Trump's top donors dismiss his crude hot-mic comments as 'locker room braggadocio' and say they will stand by him despite dozens of GOP figures withdrawing their support 

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Donald Trump's top donors, a billionaire businessman and his daughter, stood by him on Saturday despite an exodus of endorsers within the GOP party amid the fallout from his crude hot-mic comments.

Robert and Rebekah Mercer dismissed Trump's boast that he could 'grab them by the p****' as nothing more than 'locker room braggadocio', insisting their support remained squarely behind the businessman. 

In a lengthy statement issued to The Washington Post, the father-daughter-duo said they were not surprised by the release of a 2005 tape in which Trump was heard discussing his aggressive sexual strategies. 

'Donald Trump's uncensored comments, both old and new, have been echoed and dissected in the media repeatedly in an effort to kindle among his supporters a conflagration of outrage commensurate with the media's own faux outrage.

Robert and Rebekah Mercer (above, left), a father and daughter who run the largest pro-Trump super Pac, have maintained their support for the candidate in the wake of a leaked 2005 tape in which he made lewd comments about women

'Can anyone really be surprised that Mr. Trump could have said to Mr. Bush such things as he has already admitted saying? No. We are completely indifferent to Mr. Trump's locker room braggadocio,' they said. 

The pair, who control a bountiful super PAC which supports the Republican candidate, then pointed to Bill Clinton and his alleged sexual impropriety. 

Their statement of support came as a steady stream of GOP figures withdrew theirs from Trump's campaign. 

Other donors are reportedly asking for their money back. 

CBS cited one campaign insider who said they had been inundated with calls from donors expressing buyer's remorse since the tapes were released.  

Trump refused to withdraw his bid for the White House on Saturday 

Their retreat came after a 2005 Access Hollywood tape was released on Friday in which Trump, then newly married to his wife Melanie, told how he 'immediately' kissed women without waiting - and how they allowed him to because he was a 'star'. 

'You know I'm automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them.

'It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.'

'Grab them by the p---y. You can do anything.' 

Trump has since apologized, admitting he was 'wrong'. 

He has been admonished by Speaker Paul Ryan, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and even his own running mate, Mike Pence, over the comments. 

The Mercers however stopped short of addressing the comments specifically in their statement.

The Mercers turned their wrath on Bill Clinton who they said had 'multiple violent sexual assaults to his credit' 

The Mercers started the Republican super PAC which has morphed into Defeat Crooked Hillary. It began as a fund to support Senator Ted Cruz in his bid for the Republican presidential nomination 

Instead they lay their disgust with Bill Clinton who they said had 'snared a young intern into his web', referring to Monica Lewinsky, the White House aide Clinton later had sex with while President. 

'We can remove the uncivil nastiness of emphasizing candidates' personal behavior which will not affect our lives compared to the policies implemented,' they concluded. 

Robert Mercer was named the 15th highest earning hedge fund manager in the world in 2015. He sits at the helm of Renaissance Technologies Corp. 

His middle daughter Rebekah spearheaded a super PAC in support of Senator Ted Cruz. Kellyanne Conway, Trump's campaign manager, ran the committee.

The PAC evolved into Defeat Crooked Hillary, the group responsible for smearing adverts about the Democratic candidate, after Trump clinched the Republican nomination. 

It's not known exactly how much the duo have spent trying to put Trump in the White House. 

Mr Mercer devoted more than $11million to backing Ted Cruz and has invested in several conservative interests including the Breitbart News Network and the Heritage think tank, according to Bloomberg.com.