In an exclusive airing on Thursday, May 19, former Miss Universe Alicia Machado told “Inside Edition’s” Jim Moret that she was publicly humiliated by Donald Trump. Machado was crowned Miss Venezuela and Miss Universe in 1996 when she was 19. That same year, Trump had just taken ownership of the Miss Universe pageant.
Months after being crowned, Machado gained weight and Trump demanded that she lose it. Trump called her an “eating machine” during an interview with Howard Stern, and invited the media to watch Machado when he took her to a gym to exercise. “They took me to the gym, and I’m exposed to 90 media outlets.” Machado also told The New York Times that Trump was there, so he clearly knew what was going to happen.
“I was about to cry in that moment with all the cameras there,” she said of the humiliating moment. “I said, ‘I don’t want to do this, Mr. Trump.’ He said, ‘I don’t care.’”
Machado told “Inside Edition” that the incident made her feel publicly body-shamed and added that Trump called her names. “He called me Miss Piggy,” she revealed, saying it made her feel “so fat.” “I was very depressed in that moment,” she said.
Machado says that Trump also mocked her English speaking skills calling her, ‘Miss Housekeeping.’
The former beauty queen went on to become a big star of telenovelas and was the first Miss Universe to pose for Playboy. But she said her experience as Miss Universe and the weight issue led to years of battling eating disorders, which required psychotherapy to overcome.
Machado will soon become an American citizen, which she said she wanted to do in time to vote in the Presidential election. When “Inside Edition” asked if she plans to vote for Trump, Machado bursts out in laughter and said, “He can’t be a President.” Do not forget to check your local listings to tune in to today's "Inside Edition."
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