Donald Trump set aside his temper Thursday evening when asked about Pope Francis’ criticism of his immigration policy during a live town hall on CNN.
“I don’t think it was a fight,” Trump said of his feud with the Holy Father earlier Thursday morning.
Asked by a reporter to address Trump’s proposal to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, the Pope suggested that “a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.” Trump later responded by saying Pope Francis’ questioning of his faith was “disgraceful.”
But on Thursday night, Trump sought to distance himself from claims that he’d found himself in a duel with the leader of the Catholic Church. In typical Trump fashion, the billionaire blamed media.
“I think what he said was much softer than what was reported by the media,” he said.
However, that didn’t stop Trump from expressing any regret over his immediate reaction to the Pope’s remarks.
“You said to me that you try not to do things wrong so that you don’t have to ask for forgiveness,” CNN’s Anderson Cooper told the GOP candidate. “So in the moment when you first heard the Pope had said something about you, had you thought, ‘Maybe I’m going to have to ask for forgiveness?'”
“No, no,” Trump responded with a chuckle. “Look, I have a lot of respect for the Pope. I think he’s got a lot of personality … he’s a very different kind of guy and I think he’s doing a very good job.”
He continued, “I think he was very much misinterpreted and I also think he was given false information.”
Trump said he would happily meet with the Pontiff “any time he wants” to discuss his proposals.
“I think it would be very interesting,” he said.
Trump, ending his feud with the Pope on a high note, added, “I like him. I like what he represents and I certainly have great respect for the position.”
