30 of Donald Trump's wildest quotes
Since he announced his candidacy in June 2015, Donald Trump's colorful one-liners have become the subject of intense media coverage and public scrutiny. Here are some of his most wild...
At a November 2015 rally, for example, Donald Trump stated that he watched the Twin Towers come down in Jersey City, NJ, and that thousands of Muslims there cheered what was occurring: "There were people that were cheering on the other side of New Jersey, where you have large Arab populations," he told the crowd. "They were cheering as the World Trade Center came down."
On Ivanka
During a March 2006 appearance on "The View" with his daughter Ivanka, Donald Trump was asked how he would react if Playboy magazine were to ever feature Ivanka's picture on its cover. Mr. Trump responded:
"I don't think Ivanka would do that inside the magazine. Although she does have a very nice figure. I've said that if Ivanka weren't my daughter, perhaps I would be dating her."
Joy Behar, one of the show's co-hosts, then exclaimed, "Stop it! Oh, that's so weird. Stop it!"
On Muslims
At a December 2015 rally in Charleston, South Carolina, just a few days after the San Bernardino shooting, Trump told thousands of supporters:
"Donald J. Trump is calling for a complete and total shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what the hell is going on."
On women
In his book, "Trump: The Art of the Comeback," Donald Trump pontificated on women:
"Women have one of the great acts of all time. The smart ones act very feminine and needy, but inside they are real killers. The person who came up with the expression 'the weaker sex' was either very naive or had to be kidding. I have seen women manipulate men with just a twitch of their eye -- or perhaps another body part."
On the Baltimore riots
In April 2015, after Baltimore erupted in protests regarding Freddie Gray's death in police custody, Donald Trump took to Twitter blaming President Obama for the violence there.
"Our great African-American President hasn't exactly had a positive impact on the thugs who are so happily and openly destroying Baltimore."
On Arianna Huffington's divorce
On August 28, 2012, Donald Trump got personal about Arianna Huffington's 1997 divorce from a former congressman who later announced that he was gay, tweeting:
"@ariannahuff is unattractive both inside and out. I fully understand why her former husband left her for a man- he made a good decision."
On apologies
During a September 2015 appearance on "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon," Donald Trump was asked if he ever makes apologies. He responded:
"I think apologizing's a great thing, but you have to be wrong. I will absolutely apologize, sometime in the hopefully distant future, if I'm ever wrong."
On the benefits of a pretty girlfriend
In a 1991 interview with Esquire, Donald Trump suggested that sexy girlfriends are the antidotes to bad press: "You know, it doesn't really matter what they write as long as you've got a young and beautiful piece of ass."
On immigrants
In June 2015, while announcing his candidacy for president, Donald Trump shocked people worldwide by making a statement about Mexican immigrants, a topic that has become a staple for Trump's campaign.
"When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending the best. They're sending people that have lots of problems and they're bringing those problems. They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime. They're rapists and some, I assume, are good people, but I speak to border guards and they're telling us what we're getting."
On Bette Midler
Arianna Huffington isn't the only famous woman Donald Trump has gone after on Twitter. On October 28, 2012, he tweeted this about Grammy, Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Bette Midler:
"While @BetteMidler is an extremely unattractive woman, I refuse to say that because I always insist on being politically correct."
On negotiations with Asians
On August 26, 2015, during a campaign event in Iowa, Donald Trump did an impression of Asian negotiators for the crowd, using broken English. Many in the crowd found it funny. Many others did not.
"When these people walk into the room," Trump began. "They don't say, 'Oh hello, how's the weather? It's so beautiful outside. How are the Yankees doing? They're doing wonderful, that's great.' They say, 'We want deal!'"
On African-Americans
During an April 2011 radio interview with Talk1300 in Albany, Donald Trump stated, "I have a great relationship with the blacks. I've always had a great relationship with the blacks."
On climate change
On November 6, 2012, Donald Trump tweeted: "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive."
On October 19, 2015, he then tweeted: "It's really cold outside, they are calling it a major freeze, weeks ahead of normal. Man, we could use a big fat dose of global warming!"
On building a wall
During his candidacy announcement speech in June 2015, Donald Trump first proposed the idea of building a wall along America's southern border, adding that, due to his real estate experience, he was uniquely qualified for the job:
"I will build a great wall -- and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me --and I'll build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words."
On dating
In his 1990 book, "Trump: Surviving at the Top," Donald Trump addressed his dating track record:
"I've never had any trouble in bed, but if I'd had affairs with half the starlets and female athletes the newspapers linked me with, I'd have no time to breathe."
On the poorly educated
In February 2016, while delivering a victory speech following the Nevada caucuses, Donald Trump proclaimed his love for the various demographics that led him to victory.
