Trump says he did say Tim Cook, he just said 'Cook' really quietly

Reuters

Apple CEO Tim Cook and Donald Trump.

• US President Donald Trump says he called Apple CEO Tim Cook, "Tim Cook Apple," not "Tim Apple."
• Axios reported that Trump defended his remark during an evening with donors at his Mar-a-Lago Florida retreat.
• Trump was widely ridiculed for the "Tim Apple" comment, and even Cook himself took it in good humor. 

Donald Trump is trying to style out one of his more bizarre moments.

The US president was widely ridiculed last week when he referred to Apple CEO Tim Cook as "Tim Apple" during a meeting at the White House.

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Even Cook himself, who was sat right next to Trump, made light of the incident, replacing his last name with the Apple logo on his Twitter profile. Ivanka Trump, who was sat the other side of her father, also laughed it off.

Read more: Tim Cook just changed his name to Tim Apple on Twitter

But now Trump is arguing that the whole incident is "fake news," according to Axios reporter Jonathan Swan.

Trump was entertaining donors at his Mar-a-Lago Florida retreat on Friday night, and told the audience that he actually said "Tim Cook Apple," he just said it quickly and his pronunciation of "Cook" was quiet.

He later turned to his favourite line of attack, Axios said, calling out the "fake news" for focusing on the "Tim Apple" remark. Axios said donors in the room were mystified. "I just thought, why would you lie about that," one said.

Here's a video of the moment again, so you can decide for yourself: