Trump Stands Firm on Not Defending Obama

Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump defended his decision Saturday not to correct a questioner at a recent town hall event who erroneously stated that President Barack Obama is Muslim.

Obama is Christian.

Speaking to more than 1,000 conservative Republicans at an event sponsored by the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition, Trump said that he was not obligated to defend the president and read a series of tweets he has written to defend his position.

Those comments echoed tweets from the billionaire businessman's account earlier Saturday, where Trump said there was "No chance!" that the president would "come to my rescue" if someone made a nasty statement about him.

Trump had been silent on the Thursday night exchange other than a statement from his campaign that raised concerns about the treatment of Christians in the U.S.

He tweeted Saturday that for the first time in his life he has "caused controversy by NOT saying something."

Trump argued ​at the Iowa event​ that he would have faced criticism if he had jumped in. He recalled an incident during the 2008 campaign when Republican nominee John McCain took the microphone away from a woman who said she didn't trust Obama because he was an "Arab."

Trump said that McCain "just ripped that microphone out of the woman's hand" and described that as "a little bit harsh." 

[[302756881, C]]

Copyright AP - Associated Press
Contact Us