The wife of Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore said Friday her husband won't quit the race in the face of allegations that he sexually assaulted young women years ago.
Standing on the white marble steps of the state Capitol, Kayla Moore was joined by several dozen women at a rally supporting Moore as she spoke in defense of her husband.
The couple has been married for more than 32 years, and Kayla Moore said her Army veteran husband has always been a gentleman.
"He will not step down. He will not stop fighting for the people of Alabama," said Kayla Moore, who did not take questions.
Standing across the street, a single protester held a sign that said: "Roy Moore is a pedophile."
Moore has ignored mounting calls from Washington Republicans concerned that if he stays in the race against Democrat Doug Jones he may not only lose a seat they were sure to win but also may do significant damage to the party's brand among women nationwide as they prepared for a difficult midterm election season.
On Thursday, Moore appeared alongside more than a dozen religious leaders who took turns bashing the Christian conservative's many critics — especially his female accusers.
U.S. & World
Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world.
Emotions ran high for some Moore supporters. Following an appearance by more than a dozen evangelicals who spoke on stage in support of Moore, some shouted down journalists who attempted to ask Moore about the women's accusations.
"You are the fake, lying news from the swamp!" yelled one woman. Flip Benham grabbed the camera of an Associated Press journalist and repeatedly said: "Did you stop beating your wife, yes or no?"
For his part, Moore called the allegations "unsubstantiated," "unproven" and "fake." "They're not only untrue, but they have no evidence to support them," he insisted, refusing to answer any questions from reporters about the allegations.
Moore has given a single media interview about the allegations to Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity. His campaign website has added a form asking people to report "inappropriate news organization contact."
Still, he has repeatedly hinted that his team has gathered evidence against his critics. He cited evidence of "collusion" soon after the initial report surfaced last week.
His wife circulated a fake report earlier in the week that reporters were offering to pay thousands of dollars for women to come forward with new claims against Moore. In a subsequent social media post, she described the media's actions as "an all-out assault, which is why we are suing them."
President Donald Trump, through a spokeswoman, called the allegations of sexual misconduct against the former judge "very troubling." The Republican president stopped short of calling on Moore to quit the race, however, breaking with most Republican leaders in Washington, including McConnell, the Senate majority leader.
Associated Press writers Steve Peoples, Jay Reeves, Zeke Miller and Catherine Lucey contributed to this report.
