Donald Trump Looks To Newtown Shooting Truther For Help Winning Florida

David Duke crosses the line, but this Florida pastor apparently doesn't.
The Washington Post via Getty Images

Donald Trump may not want David Duke's support, but he's got no problem with an endorsement from a Sandy Hook truther.

Trump called the endorsement from Rev. Carl Gallups a "great honor." The Florida pastor has referred to the murder of 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School as a "hoax" and claimed that the father of one of the murdered children was an actor hired to further President Barack Obama's gun control efforts.

"He was dragged before the nation by Obama after the Newtown school shooting, supposedly, Sandy Hook, and played the part of a grieving father with a woman standing beside him crying, slinging snot, carrying on," he said on WEBY, according to Media Matters.

Back in January, Gallups headlined a major Trump rally.

"Trump commands the presence of a room when he walks in," Gallups told the conservative website WorldNetDaily. "I call it the 'Trump Factor.' I think most Americans think if he's in charge, they'll respect us and our enemies will even fear us if they need to. And he's the kind of guy who can get things done."

Trump was scrutinized last month when he failed to reject Duke, the former Ku Klux Klan grand wizard. The former reality TV star later explained that he just didn't hear the question, blaming a "lousy earpiece."

The support of Gallups and other Florida community leaders ahead of the state's primary next week is key for Trump. Trump is ahead of Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (R) in recent polls, and a loss for Rubio could potentially be the end of his campaign.

Trump's campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Editor's note: Donald Trump is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist, birther and bully who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims -- 1.6 billion members of an entire religion -- from entering the U.S.

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