Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said in 2002 that he supported the Iraq War — despite his insistence that he opposed the conflict during the George W. Bush administration.
"Yeah, I guess so," Trump said in response to a question about whether he supported the war from radio host Howard Stern on Sept. 11, 2002. "I wish the first time it was done correctly."
The interview was reported by
BuzzFeed News.
When asked Thursday at a CNN town hall in South Carolina whether he made the statement, Trump responded that "I probably said that" — adding that he was asked as a private citizen, not a politician.
"When you're in the private sector, you get asked things and you're not a politician — and probably the first time I was asked," Trump said. "By the time the war started, I was against it.
"Shortly thereafter, I was really against it."