Pak doesn't do a 'damn thing' for us: Trump

In a wide-ranging interview, the US President said his administration is formulating 'rules and regulations' for the White House reporters.
Trump said he is doing a great job as the President and gave himself 'A+' for successfully running the country.

Pakistan doesn't do 'a damn thing for us', United States President Donald Trump said in his latest interview to Fox News, while defending his administration's decision to pull hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid to the country.

Trump further charged that the Pakistan government helped wanted terrorist Osama Bin Laden to hide in their country.

"We give Pakistan $1.3 billion a year . ... [bin Laden] lived in Pakistan, we're supporting Pakistan, we're giving them $1.3 billion a year -- which we don't give them anymore, by the way, I ended it because they don't do anything for us, they don't do a damn thing for us," Trump was quoted saying in the interview.

Speaking exclusively to Fox News' Chris Wallace in a wide-ranging interview, Trump also admitted that he occasionally enjoys calling on CNN's chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta.

"Actually I like to do it, but in many cases I don't," Trump said.

Trump, speaking to Wallace, floated another idea for dealing with Acosta.

"I think one of the things we'll do is maybe turn the camera off that faces them, because then they don't have any air time, although I'll probably be sued for that and maybe, you know, win or lose it, who knows," Trump said in the interview.

"I mean, with this stuff you never know what's going to happen," Trump added.

Trump also called Acosta to be 'unbelievably rude to White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee, who's a wonderful woman'.

Trump said his administration is currently formulating 'rules and regulations' for the White House reporters.

"And if he misbehaves, we'll throw him out or we'll stop the news conference," the President added.

Refuting the media reports that labeled the President to be acting bitterly and resentful following the midterm elections, Trump called it to be 'disgusting fake news', and addressed some potential high-level departures from his administration.

Trump said he is doing a great job as the President and gave himself 'A plus' for successfully running the country.

"I think I am doing a great job. We have the best economy we have ever had," Trump told Fox News.

"I would give myself, I would -- look, I hate to do it, but I will do it -- I would give myself an A+, is that enough? Can I go higher than that?" he said.

Responding to a question in the wide-ranging interview, the US President said, "We are doing really well. We would have been at war with North Korea if, let's say, that administration continued forward".

On North Korea, he also said that before leaving the office, his predecessor Barack Obama had advised him that the North Korea was one of the top challenges for the country.

Trump said Obama had offered him some important guidance in the White House shortly after his 2016 election.

"I think North Korea's been very tough because you know we were very close. When I took that over -- President Obama right in those two chairs, we sat and talked and he said that's by far the biggest problem that this country has," Trump told the news channel.

"And I think we had real decision as to which way to go on North Korea and certainly at least so far I am very happy with the way we went," Trump said referring to the fact that his diplomacy with the North Koreans.

Early this year, Trump became the first US president to hold talks with the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

As a result of the summit meeting in Singapore, North Korea has agreed to a pathway of denuclearisation.

There has been no missile tests and nuclear tests. The rhetoric and threats from the North Korean leaders against its neighbours and the US has almost ended for the past several months.
Trump takes credit for his successful diplomacy with North Korea.

During his interview, Trump told the Fox news that his supported candidates won in the mid-term elections against the candidates for whom Obama had campaigned for.

"I won against President Obama and Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama in a great state called Georgia for the governor," Trump said, referring to defeated Democratic candidate Stacey Abrams' top surrogates, to the news channel.

"And it was all stacked against Brian (Kemp), and I was the one that went for Brian, and Brian won," he said, adding that and same with Florida.

"Look at Florida. I went down to Florida. (Republican) Senate candidate) Rick Scott won, and he won by a lot. I don't know what happened to all those votes that disappeared at the very end.

"And if I didn't put a spotlight on that election before it got down to the 12,500 votes, he would have lost that election, OK? In my opinion he would have lost. They would have taken that election away from him. Rick Scott won Florida," Trump said.

With PTI inputs