Trump calls man whose weight he ridiculed at rally, does not apologize
President Donald Trump paid a phone call to the supporter whose physique he ridiculed at a Thursday rally in New Hampshire but stopped short of offering him an apology.
"That guy's got a serious weight problem," Trump said of Frank Dawson, whom he mistook for a protester while speaking at the Southern New Hampshire University Arena in Manchester. "Go home. Start exercising. Get him out of here, please."
"Got a bigger problem than I do, got a bigger problem than all of us," Trump added
As it was later revealed, Dawson, an avid Trump supporter, was actually trying to snatch a sign reading "Trump Is #BadForTheJews" from a protester with the group "IfThisNow" when he was called out by the president.
“He didn’t see me rip the signs away from those three people sitting near us," Dawson told Fox News after the mixup. "I think he thought I was part of it but I wasn't — I was the good part of it."
Dawson, a former police officer and a Navy veteran, also affirmed he took the insults in stride and is still in support of the president.
"Everything's good. I love the guy," he said. "He's the best thing that ever happened to this country."
Later that night, the president called Dawson and left him a voicemail on his way to New Jersey aboard Air Force One, a White House official told ABC News.
Dawson confirmed the call to the outlet, saying Trump thanked him for his support and for his attendance at the rally in his message.
However, when asked if the president said he was sorry for the negative body comments, Dawson said, "No, why would he apologize?"
Photos of Dawson at the rally:
