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Leadership

Donald Trump Got Called Out on His Iraq War Flip-Flop

By
Chris Matthews
Chris Matthews
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By
Chris Matthews
Chris Matthews
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February 19, 2016, 9:14 AM ET
Republican Presidential Candidates Debate In Greenville, South Carolina
GREENVILLE, SC - FEBRUARY 13: Presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks in the "Spin Room" following the Republican Presidential debate on February 13, 2016 in Greenville, South Carolina. This evenings debate featured a lively exchange between Trump and fellow candidates Jeb Bush and Ted Cruz.The six remaining candidates will spend the week campaigning before Saturdays primary. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)Photograph by Spencer Platt—Getty Images

Donald Trump was for the war in Iraq before he was against it.

That’s the conclusion many are drawing from a Howard Stern interview that was resurfaced Thursday by Buzzfeed News.

In the September 11th, 2002 interview, Stern asked the real estate magnate whether he supported the proposed invasion of Iraq. Trump responded, ““Yeah I guess so. I wish the first time it was done correctly.”

When asked about the comments during a Town Hall forum sponsored by CNN, Trump said that he didn’t remember the interview. “I could have said that. Nobody asked me—I wasn’t a politician. It was probably the first time anybody asked me that question,” Trump said. “But by the time the war started, I was against the war, and there are articles—I mean, there are headlines in 2003 and 2004—that I was totally against the war.”

Donald Trump has reversed his position on many issues, ranging from abortion to universal healthcare, but his rivals have been unable to create the impression among voters that he is an unreliable flip-flopper. The most recent polls have the billionaire leading in national polls, and in the upcoming primary contests in South Carolina and Nevada.

Fortune has contacted the Trump campaign for comment and will update the piece if it responds.

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By Chris Matthews
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