Donald Trump's 'crooked' comments were about Iraqi soldiers, not U.S., campaign says

Donald Trump.
(Image credit: Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)

Donald Trump's spokeswoman said Tuesday night the presumptive Republican nominee was not referring to U.S. troops when he said the soldiers who handed out "millions and millions of dollars" in Iraq are "living very well right now."

During a rally in North Carolina on Tuesday, Trump declared that Iraq is "crooked as hell. How about bringing baskets of money, millions and millions of dollars, and handing it out. I want to know, who were the soldiers that had that job, because I think they're living very well right now." After people began to blast Trump on social media, saying he was accusing U.S. troops of stealing money meant to rebuild Iraq, spokeswoman Hope Hicks told Bloomberg Politics Trump "was referring to Iraqi soldiers."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.