Donald Trump in CNN "State of the Union" interviews during 2015

On Gun Control: Protect the Second Amendment, but address mental health

Q: You recently released a plan cast as protecting the Second Amendment, but you have also said that you think more needs to be done on the issue of mental health when it comes to people who are disturbed getting guns. Do you support the California law allowing judges to confiscate someone's gun if they are deemed to be a threat to themselves or others?

A: This is something to look into--people with mental health problems are on the streets who shouldn't be.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Sep 20, 2015

On Homeland Security: We have a problem with radical Muslims

Q: On the campaign trail, a voter said "We have a problem in this country. It's called Muslims." You're not responsible for what he says, but this is raw, unvarnished, ignorant bigotry. Do you not have a responsibility to call out this hatred?

TRUMP: Well, you know, we could be politically correct, if you want. But, certainly, are you trying to say we don't have a problem? We do have a problem with radical Muslims. As I have already said; I have tremendous people that I know that are Muslims.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Sep 20, 2015

On Homeland Security: Fix veteran's hospitals, and pay private doctors for them

Q: You said that you would build more hospitals for veterans--is there anything else you would do?

A: One of the things I would do is fix the hospitals. What I'm going to do is make sure that they will be able to go out and use private doctors and we will pay the private doctors. We're going to do a bit of a free market thing so that veterans can get immediate service and good treatment.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Sep 20, 2015

On Gun Control: Take guns from good people & bad people have target practice

Q: [With regards to a shooting in Lafayette, Louisiana] we have another case of someone with well-established mental health problems somehow able to legally buy a gun. What do you think needs to be done to stop this?

A: These are sick people. This has nothing to do with guns, this has to do with the mentality of these people. I'm a big Second Amendment person. I believe in it so strongly, and if you take the guns away from the good people, and the bad ones are going to have target practice.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Jul 26, 2015

On Immigration: Building a wall will save money because it stops bad dudes

Q: Assuming President Trump is able to stop the flow of illegal immigration through building a wall or some parts of a wall, what do you think should be done with the estimated 11 million undocumented workers and their families already here? Would you be open-minded about a path to citizenship?

A: First of all--we have to stop it. We can do that with combinations of walls and Border Patrol. And it won't cost the kind of money--in fact, we will save money, because people that are coming in here that shouldn't be coming in here illegally. We have some really bad dudes right here in this country, and we're getting them out and we're sending them back to where they came from. And I don't mean Mexico; they come from all over. We have some real bad ones, and they're in our prisons that we're paying for.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Jul 26, 2015

On Immigration: OpEd: businesses & Republicans condemn anti-Mexico terms

Trump released a statement restating the controversial comments he made almost three weeks ago when he announced he was running for president: "What can be simpler or more accurately stated? The Mexican Government is forcing their most unwanted people into the United States. They are, in many cases, criminals, drug dealers, rapists, etc.," Trump's statement said. Trump's comments have resulted in the termination of a number of his business relationships, but it wasn't until the past week that fellow Republican candidates began to forcefully condemn his comments.

Former Gov. George Pataki (R-NY) laid out what he calls are "practical" policy solutions for the issue of securing the southern U.S. border, as well as what to do with the millions of illegal immigrants already living in the country. Trump "has tapped into a chord of people who do not want to see millions of people come here illegally, but that does not justify demonizing an entire group of people," said Pataki. .

Source: CNN.com 2015 coverage of 2016 presidential hopefuls Jul 6, 2015

On Energy & Oil: Maybe some climate change is manmade, but not all

Q: The overwhelming majority of scientists say climate change is real and it's manmade.

A: Well, there could be some manmade, too. I mean, I'm not saying there's zero, but not nearly to the extent [others say]. When Obama gets up and said it's the number one problem of our country--and, if it is, why is it that we have to clean up our factories now, and China doesn't have to do it for another 30 or 35 years in their wonderful agreement, you know, our wonderful negotiators?

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Jun 28, 2015

On Free Trade: Disastrous deals because we don't have smart negotiators

Q: So, you would tear up NAFTA?

A: I think NAFTA has been a disaster. I think our current deals are a disaster. I'm a free trader. The problem with free trade is, you need smart people representing you. We have the greatest negotiators in the world, but we don't use them. We use political hacks and diplomats. We use the wrong people. Mexico is smart; they have out-negotiated us to a fare-thee-well. They're going to be the capital of automobiles pretty soon, the way they're going.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Jun 28, 2015

On Health Care: We didn't have a free market before ObamaCare

Q: in 2000, you wrote that you're a liberal on health care, and you supported a Canadian-style system, where the government acts as an insurer. Is that what you still believe?

A: You know, I looked at that. I looked at it very seriously. Some people don't agree with me on this: I want everyone to have coverage. I love the free market, but we never had a free market. Even before ObamaCare, it wasn't really free market. As an example, in New York, when I wanted to bid out my health insurance, we had boundaries. I could only go in New York. If I wanted to bid it out to a company from California or New Jersey, anywhere--you get no bids.

Q: But the single payer, you're not interested anymore?

A: No. No, these are different times. And over the years, you are going to change your attitudes. You're going to learn things and you're going to change. And I have evolved on that issue. I have evolved on numerous issues.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Jun 28, 2015

On Immigration: Make Mexico pay for wall with severe economics

Q: Why do we need a wall?

A: You have people coming through the border that are from all over. And they're bad. I'm talking about people that are from all over that are killers and rapists.

Q: How exactly are you going to get Mexico to pay for building a wall?

A: You force them because we give Mexico a fortune.

Q: So you would cut off business or impose tariffs unless they built the wall?

A: I would do something very severe unless they contributed or gave us the money to build the wall.

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Jun 28, 2015

On War & Peace: Bomb the oil fields in Iraq to take on ISIS

Q: You said you want to bomb the oil fields in Iraq to take on ISIS?

A: The only way you're going to beat them is that. You know why they're rich? Because they have the oil.

Q: But I don't think the government of Iraq would want us to bomb their oil fields.

A: There is no government in Iraq. The so-called government in Iraq went to Iran to meet with Iran. Iran is going to take over Iraq. That's as simple as that. I don't care about the government of Iraq. They're totally corrupt. Who cares?

Source: CNN SOTU 2015 interview series: 2016 presidential hopefuls Jun 28, 2015

The above quotations are from CNN "State of the Union" interviews during 2015 (Candy Crowley interviewing candidates for 2015 and 2016 races). Click here for other excerpts from CNN "State of the Union" interviews during 2015 (Candy Crowley interviewing candidates for 2015 and 2016 races). Click here for other excerpts by Donald Trump. Click here for a profile of Donald Trump.
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Page last updated: Nov 30, 2021