After she shouted from the audience that Cruz was a ... let's call it a "kitty cat" ... Trump repeated the vulgar insult into the microphone.
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The interaction went like this:
"They asked Ted Cruz, serious question, 'Well what do you think of waterboarding?' Is it okay?" Trump said. "And honestly I thought he'd say absolutely. And he didn't."
The woman in the audience shouted "He's a ______!"
"I never expect to hear that from you again!, Trump said.
"And just in case the audience didn't know what she said: "She said he's a _______. That's terrible. Terrible!"
Some in the audience laughed, some gasped.
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Trump went on MSNBC Tuesday morning and explained why he repeated it.
"The place went wild -- standing ovation -- you know you're talking about close to 5,000 people - standing ovation, went totally wild," he said. "And all I was doing is repeating because people couldn't hear it. So I was doing everybody a favor."
Cruz on Tuesday said Trump has no choice but to engage in profanity because the billionaire businessman can't defend his record.
"Part of the reason that Donald engages in insults is because he can't discuss the substance. He can't defend his record. For example, a vote for Donald Trump is a vote for Obamacare," Cruz told reporters as he walked into the diner.
Trump has said that's a "lie." Cruz charges that Trump supports universal health care that could lead to health care rationing.
Cruz says, "Donald can't defend that. So instead, his approach is to engage in a profane insult. I'm not going to respond in kind."
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