Trump on Weiner Scandal: 'Maybe He Has a Death Wish'
'The Donald' gives his take on 'very disturbed' Congressman Weiner, the dismal job numbers and the lingering possibility he'll still run for president
This is a rush transcript from "On the Record," June 8, 2011. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: Donald Trump is talking about Congressman Weiner, using words like "psycho," "disturbed," "suicidal," and that's only the beginning. He also tells us why he thinks Congressman Weiner could be putting our country at risk.
Earlier today, Donald Trump went "On the Record."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAN SUSTEREN: Donald, nice to have you join us again.
DONALD TRUMP, TRUMP ORGANIZATION (Via Telephone): Hello, Greta.
VAN SUSTEREN: All right, Donald, you know, we've sort of been collecting words, what people are saying. I've said that the congressman is a weirdo. You say a "psycho." Do you want to elaborate?
TRUMP: Well, he's obviously very disturbed. If you read his messaging, it's terrible that he'd put something like that. And it's what he said, but it's also the fact that a man of prominence would do such a thing. It's just incredible. I mean, does he think it's not going to come out at some point, that one of these many women aren't going to release it? It just seems -- it just seems absolutely suicidal.
I mean, maybe he has a death wish. I don't know what it is exactly. But you know, it's very dangerous because he is a congressman and he does have power. And he really puts the country at a certain risk because he can be blackmailed into doing things by these people that he normally wouldn't do. So it's a very, very dangerous position, I even think for the country.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, it's sort of interesting because he admits he lied in the beginning. Then he held this press conference. And I'm not quite certain that he really did come clean in the press conference. I think we may have another, you know, set of lies on top, although I -- you know, there's a part of me that understands why someone would lie at this point. It's pretty humiliating.
But some Democrats are calling for him to resign. Republicans are likewise. But tactically, I bet the Republicans would rather have him sit up there in Congress and be sort of the poster child for their -- what they want to say about their opponents.
TRUMP: Well, nobody can really say what the true meaning is. But I will say this. I think there are probably other pictures that are far worse, based on everything I'm hearing. And it's a very, very sad situation, and especially for his wife, because, you know, what he did is just unbelievable, that he put himself in this position with people he didn't know or supposedly didn't know. I hope he didn't know them.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, then there's a big debate behind the scenes, as you might imagine, is, you know, whether or not she will leave him, should leave him. Women are saying, you know, whether they would leave their spouses if it happened. Care to -- care to predict whether Huma sticks it out with him? I mean, she's -- they've only been married a year, less than a year.
TRUMP: Well, it's a very sad situation and that's really a decision she's going to have to make, very complex, very tough decision. But it'll get ironed out one way or the other probably in the not too distant future. Very, very sad, and very sick.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, the extraordinary thing is that you would think a sense of pride, that he would want to resign and sort of -- there was -- there's a congressman recently who had the bare-chested pictures, and you know, he left stage quite quickly. I assume he was quite ashamed and knew what was coming.
TRUMP: Well, what he did -- and it's sort of an interesting situation because he left, and what he did was peanuts compared to what Weiner did. I mean, his -- his bad situation wasn't nearly as bad as what Weiner did.
So it's going to be interesting to see what happens. He's a pretty tough cookie, I guess. I don't know. Who knows what tough is. But he's a pretty tough cookie and he's trying to hold out. But I just can't imagine the voters would put up with it. It seems inconceivable. And I really can't imagine, knowing Nancy Pelosi, that she'd put up with it.
VAN SUSTEREN: Well, you know, even if he does survive, if he's reelected, you know, it does become a tattoo on you because nobody -- no one is going to forget it. And every time he's on the House floor five years, six years from now, everyone's going to be talking about, There's the congressman that -- and so you lose your credibility or any effort to sort of accomplish things because this stuff doesn't go away, does it.
TRUMP: Well, I think his biggest problem is the going to be the lack of discretion. I mean, you're trusting somebody to come up with ideas on the $15 trillion in debt and all of the problems that this country has, and yet he'll go out and say things that are unthinkable to people that he doesn't really know.
And you know, it is just hard to believe. You talk about discretion. You talk about using your brain. And he's probably fairly smart in one way, but he's certainly not smart in another. But he put himself in a position that I can only say it was a death wish. I mean, there are some people -- and I know people like that. They just -- they have a death wish. And this had to be a death wish.
But the bad part is, I think the best pictures came out, meaning the best from him. I think the really bad ones haven't come out yet, and they will.
VAN SUSTEREN: Yes, we know they will. The Internet is not very forgiving on that and people (INAUDIBLE) All right, the jobs report -- very bad numbers in May. What would you do to try to turn this around quickly? Because people are hurting.
