Trump: ‘I never said’ I’d pay legal fees for alleged sucker-puncher

Donald Trump on Tuesday denied saying that he would pay the legal fees of a supporter who allegedly sucker-punched a protester during one of the GOP presidential front-runner’s campaign rallies.

“I didn’t say that,” he told host George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “I haven’t looked at it yet, and nobody’s asked me to pay for fees. I never said I was going to pay for fees.”

{mosads}Trump reiterated that he is considering whether John Franklin McGraw, 78, deserves his aid following the incident last week in Fayetteville, N.C.

“Maybe so, maybe that’s why I wouldn’t do it,” Trump said when Stephanopoulos suggested paying McGraw’s costs might imply he supports violence. “I don’t condone violence at all. I looked, and I watched, and I’m going to make a decision. I certainly don’t condone violence.”

Trump suggested on Sunday that he would entertain covering McGraw’s legal fees after examining protester Rakeem Jones’s role in the incident. Jones, 26, suffered a blow to the face while being escorted out of Trump’s appearance.

McGraw was subsequently arrested on March 10 and charged with assault and disorderly conduct.

A top lawyer for local authorities involved in the fracas said late Monday that it is unlikely Trump will face charges for inciting a riot during the heated event. The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office announced earlier the same day that it was investigating whether it could level those charges against Trump.