Trump: ‘I Never Spoke’ To Florida AG About Gift Before She Nixed Trump U Suit

Donald Trump on Monday said that he “never spoke” to Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi before donating to a group backing her re-election as her office considered launching a fraud investigation into Trump University.

That claim contradicts an Associated Press story from June that said Bondi “personally solicited” a political contribution from Trump.

“I never spoke to her. First of all, she’s a fine person beyond reproach,” Trump told reporters traveling on his plane, according to CBS News’ Sopan Deb. “I never even spoke to her about it at all. She’s a fine person. Never spoken to her about it. Never. Many of the attorney generals turned that case down because I’ll win that case in court, many turned that down. I never spoke to her about it.”

Last week, Trump paid a $2,500 penalty to the IRS for the $25,000 donation his charitable foundation made in 2013 to And Justice For All, a political committee backing Bondi’s re-election.

The gift, which the Trump Foundation, a registered nonprofit, was legally prohibited from making, came as Bondi was weighing whether to pursue fraud allegations against the now-defunct Trump University. After the check came in, Bondi decided not to pursue the case.

Contrary to Trump’s claims that the two never discussed the case or donation, Bondi’s representative Marc Reichelderfer told the AP in June that Bondi spoke with Trump “several weeks” before announcing that she was was considering the fraud case. The AP reported that the attorney general “personally solicited” the donation.

Asked what he wanted to get out of the financial contribution if not an end to the investigation, Trump said that he was simply helping out a longtime acquaintance.

“I’ve just known Pam Bondi for years,” Trump said on Monday. “I have a lot of respect for her. Never spoke to her about that at all. And just have a lot of respect for her as a person. And she has done an amazing job as the attorney general of Florida. She is very popular.”

Bondi has endorsed Trump and appeared with him at campaign rallies on the 2016 trail.

While Hillary Clinton’s campaign has called the donation “an actual pay-to-play scandal,” Trump’s team has dismissed the improper gift as a “minor issue.”

“This was a minor issue that was brought to the attention of the foundation and addressed immediately,” his team said in a statement to MSNBC. “Mr. Trump paid the fine.”