TRUMP: Well, I think it's really simple. And I say it and I'm the only one that says it. You just don't hear it from other people and it amazes me. And I wish they'd pick it up. I really want them to pick it up.
But we're losing our jobs to other countries. We're losing our jobs through outsourcing to India. We're losing our jobs because they're making all of our products to China and places like South Korea, where if you want to buy a television, it's, like, Let's go to South Korea. I just ordered thousands of television sets, and they all come from South Korea. And if you go to an American company, there is no American company, virtually, that can fill an order for televisions, things that we used to make. You remember the days of RCA, and you know, what you used to have. And now today it's very sad.
And so we need to bring our jobs back home. This whole thing with going international is really hurting us and hurting us badly. China is just absolutely eating our lunch through a manipulation of their currency. And they're just making our products. So between outsourcing and taking back our jobs because we have to make our own products again, you would fill up our rolls so quickly, we would be bursting at the seams and would be a great country again.
VAN SUSTEREN: Is -- not to draw the comparison, but we all talk about these X-rated pictures as being sort of political curtains for Congressman Weiner. If this job situation doesn't get better between now and November '12, is it political curtains for President Obama, or do you think the American people will say, Look, it takes time to recover?
TRUMP: No, I think that if the Republican nominee is a good one -- and there's a real question as to whether or not that's going to happen. And that is a basic problem that we all have. But if the Republican nominee is a good one, it will -- I think that nominee will beat Obama unless something happens very rapidly. And I don't see that happening because, again, our jobs are leaving the country.
People ask me, I mean, you know, friends of mine, they have a son that graduates from Harvard, they have a son that graduates -- or a daughter that graduates from the Wharton School of Finance. They want me to meet them. And you know, I hate to say it, but I say, Are you going to Asia? You want to make money, go to Asia. And you know, I give them options. I tell them what they should be doing because they all want to come and see me and they want to get my advice.
And it's pretty sad when you can't say, Stay here and fight like hell to get a job, and the chances are, you probably won't get one. It's a very, very sad situation. So we have to take back our jobs. We have to take back our manufacturing, like the good old days, when we were great. And we're not great right now.
VAN SUSTEREN: All right, you said you weren't -- you were not going to run as a Republican. You hinted a little bit that you might consider the run as an independent the last time we talked, didn't commit. But since the last time we talked, are you a little bit more inclined to run for president as an independent, or is it the same?
TRUMP: Well, Greta, look -- and you and I have discussed this. I am so disappointed, between the lame duck session, where the Republicans allowed Obama to come back -- and also, if you remember, the big $38 billion cut, which was supposed to be $100 billion cut that turned out to be $300 million cut -- and to me, the Ryan plan is going to cost almost every Republican congressman that's backing that plan -- it's going to cost him his job. So you're going to end up -- instead of winning and having a tremendous victory in 2012, you're going to have a tremendous loss.
And between those three things and other things, and then NBC coming to me and offering me a fortune, up, up, up, every week, please, please, please for "The Apprentice," I said, Look, I'm going to do this.
But the fact is, my contract expires in 11 months. The show will be over. If the Republicans don't pick the right candidate and if the market is still bad, which I think it will be, by the way, based on the policies of Obama, I would certainly consider doing it as an independent. Absolutely.
VAN SUSTEREN: So is that a little bit more than the last time we spoke, the same or...
TRUMP: No, it's the same. I mean, look...
VAN SUSTEREN: OK.
TRUMP: ... I hope the Republicans pick a great candidate, but there's a really good chance that they won't. And I also hope that the economy is great, but there's a really good chance that it won't be. And if the economy is terrible and if the Republican candidate is not good -- I have thousands and thousands of people, and you know this, asking me to run.
And when I left, I was leading the polls. But you know, it's sort of interesting. I'm looking at some of the moves that the Republicans are making, how bad they are, whether it's lame duck, whether it's the lack of cutting in terms of the budget, whether it's a plan that tampers with Medicare -- and you know, the Democrats are having an absolute field day with the Ryan plan.
And it's not even so much the plan, it's his timing. There was no reason for him to step forward and offer up this plan, which is going to be like a hatchet to the head. There was just no reason for him to do it.
So when I see the stupid moves being made by the Republicans, I just decided, Look, I'll do this for a little longer. And if they continue to be foolish, and if they continue to be -- a stronger word than foolish would be stupid -- I will make a decision in 11 months.
VAN SUSTEREN: Donald, thank you, as always.
TRUMP: OK. Thank you very much, Greta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox