Trump says not 'morally obligated' to defend Obama

Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump said on Sept.19 he was not morally obligated to defend Barack Obama after he let pass unchallenged a questioner's assertion that the US leader is a Muslim.

But while striking a different tone later in the day, the bombastic businessman acknowledged that he would have "no problem" with appointing a Muslim American to his cabinet if he were elected.
 
In a rapid-fire series of tweets, the billionaire real estate mogul responded to a barrage of criticism of his handling of the Sept.17 incident, which came from Democrats and one fellow Republican candidate, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.    

"Am I morally obligated to defend the president every time somebody says something bad or controversial about him? I don't think so!" Trump wrote, ending an unusually long period of silence after he was largely quiet on Sept.18.
 
Trump, who helped fuel a "birther" movement in 2011 by repeatedly demanding Obama prove he wasn't born in Kenya, appeared to encourage a man at a campaign stop in New Hampshire on Sept.17 after he made the incorrect assertion about Obama's faith.
 
"We have a problem in this country, it's called Muslims. We know our current president is one, you know he's not even an American," the unidentified questioner said.
 
Trump chuckled and interrupted him to say, "We need this question. This is the first question."  

Putting himself in Trump's shoes, Christie said he would have corrected the questioner and said: "No, the president's a Christian and he was born in this country."  

Hillary Clinton, the leading Democratic candidate, called Trump's handling of the incident "disturbing and just plain wrong," while White House spokesman...