US president Barack Obama has weighed in on the Bill Cosby sex abuse scandal.
Cosby has been accused of sexually assaulting and/or drugging more than 40 women, including supermodels Janice Dickinson and Beverly Johnson.
Obama was asked about the controversy during a White House press conference today (July 15), revealing that there is no mechanism to revoke the Medal of Freedom that Cosby was given in 2002.
"I'll say this. If you give a woman - or a man, for that matter - without his or her knowledge a drug, and then have sex with that person without consent, that's rape," he told reporters.
"And I think this country, any civilized country, should have no tolerance for rape."
A new development emerged last Monday (July 6) when unsealed court documents revealed that Cosby once acknowledged buying the sedative known as Methaqualone for a woman he wanted to have sexual contact with.
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Last week, it was confirmed that it will not be possible to revoke the comedian's Hollywood Walk of Fame star for legal reasons.
Meanwhile, Disney has removed a statue of Cosby from one of its theme parks.
Cosby has strenuously denied all allegations levelled against him.
Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
