

Trump's assertions about Muslims celebrating in 2001 have been fact-checked and discredited by law enforcement and government officials who were in New Jersey in the days and weeks after the terrorist attacks. "Now, the poor guy - you've got to see this guy, 'Ah, I don't know what I said! I don't remember!' " Trump said as he jerked his arms in front of his body. Trump appeared to mock Kovaleski's physical condition the reporter has arthrogryposis, which visibly limits flexibility in his arms.

On stage, Trump berated Times investigative reporter Serge Kovaleski for his recent recollection of an article he wrote a few days after the attacks, which Trump has been citing to defend his claim. 11, 2001, as the World Trade Center towers collapsed. The incident occurred Tuesday at a rally in South Carolina, as Trump was defending his recent claim that he had witnessed thousands of Muslims cheering in New Jersey on Sept. Trump also demanded an apology from the reporter's employer, the New York Times, which earlier in the week issued a statement condemning Trump for ridiculing "the appearance of one of our reporters."
Trump mocks a disabled reporter tv#
Kovaleski told the Washington Post that Trump must remember him since he covered him from 1987 to 1993.A day after he was widely rebuked for mocking a reporter with a physical disability, business mogul and reality TV star Donald Trump on Thursday denied that he had done so and accused the reporter of "using his disability to grandstand." "I have tremendous respect for people who are physically challenged and have spent tens of thousands of dollars throughout buildings all over the world on making them handicapped accessible and ADA (American Disability Act) compliant." "I merely mimicked what I thought would be a flustered reporter trying to get out of a statement he made long ago.

"I have no idea who Serge Kovaleski is, what he looks like or his level of intelligence," he said in a statement. Trump was widely criticized for his gestures, but said he didn’t know what Kovaleski looked like. "Now the poor guy, you gotta see this guy," the politician said, before starting what many saw as an impersonation of Kovaleski. Kovaleski reportedly wrote that "law enforcement authorities detained and questioned a number of people who were allegedly seen celebrating the attacks and holding tailgate-style parties on rooftops while they watched the devastation on the other side of the river" in Jersey City, New Jersey.īut the reporter told CNN he did not see “thousands, or even hundreds” of people celebrating.Īt the South Carolina rally, Trump said Kovaleski was backing down from his own story. Kovaleski suffers from a congenital joint condition called arthrogryposis.Īccording to Trump, Kovaleski’s 2001 reporting supports Trump’s controversial claim that "thousands" of Muslims in New Jersey celebrated watching the World Trade Center towers collapse. presidential hopeful Donald Trump has denied he made fun of a disabled New York Times reporter earlier this week.ĭuring a campaign rally in South Carolina on Tuesday, the billionaire candidate flailed his arms when referring then- Washington Post reporter Serge Kovaleski and an article he wrote about the 9/11 2001 suicide hijacking attacks on New York and Washington.
