough, after I was warned about him, I saw him in action and witnessed him completely snub a black contestant at Miss Universe rehearsals..While she was practicing on stage. Literally turned his back to the stage and made a face like he was going to vomit at the sight of her."

Editor's note: This article was originally published on November 17, 2023. It has since been updated.