Trump’s campaign chairman blames Hilary Clinton for attack on speech

Donald Trump’s presidential campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, has attributed attacks on Trump’s speech to Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, being “threatened” by Trump.

“This is once again an example of when a woman threatens Hillary Clinton, she seeks out to demean her and take her down. It’s not going to work,” Manafort said.

Speaking to reporters in Cleveland later, Mr Manafort said “there’s a political tint” to the allegations of plagiarism, accusing the Clinton campaign of being the first to spread them without offering any evidence.

The Clinton campaign’s communications director, Jennifer Palmieri, said Manafort’s comments about Clinton’s involvement were untrue.

Melania Trump used “common words and values” in her prime-time Republican National Convention speech Monday night, Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort said Tuesday, blaming Democrat Hillary Clinton for allegations that Mrs. Trump’s remarks were plagiarized from First Lady Michelle Obama’s 2008 convention address.

Mr. Manafort said on CNN that allegations that presumptive nominee Donald Trump’s wife, a Slovenian-born former model, spoke words lifted from Mrs. Obama are “absurd.”

“There’s no cribbing of Michelle Obama’s speech. These were common words and values, that she cares about her family, things like that,” said Mr Manafort. “I mean, she was speaking in front of 35 million people last night. She knew that. To think that she would be cribbing Michelle Obama’s words is crazy.”