Marco Rubio, Donald Trump clash over Trump University lawsuit

Marco Rubio and Donald Trump. — (Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Marco Rubio attacked Donald Trump and his Trump University during the Fox News Republican debate, saying the frontrunner is "trying to do with the American voter what he did to the people who signed up for this course — making promises he has no intention of keeping."

Trump University offered non-accredited courses in real estate and entrepreneurship, and more than 5,000 plaintiffs who paid thousands of dollars to enroll are now part of a class action lawsuit, saying it was a scam. Rubio said he watched a video where Trump declared he would hire "the best instructors in the world, and one of them was a manager at a Buffalo Wild Wings. People owe all of this money now and got nothing in return for it. You're willing to say whatever you have to say to get their money." Rubio said he's talked with "victims" of the course, who "believed Mr. Trump was this fantastic businessman who would teach them all the tricks of the trade for $15,000 a course, and additional money if they wanted the real secrets of success."

Trump announced that if he wanted to, he could settle the case "very easily," but he won't do that because he's "right." He claimed Trump University had an A rating from the Better Business Bureau and a 98 percent approval rating, with students doing "tremendously well" and making "a lot of money by taking the course." Moderator Megyn Kelly shared that the last publicly available rating was from 2010, and a D- based on the number of complaints received. "It was elevated to an A," Trump responded, before offering to show the proof to Kelly tomorrow. "Let's see what happens in court."

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.