Donald Trump faced a tough line of questioning from conservative Wisconsin radio talk host Charlie Sykes, who challenged the Republican front-runner on his treatment of women and reluctance to issue public apologie.
“I expect that of a 12-year-old bully on the playground, not someone who wants to hold the office of Abraham Lincoln,” Sykes said to Trump’s decision to retweet an unflattering picture of Heidi Cruz after an anti-Trump super political action committee urging votes for Cruz in Utah ran a negative ad involving his wife Melania.
As the radio asked host pushed Trump to apologize for his actions, the candidate claimed, “I don’t know Ted Cruz’s wife. I’m sure she’s excellent, but I don’t know her.”
Later in the interview Sykes revisited the question and asked if Trump would ever consider apologizing to Cruz and his wife, arguing they had nothing to do with the ad in Utah. The host asked, “Do you ever apologize? Do you? Because most real men, when they screw up, they’ll go, ‘I was a hothead I shouldn’t have done that.'”
“I apologize, I believe in apologizing,” Trump replied. “But I think before I would think about apologizing, he owes me an apology because what [Cruz] did was wrong.”
Sykes, who is part of the #NeverTrump movement, explained that many conservative Wisconsin women are “repelled” by his comments and this could really hurt him in the upcoming primary.
“Women are just going to have to see what I’ve done,” Trump replied.
The business mogul added that be has been “better to women than anyone else in this race,” at which point Sykes called him out for not apologizing to women he has mocked on the trail, such as Fox News host Megyn Kelly and former primary opponent Carly Fiorina.
“Well, I’m not a fan of Megyn Kelly. I’m allowed to say that,” Trump responded. “If Megyn Kelly were a man, I would be saying the exact same thing about Megyn Kelly.”
Sykes asked “Are the rules different for celebrities? Are celebrities allowed to insult women?”
“The rules aren’t different for celebrities,” Trump said, “but certainly I never thought I would run for office.”
