Trump says, “I’d never withdraw.” GOP in chaos.

Washington (AP) - Donald Trump says he will not quit the presidential race.

The Republican presidential nominee told The Washington Post on Saturday morning, "I'd never withdraw. I've never withdrawn in my life."

He also told The Wall Street Journal there was "zero chance I'll quit."

Trump meets Democrat Hillary Clinton in the second  presidential debate Sunday evening.

He reiterated his resistance to withdrawing from the race after a meeting with his staff.

Earlier reports said “Donald Trump is huddling with a close circle of advisers in New York, a day after damaging revelations about his comments about women,” said the Associated Press.

“Most of his campaign staff and network of supporters were left in the dark about the fast-moving developments.

“A person close to the Trump operation who spoke on condition of anonymity said staff calls were canceled and surrogates were not given guidance on how to respond to the controversy. The person insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss internal campaign dynamics publicly.”

The campaign was reeling from a 2005 recording first reported by The Washington Post and NBC News in which Trump speaks in vulgar terms about women and his aggressive behavior toward them. Trump has since apologized and vowed to stay in the race. But a growing list of Republican officeholders is calling on him to quit the race.

The upheaval comes on the eve of the second debate between Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton — and less than five weeks before Election Day.

Republican Vice Presidential nominee Mike Pence says he cannot condone or defend Donald Trump's comments about women. Pence says in a statement Saturday: "As a husband and a father, I was offended by the words and actions described by Donald Trump in the 11-year-old video released yesterday. I do not condone his remarks and cannot defend them. I am grateful that he has expressed remorse and apologized to the American people."

Ben Carson is sticking by Donald Trump. He says Trump "did the right thing in immediately and unequivocally apologizing." Carson blames Trump's adversaries for the video's release. Carson says "progressives" are trying to distract from the issues and damaging excerpts from Hillary Clinton's paid speeches, also released Friday.

Among GOP office holders calling for Trump to step down, Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan's reasoning is typical. He says in a tweet and a statement: "I'm calling on Trump to step aside for Gov. Pence. Trump can't lead on critical issue of ending dom(estic) violence & sexual assault."

Others calling for Trump to step down, or withdrawing their previous endorsement of him include:

Others dropping their support for Trump include Reps. Rodney Davis of Illinois, Ann Wagner of Missouri, Sen. Deb Fischer of Nebraska and Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO).

Ohio Gov. John Kasich says he definitely will not support Donald Trump. He said Saturday Trump "is a man I cannot and should not support." Kasich called Trump's comments captured in a video "disgusting." But he says that's not why he reached his decision. He said, "I will not vote for a nominee who has behaved in a manner that reflects so poorly on our country."

Nevada Republican congressman Joe Heck, who is running for the US Senate, is calling on Donald Trump to quit the presidential race.

South Dakota Republican Sen. John Thune is calling for Donald Trump to leave the presidential race. The third-ranking Senate Republican tweeted Saturday that vice presidential candidate Mike Pence should take the spot at the top of the Republican ticket "effective immediately."

South Dakota Republican Gov. Dennis Daugaard tweeted Saturday that the election is "too important," and that Trump should withdraw in favor of Pence.

U.S. Rep. Mia Love (R-UT)  on Trump to drop out of the race for president. Love said Saturday in a statement that Trump's "behavior and bravado have reached a new low." She said in a statement that she "cannot vote for him," adding that "For the good of the party, and the country, he should step aside."

Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-UT)  is calling on Donald Trump to quit his presidential campaign. He says Trump's recorded lewd comments about women are "appalling." Byrne adds that "Trump is not fit to be president of the United States and cannot defeat Hillary Clinton."

New Jersey Republican Rep. Scott Garrett says Donald Trump's running mate Mike Pence would be "the best nominee for the Republican Party to defeat Hillary Clinton." Garrett did not explicitly call on Trump to quit the race following the release of old video footage that features Trump making highly sexualized comments. But Garrett says in a statement that Trump's comments "are inexcusable."

New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte says she is dropping her support for Donald Trump and plans to write in vice presidential running mate Mike Pence's name for president. Ayotte says in statement that she cannot support a presidential candidate "who brags about degrading and assaulting women." Ayotte is in one of the nation's closest Senate contests. Her opponent, Gov. Maggie Hassan, has tied her to Trump at event turn.

Carly Fiorina says Donald Trump should step aside as the Republican presidential nominee. The former GOP contender says, Trump "does not represent me or my party" and says Trump has "manifestly" failed to live up to his responsibilities carrying the GOP's mantle.

Republican Mike Crapo of Idaho is the latest senator to call for Donald Trump to step down. Crapo released a statement Saturday morning that says "this is not a decision that I have reached lightly, but his pattern of behavior left me no choice." Crapo said he's spent years working on domestic violence issues. He said that Trump's lewd tape released Friday was far from the "locker room" banter that the campaign initially described.

Sen. Mike Lee of Utah also has called for Trump to quit the race, as has a growing list of House members and other elected officials.

Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-VA)  is calling on Donald Trump to abandon his presidential bid, saying she can't vote for him in "good conscience."Comstock has long been critical of Trump and has repeatedly tried to distance herself from him throughout her campaign.

Conservative Alabama congresswoman Martha Roby says she will not vote for Donald Trump for president and wants him to step down as GOP nominee. She said Trump's newly disclosed comments about women and how he treats them make him "unacceptable" for the office.

Republican fundraising chief Spencer Zwick says he's been fielding calls from donors who "want help putting money together to fund a new person to be the GOP nominee."

Zwick leads fundraising efforts for House Speaker Paul Ryan, and he did the same for Mitt Romney in 2012. He tells The Associated Press that a write-in campaign relying on social media could "actually work."

There's never been a winning write-in campaign in a U.S. presidential contest. Many states do not allow write-in candidates for president, while others require them to register. Early voting is also already underway in several states.

Zwick did not identify which "new person" might be the focus of a write-in campaign. He was briefly supportive of a third run for Romney last year.

This report was assembled from Associated Press reports from various reporters, including Julie Pace and Thomas Beaumont. Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The Gayly – October 8, 2016 @ 4 p.m.