Evan Bartlett
Aug 09, 2015
Donald Trump and his long-time political adviser Roger Stone have parted ways following the controversy over the Republican candidate's comments about Fox News host Megyn Kelly.
But the circumstances around the pair's split have only added to the farcical nature of Trump's inexplicably successful presidential bid thus far.
On Saturday afternoon, Trump, former figurehead of The Apprentice, told the Washington Post that he "terminated" Stone on Friday night:
I really don’t want publicity seekers who want to be on magazines or who are out for themselves. This campaign is not about them. It’s about victory and making America great again.
But then Stone, a former aide to both Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon, hit back almost immediately on Twitter with the classic "you can't fire me, because I QUIT" line:
Politico claims that a source close to Stone told them an hour before the Washington Post report that the adviser quit in an email to Trump.
The politics news website also published a quite astonishing exchange between the pair following Trump's comments on Kelly, confirmed independently by two sources:
Stone later appeared on CNN saying he "categorically denies" that he was fired, adding that he wished his former employer well and hopes that the US "does not again turn to the failed and distrusted Bush/Clinton families".
Picture: CNN/YouTubeSince news broke that he'd parted ways with his adviser, Trump has remained conspicuously silent about the issue on Twitter, where he is usually so vocal, but did tell the Washington Post: "I wish Roger well. We’re moving on from him. We’re looking ahead. I am running to win this race. I’m not giving up. This is about the people – not about him, not about me. I want this to be serious, I really do."
Whatever you say Donald:
Picture: GettyMore: Donald Trump's Megyn Kelly 'blood' comments just keep on getting worse and worse and worse
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