Gloria Allred slams the owner of Miss Universe Organization after he told Barbara Walters that he wonders if there was an ulterior motive behind the transgender beauty queen's name.
- Apr 7, 2012
AceShowbiz - Donald Trump's latest comment about Jenna Talackova in an interview for "20/20" has invited sneer from the transgender beauty queen's attorney. After Donald told Barbara Walters that Jenna's name, if put together, sounds like genital, Gloria Allred said that the owner of Miss Universe Organization had to stop "being focused on genitals".
"With all due respect to Mr. Trump, he really needs to stop being focused on genitals, his or anyone else's," Gloria told the show's host during the TV interview. With Jenna sitting next to her, the famous Hollywood lawyer further stated, "This world does not revolve around his penis or anyone else's genitalia."
When asked why she took on Jenna's case, Gloria pointed out, "What happened to Jenna is very, very important." She went on explaining, "The Miss Universe competition had the rule that a contestant had to be a naturally born female. That is a rule that is blatantly discriminatory."
23-year-old Jenna was selected among 65 finalists for 2012 Miss Universe Canada. She, however, was disqualified after organizers found out she had undergone surgery to become a woman. The decision was later reversed, and she is welcomed to compete "provided she meets the legal gender recognition requirements of Canada and the standards established by other international competitions."
During the "20/20" interview, Donald explained about the reversal of the decision. "We looked at the laws of Canada, and we looked at the laws of the United States, and every country is different, but it was obvious to us that she was entitled to compete," he said. He, however, also noted that he wondered if there was an ulterior motive behind the first letters of Jenna's name, "JennaTal".
That isn't the first time Donald made any reference to genital when weighing in on Jenna's controversy. After Gloria said that Jenna "did not ask Mr. Trump to prove that he is a naturally-born man", he told TMZ, "I think Gloria Allred would be very, very, very, very impressed [with my penis]. I think she would have a whole new image of Donald Trump."
