Donald Trump just roasted his opponents one-by-one in a press conference about party unity
REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
At an event at Trump Tower in New York, Trump announced that he signed a pledge not to run as a third-party candidate, which he previously warned he would do if the Republican Party did not treat him respectfully.
Though Trump devoted much of his time to the pledge, he also dedicated a significant chunk of Thursday's press conference to bragging about his high poll numbers and slamming his Republican rivals.
Trump took particular aim at former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R), who in recent weeks has ramped up his criticisms of Trump and labeled him a fake conservative.
"I watched him on TV this morning, and it was a bit sad," Trump said of Bush's attacks. "He was supposed to win, and he just doesn't have the energy."
Trump, who has frequently repeated his "low-energy" attack on Bush over the past few weeks, also said Bush was beholden to the donors to his campaign and the outside "super PAC" supporting his run.
"If I were him, I'd spend money on positive ads about himself," Trump said.
Trump didn't stop there. The real-estate mogul also took aim at Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), who went after Trump during the first Republican debate in August and has also criticized Trump for donating to Democratic candidates in the past.
When asked about CNN's decision to change its debate rules to likely allow former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina to qualify for the main-stage debate on September 16, Trump suggested that Fiorina should take Paul's place.
"I don't like the fact that there are 11 people," Trump said. "As I understand it, they're not getting rid of Rand Paul or somebody. And they should, because there are too many people."
Here are a few more notable criticisms from Trump:
- On not meeting with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R): "You don't have to be met when you're at 2%. That's the way life works. And I like Gov. Christie, by the way."
- On criticism from presidential opponents Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R): "Graham was at 3%, now he's at zero. Perry attacked me, now he's getting out of the race," Trump said, referring to some of Perry's campaign staff resigning. Trump said it was an "honor" to see candidates like Graham, Perry, and Paul fall in polls after directly criticizing him.
Trump is currently leading in almost every major poll of Republican primary voters.
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