As part of that list, he exclaimed, "I love the poorly educated."
On gay marriage
In a May 2011 interview with the New York Times, Donald Trump explained his stance on gay marriage like this:
"It's like in golf. A lot of people -- I don't want this to sound trivial -- but a lot of people are switching to these really long putters, very unattractive. It's weird. You see these great players with these really long putters, because they can't sink three-footers anymore. And, I hate it. I am a traditionalist. I have so many fabulous friends who happen to be gay, but I am a traditionalist."
On John McCain's war record
During a July 2015 campaign event at the Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa, Donald Trump took on Senator John McCain's reputation as a war hero.
"He's not a war hero," Trump explained, shocking the event's moderator. "He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren't captured."
On his charms
In his 2004 book, "Trump: How to Get Rich," Donald Trump wrote: "All of the women on The Apprentice flirted with me - consciously or unconsciously. That's to be expected."
On Heidi Klum
In an August 2015 interview with the New York Times, Donald Trump commented on supermodel Heidi Klum, who had just turned 42: "Heidi Klum. Sadly, she's no longer a 10."
Klum then responded by posting a video on Twitter, in which a man wearing a Donald Trump mask ripped a number 10 off her t-shirt, revealing a 9.99 underneath.
On vaccinations
During the CNN GOP debate in September 2015, moderator Jake Tapper asked Dr. Ben Carson if he believes that vaccines can cause autism. He does not. When the question was asked of Donald Trump, however, he responded:
"I am totally in favor of vaccines. But I want smaller doses over a longer period of time. Same exact amount, but you take this little beautiful baby, and you pump--I mean, it looks just like it's meant for a horse, not for a child, and we've had so many instances, people that work for me. ... [in which] a child, a beautiful child went to have the vaccine, and came back and a week later had a tremendous fever, got very, very sick, now is autistic."
On Princess Di
In his 1997 book, "Trump: The Art of the Comeback," Donald Trump wrote that his only regret "in the women department" was never having dated Princess Diana:
"I love women. They've come into my life. They've gone out of my life. Even those who have exited somewhat ungracefully still have a place in my heart. I only have one regret in the women department -- that I never had the opportunity to court Lady Diana Spencer. I met her on a number of occasions."
On his intellect
On May 8, 2013, Donald Trump took to Twitter to explain his superiority to "the haters," writing:
"Sorry losers and haters, but my I.Q. is one of the highest -and you all know it! Please don't feel so stupid or insecure, it's not your fault."
On Cher
In a May 2012 interview with Fox News' Greta Van Susteren, Donald Trump addressed his Twitter feud with Cher by saying, "Cher is somewhat of a loser. She's lonely. She's unhappy. She's very miserable. And her sound-enhanced and computer-enhanced music doesn't do it for me."
Then, to top it off, he compared the singer to his longtime Twitter nemesis Rosie O'Donnell: "I've watched her over the years. I knew her a little bit. And you know, she reminds me of Rosie with slightly more talent, not much more talent, but slightly more talent."
On winning
In his June 2015 candidacy announcement speech, Donald Trump told a cheering crowd of supporters:
"Our country is in serious trouble. We don't have victories anymore. We used to have victories, but we don't have them. When was the last time anybody saw us beating, let's say China, in a trade deal? I beat China all the time. All the time."
On Carly Fiorina
A September 2015 Rolling Stone article details Donald Trump sitting back and providing commentary as he and a reporter watch the news. When his then-competitor for the GOP nomination Carly Fiorina flashes on the screen, the article states that his face sours and he exclaims:
"Look at that face! Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?!"
On Megyn Kelly
During an August 2015 CNN interview, shortly after the Fox News GOP debate, Donald Trump said of moderator Megyn Kelly: "You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her... wherever."
He then vehemently denied that those comments were a reference to Kelly's period.
On his past and current wives
In a November 1999 New York Times OpEd, in which Maureen Dowd tagged along with Donald Trump as he considered jumping into the 2000 presidential race, the real estate mogul is quoted as saying:
"I think the only difference between me and the other candidates is that I'm more honest and my women are more beautiful."
On wealth
In March 2011, while considering jumping into the 2012 presidential race, Donald Trump did an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America," during which he explained: "Part of the beauty of me is that I am very rich."
On the art of the deal
During a March 2011 phone interview with "Fox and Friends," Donald Trump touted a business interaction he had with former Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi as a prime example of his business prowess:
"I dealt with Qaddafi. I rented him a piece of land. He paid me more for one night than the land was worth for two years, and then I didn't let him use the land. That's what we should be doing. I don't want to use the word 'screwed', but I screwed him. That's what we should be doing."