Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump today said he got along very well with Indian-American South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley even as he lashed out at his presidential rival Ted Cruz.
“I get along very well with Nikki, you know Nikki said, we’re friends. And we are friends. I supported her. But, I am angry,” Trump told the CNN in an interview when asked about Haley’s remarks this week in which she was critical of him.
Trump was the only presidential candidate to be criticised by US President Barack Obama in his State of the Union Address and Haley in her GOP’s response.
He said it was a “great honour” to be called “angry” by Obama and Nikki.
“It was my great honour. Because I’m angry. And they both said I was angry,” Trump said.
“When she said there’s an anger that we shouldn’t have. I said, well, I disagree with one thing. There’s an anger that we should have,” he said.
Trump said the US was in a “bad shape” and is facing many problems which is why people are angry.
“Our country is going to hell. Whether it’s ISIS, and we can’t beat them, our military is really in bad shape. It’s not prepared, it’s not, it’s got a lot of problems, and I guess monetary problems and other problems,” Trump said, adding that people in the country are very angry.
When asked did he interpret Obama and Nikki’s remarks as “insults” or as a “badge of honour”, Trump said he took them as truth.
“I take it as the truth. They said I was angry. They said that the people that are with me are angry, and you will see, I mean you’re going to see the people voting. They’re going to be voting soon. You’re going to see what’s happening. People are angry,” Trump said.
“They’re really angry at incompetence. We have people that are grossly incompetent running our country. Every country is eating our lunch. China on trade, Japan on trade, Mexico on trade, and at the border. Everybody’s beating us. We don’t win anymore. And people are tired of it,” he said.