'I looked at his ass': President Trump's gushing over Ohio senator Jon Husted's body sparks a flurry of commentary

President Trump set off a wave of commentary after publicly praising Republican Senator Jon Husted's physique at a campaign rally in Youngstown, Ohio on 12 October, telling the crowd he had looked at Husted's backside and now viewed the senator in an entirely new light. Trump had appeared alongside Husted more than a dozen times over a decade without a notable remark, but learning of his former cornerback career at the University of Dayton changed that instantly. The episode is the latest in a pattern of the president gushing over the physical attributes of handsome men.

Trump first flagged Husted's athletic past at Vandalia-Butler High School on 3 October, saying 'nobody told me you were a great athlete' and 'now I look at him… different.'

Husted played cornerback at the University of Dayton, helping the Flyers win the 1989 NCAA Division III championship, and has held elective office continuously since 2001.

Commentators note the Youngstown 'ass' remark was jarring even by Trump's famously digressive speech style, which he calls 'The Weave.'