Bloomberg
By Emily Greenhouse
July 10, 2015
On
the eve of a Phoenix rally that he predicts will draw 5,000 people to
hear him speak about illegal immigration, Republican presidential
candidate Donald Trump told
Bloomberg's "With All Due Respect" that he has no intention of backing
off the stands that have drawn him rebukes from some top-ranking
political figures. "We have to stop illegal immigration," the
billionaire businessman told interviewer Mark Halperin on
Friday. "The country is being decimated by it."
Speaking
about the wave of criticism he has received this week, he did not back
down. “All I can do is talk the truth,” Trump said. He declined to say
that he has made
any mistakes, or that anything had hurt his feelings. “No,” Trump said,
“because I’m a big boy.”
Shortly
after Trump made his comments, the senior senator of the state that he
will be visiting for his Saturday rally issued a statement that, without
naming the real
estate mogul, clearly took issue with his rhetoric. "The circus
currently surrounding the debate over illegal immigration sows division
within our country and damages the Republican Party," said Arizona
Senator John McCain, the Republican Party's 2008 presidential
nominee. "If the Republican nominee for president does not support
comprehensive immigration reform and border security policy, we have no
chance of defeating Hillary Clinton and winning the White House in
2016."
Donald Trump on Campaign: It Really Is Intense
In
his interview with Halperin, Trump acknowledged that the intensity of
the presidential campaign had surprised him. When asked to name
competitors in the Republican
field whom he respects, he pointed to Texas Senator Ted Cruz and
retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who have come out in defense of his
comments.
At
one point, Trump said that he felt the week, in which he has been a
major focus of national political coverage, had improved his chances of
winning, though later stated
that he wasn’t entirely sure.
Donald Trump: I’m Very Good at Winning
He made much of an Economist/YouGov poll that placed him Thursday in the lead of the presidential field.
Trump
has received a spate of negative attention since his remarks on
immigrants coming from Mexico at his official presidential campaign
announcement on June 16th. Businesses
including Univision, NBC, Macy’s, plus a number of golf tournaments and
celebrity chefs have moved to distance themselves from him. The
Washington Post reported Wednesday that Reince Priebus, Chairman of the
Republican National Committee, called Trump that
day to encourage him to tamp down inflammatory comments on immigration.
Trump has characterized the call differently.
Trump stressed his maverick status, twice telling Halperin, “I’m not a politician.”
He
said, “The politicians will never take us to the promised land,”
whereas he alone has the capacity to win the general election. “I am the
only one that can beat Hillary
Clinton,” he said, “I will win the Hispanic vote.”
What Advice Has Donald Trump Got From His Kids?
He
said that he will speak without a prepared text in his Arizona speech
Saturday—“I have a very great memory”—and stressed how high the
attendance will be in Phoenix,
and at an event Friday evening in California.
“I believe in winning,” Trump said.
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