Republican Donald Trump on Wednesday pushed back against a lawyer he had berated when she requested a break to pump breast milk for her infant, the latest controversial remark to emerge in his presidential campaign.
Trump did not deny getting angry and calling the woman "disgusting" in 2011 but lashed back after reports of the incident emerged late Tuesday.
"Lawyer Elizabeth Beck was easy for me to beat. Ask her clients if they are happy with her results against me," he said on Twitter. "Beck lost the case and I got legal fees. Also, she wanted to breast pump in front of me at dep(osition)."
Beck was questioning Trump, a wealthy developer and television personality, in a Florida real estate case when she asked for a one-hour break to pump breast milk for her 3-month-old daughter, the New York Times reported on Tuesday, citing court testimony.
"He got up, his face got red, he shook his finger at me and he screamed, 'You're disgusting, you're disgusting,' and he ran out of there," Beck said on CNN in an interview on Wednesday.
Trump has come under fire in recent weeks for his comments on Mexican immigrants, veterans and other Republican presidential candidates even as he scores well in opinion polls.
The latest flare-up came after a top adviser to Trump apologized on Tuesday for making "inarticulate" comments on the subject of marital rape that also touched off a political controversy.
Trump, known for his brash comments, has defended his remarks.
A lawyer for Trump, Alan Garten, told the Times he thought Beck's request was a bid to buy time but that Trump's comments did not reflect his position on breast-feeding.
The newspaper in its report cited depositions for several lawsuits since 2007 that it said showed the candidate's raw edge as well as what it called his tendency to exaggerate business deals. They also showed Trump slow to adopt technology, saying in 2013 that he "rarely" used email, and that he did not have time to listen to television and did not drink alcohol.
Representatives for Trump or Beck could not immediately be reached for comment.
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