Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump appeared Wednesday afternoon at a candidate forum hosted by Regent University.
The event, which is part of an ongoing series hosted by the university, featured a stump speech from Trump—during which he was joined briefly by his sons, Don Jr. and Eric—followed by a question-and-answer session with Regent President and Christian Broadcasting Network founder Dr. Pat Robertson. Students were allowed to offer questions, which were then read by CBN News Chief Political Correspondent David Brody.
At times during the event, Trump tackled tough questions, both from Robertson and the students.
Although he briefly mentioned U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in response to a question about being able to put campaign rhetoric aside and unite against the eventual Democrat challenger—he said he could—he saved most of his salvos for Hillary Clinton, who currently leads in the Democrat race. He pledged to “look into” criminal prosecution, and then suggested her glowing appreciation for President Obama’s actions are tied directly to her current email scandal.
“Boy, did you ever see anybody so nice to the president, though?” he asked. “‘Oh, the president is wonderful,’ she says. ‘Oh, the president, he’s great … You know why she’s doing that, right? You know why? I know why. Boy, oh boy, she’s become like a marshmallow.”
In response to a question about Obama’s executive orders, Trump held nothing back, accusing the president of resorting to them because he’s not been effective in dealing with Congress. The president is supposed to work with, and negotiate with, Congress for the good of the country, he added.
“I deal in politics in other countries cause we’re building all over the world. And we have jobs going up all over the world—a lot of jobs. But I have never seen division like you have now,” he said. “The country is so divided, whether it’s African-American, white, congressman, Democrat, Republican. I mean, it’s just like we have a whole divided country. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
He reminded the students that it wasn’t always like that, and he thinks he could help end the division as president.
“We used to see, and I used to be part of Democrats and Republicans having dinners together with their families and their wives, and it was a nice thing,” he said. “There’d be combat the next day, but there would be—they’d get along—and they’d get things done.”
He said Obama “can’t get anything done,” which is why he resorts to executive orders. He added that one of the good things about executive orders is that can be immediately undone by a new president, which he said he would do “immediately” to the president’s orders regarding the Second Amendment and illegal immigration.
Trump also pledged he would “absolutely” defend Israel, calling it the U.S.’s “most consistent ally” in the Middle East. He added that Obama has been “the worst thing that’s ever happened” to the Jewish state, noting the building frustration for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was visibly apparent.
Regent has already hosted former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Ohio Gov. John Kasich as part of its ongoing presidential forum series. Next up is Cruz, who will speak Friday night at 7 p.m. EST, followed by Dr. Ben Carson at 2 p.m. Monday.
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