Donald Trump is blasting media reports that Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus called the businessman turned politician to rein him in after he ignited a firestorm with incendiary remarks referring to illegal Mexican immigrants as rapists and criminals.
Said Trump of the conversation in a posting on Twitter:
The Washington Post reported this week that Priebus reached out to Trump via telephone to assuage "demands from increasingly worried party leaders," and spent nearly an hour urging Trump to ease up on his "inflammatory comments about immigration that have infuriated a key election constituency."
RNC officials told the Post that Priebus was returning a call from Trump over the weekend and that immigration was only one of the topics the men touched on during their 45-minute conversation.
But senior RNC aide Sean Spicer disputed the Post's report on the length of the call, telling
The New York Times it lasted "no more than 20 minutes."
"The chairman had a private conversation with Mr. Trump, as he does with all of our candidates pursuing the nomination," Spicer said. "(The call) spanned several areas, including his recent comments about illegal immigration."
In a separate Times story, Trump reportedly said
Priebus applauded his success.
"He said wow, you’re really doing well in the polls, you really hit a nerve," according to Trump, adding that the RNC chairman told the billionaire that he could rise to the top spot in the polls.
He conceded that Priebus suggested he consider dialing down his tone.
"He said, 'If you could tone it down — I know that’s tough — but if you could tone it down, that wouldn’t be bad," Trump told the Times, adding that Priebus "knows better than to lecture me."
"We’re not dealing with a five-star Army general," Trump said.
Trump supporters posted Twitter responses lauding the billionaire real estate mogul’s tell-it-like-it-is style.
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