Donald Trump on Khan Comments: ‘I Don’t Regret Anything’
Donald Trump‘s harsh comments toward Khizr and Ghazala Khan, the parents of a Muslim-American soldier killed in combat, have proven to be the greatest challenge for the Republican presidential nominee who has previously been impervious to controversy. Since entering into a war of words with the Khans, Trump has been condemned by Democrats, Republicans and military parents, yet in a defiant interview Tuesday, the mogul admitted he doesn’t regret his Khan remarks.
“I don’t regret anything,” Trump told WJLA of his comments toward the Khans, who took the stage at the Democratic National Convention and questioned whether Trump knew what “sacrifice” meant. “I said nice things about the son and I feel that very strongly, but of course I was hit very hard from the stage and you know it’s just one of those things. But no, I don’t regret anything.”
Trump’s lack of regret extends to his recent claim during a rally speech that Hillary Clinton was “the devil.” Given a chance to walk back those comments, Trump declined, saying he didn’t think he went too far in his comments against his opponent. “I think it is what it is. She’s a very deceitful person, she lies, she cheats, no I don’t think that’s too far at all,” Trump said.
On President Barack Obama, who said Tuesday that Trump was “unfit” to be president, the mogul told WJLA, “He’s a terrible president. He’ll probably go down as the worst president in the history of our country, he’s been a total disaster.”
Trump’s rebellious nature has even extended toward his own party, as the mogul declined to endorse the re-election of a pair of prominent Republicans, House Speaker Paul Ryan and Arizona senator John McCain, both of whom face primaries in their home state in the next week. Trump went as far as name-checking Ryan’s Wisconsin primary opponent, Paul Nehlen, on Twitter, thanking him for the “kind words” he said about Trump, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
When asked if Trump would endorse Ryan, the candidate said, “I’m not sure I’m there yet,” echoing Ryan’s own words to CNN about endorsing Trump in May. The campaign for Ryan, who holds a comfortable lead over Nehlen in voting projections, said in a statement, “Neither Speaker Ryan nor anyone on his team has ever asked for Donald Trump’s endorsement. And we are confident in a victory next week regardless.”
Watch Trump’s WJLA interview below: