Trump Goes Says 'Shackles Taken Off' Of Him, Doubles Down On GOP Leaders Later
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump went on a Twitter rant Tuesday declaring "the shackles have been taken off me," and repeated his slams on a top GOP leaders that night.
It was a day of doubling down for Trump on Tuesday, as he slammed the U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), the top Republican in Congress, multiple times.
Trump, reeling after the release of a vulgar 2005 video and subsequent Republican defections, tweeted Tuesday that "it is so nice that the shackles have been taken off me and I can now fight for America the way I want to.''
It is not clear immediately what he meant. Trump spent Tuesday morning attacking fellow Republicans, most notably House Speaker Paul Ryan, and not his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton.
As CBS2's Dick Brennan reported, Trump called Ryan "our very weak and ineffective leader."
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As CBS2's Dick Brennan reported, Trump called Ryan "our very weak and ineffective leader."
Ryan told Republican lawmakers on a conference call Monday that he would focus instead on helping the party keep control of the House.
Trump referred to that call in his tweet Tuesday morning. He said Ryan "had a bad conference call where his members went wild at his disloyalty.''
It was his second tweet of the morning targeting Ryan. The other said Trump's "zero support'' was making it hard for Trump to do well.
As CBS2's Tony Aiello reported, Trump then doubled down on Fox News Channel.
"I don't want his support, don't care about his support," Trump told Bill O'Reilly Tuesday night. "What I want to do is win for the people because Hillary Clinton is a disaster."
Ryan spokesman Brendan Buck said Tuesday that "Paul Ryan is focusing the next month on defeating Democrats, & all Republicans running for office should probably do the same.''
The House speaker continues to endorse the nominee.
Trump's seeming declaration of war on his own party has put Ryan in a tough spot with Congressional members seeking reelection.
"He wants to give his members the ability to basically do what they have to do to save their own skins, without overtly or egregiously offending the Trump base," said John Heileman of Bloomberg Politics.
Trump also tweeted several times criticizing Republicans for abandoning him, including suggesting that "the Dems have always proven to be far more loyal to each other than the Republicans!''
He also made reference to "The very foul mouthed Sen. John McCain begged for my support during his primary (I gave, he won), then dropped me over locker room remarks!"
Trump was referring to his vulgar comments about women from 2005 that were caught on tape.
The party chair in Ohio, a key swing state, hopes Trump reconsiders his ill will within his own party.
"His fight is with Hillary Clinton, and that's the message that he's got to continue to embrace," said Ohio GOP Chairman Matt Borges.
And on Tuesday night in Florida, Trump stuck to the script in his teleprompter.
"The election of Hillary Clinton would lead to the destruction of our country, believe me," Trump said.
Meanwhile Tuesday, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie called the Trump video "indefensible," but said he is still supporting the Republican nominee.
Christie broke his silence about the video for the first time Tuesday while appearing on WFAN as a guest co-host on "Boomer & Carton."
"On the video itself, let's be really clear -- it is completely indefensible and I won't defend and haven't defended it," he said. "That kind of talk and conversation, even in private, is just unacceptable."
Christie said he urged Trump "to be contrite and apologetic because that's what he needs to be" but said he feels Trump's apology didn't go far enough.
"I would have done it much differently. But, you know, I do think he's sorry and I do think he's embarrassed by it," he said. "He should have been much more direct and much more focused on just saying, 'I'm sorry' and only 'I'm sorry.'"
But the governor insisted he's "still supporting Donald."
For her part, Democratic nominee Clinton has recovered in the polls since her Sept. 11 health scare. But Trump doubled down on doubts about her physical fitness in a new ad.
"Hillary Clinton doesn't have the fortitude, strength, or stamina to lead in our world," the ad says.
Campaigning with former Vice President Al Gore in Florida, Clinton spoke Tuesday about the health of the planet. She insisted that climate change is a major threat that only she takes seriously.
On Twitter, Trump has repeatedly called climate change a "hoax."
"We cannot risk putting a climate denier in the White House," Clinton said.
In the meantime, more WikiLeaks releases are causing more political embarrassment, even in New York. They show top aides to Clinton tried to keep Mayor Bill de Blasio at a distance.
Huma Abedin wrote: "He wants to be seen as the loudest progressive voice for her and in order to do that he needs access. In the next six months, someone else will have to inherit this relationship because it will not be tenable for Hillary Clinton."
De Blasio who had dragged his feet endorsing Clinton, was ultimately dissed by the Clinton campaign. Even at the Democratic National Convention, he was relegated to an obscure afternoon speaking spot.
There was another batch of hacked emails from WikiLeaks on Tuesday. The Trump campaign is pointing to one written by Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon.
He previously worked at the Justice Department, and in an email Fallon indicates getting information from his old colleagues there.
The Trump camp said this proves there is collusion between the Clinton camp and the Obama administration.
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