Trump fires back at pastor who interrupted him in Flint
DETROIT — A day after he was shut down by a pastor for talking politics in her church, Donald Trump said the interruption was planned.
"She had that in mind," he said. "There's no question about it."
Trump, whose comments came on Fox & Friends on Thursday, said: "When she got up to introduce me, she was so nervous she was shaking. And I said 'Wow, this is sort of strange.' "
Rev. Faith Green Timmons of Bethel United Methodist Church in Flint, Mich., said on Facebook last night of the encounter, "Had he stuck to what his camp claimed he came to do, we would not have had a problem!"
When asked if the interruption bothered him, Trump answered: "I mean, everyone plays their games. It doesn't bother me."
Flint Rep. Dan Kildee said of Trump's comments on Fox, "It was in her city, in her church, at her podium, and he was invited there. The fact that he would question her intentions is beyond acceptable. Once again, Donald Trump has proven that he cares only about Donald Trump, and Donald Trump alone."
During the interview, Trump said the church audience in Flint was very receptive to his speech.
"I'll tell you what made me feel good, the audience was saying, 'Let him speak, let him speak,' " Trump said. "And the audience was so great and these are mostly African-American people, phenomenal people, and they want to see change."
Timmons spoke to the media after the event, explaining why she interrupted him. "I thought he wanted to see that we gave out food and water, and when his statement went beyond what he originally said, I asked him to stick to what he was originally going to say. He’s welcome to come and see what we’re doing in Flint. We’re doing well. We’re helping those in need. And I wanted him to see the best of Flint.
“And some of the statements I’ve heard him say about African-Americans and Hispanics have been degrading,” she added.
Trump went on to describe Flint in the Fox interview.
"You have to see, the crime rate over there is ridiculous. The whole place is ... Not only the water. What they did with the water is horrible, but the crime rate and all the other problems they have," Trump said. "I use the expression, 'What do you have to lose? I'm going to fix it! I'm going to fix it. What do you have to lose?' "
He offered no concrete solutions or specific plans on how to make the transition from bottled to safe drinking water, or to bring back jobs.
Follow Bill Emkow on Twitter: @BillEmkow