CNN's Blitzer to Trump: Say "You're Fired" to Rumsfeld

Appearing on CNN’s The Situation Room April 20, real estate executive, and star of NBC’s The Apprentice, Donald Trump discussed his views of the Iraq war. During the 5:30pm interview, anchor Wolf Blitzer tried several times to get "the Donald" to use his famous catchphrase from his reality show to describe what he would do to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld if he were his boss:

Wolf Blitzer: "All right, now here’s the question. If Don Rumsfeld worked for you, what would you say to him?"

Trump: "Well, I know what you want me to say, you want me to say, ‘You’re fired.’ But I wouldn’t necessarily say that..."

Blitzer: "Why wouldn’t you fire Donald Rumsfeld if he worked for you, and helped get you into this mess, as you described it, in Iraq?"

Trump: "Well, I’m not saying I wouldn’t fire him. I’m saying I don’t think the President will...I don’t think this President will fire Secretary Rumsfeld."

Blitzer: "But let me press you. Would you?"

Blitzer was finally satisfied when Trump stated that he would "make a change" and would "get out of that war as soon as possible."

Trump, for his part, predicted doom and gloom for Iraq:

Trump: "Iraq is a disaster, and I just don’t think that Iraq is going to govern itself, probably, without a civil war. I think that you’re going to end up with a civil war, no matter what we do. I guess they’re probably already in a civil war...I think that it’s going to be a horrible civil war, somebody will emerge from that war, probably tougher and meaner than Saddam Hussein, and that’s what you’re going to have."

Trump, who Blitzer described as a "world class executive" offered up a solution to the Iraq situation: cut and run.

Blitzer: "Everybody knows you’re a world class executive, a manager. How would you–if the President called you into the Oval Office and said, the Donald, I need some help. How do I extricate myself from this blunder, from this mess? What would you tell him?"

Trump: "Well, you know, years ago, when I was going to college, Wolf, everybody said in Vietnam, declare victory and get out, ok? Maybe that’s what we should be doing. Just say, hey, we won the war, and now, lots of luck, folks. Because, what’s happening there is just something that’s inevitable."

It should be noted that the "world class executive" has not always been so successful in his business ventures. In 2004, Trump lost his position as CEO of Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts, Inc, when the company filed for bankruptcy to restructure it’s $1.8 billion debt. This was the second bankruptcy for Trump’s hotels and casinos. With this record, perhaps Trump could be regarded as someone who knows a thing or two about what constitutes a "disaster."