Trump’s move intolerable to Obama, Bush: White House

The White House has blasted billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump for standing by his campaign manager, who is charged with battery during one of the presidential candidate's rallies.

The 2016 presidential candidate’s response to the incident is "completely outside the realm of acceptable behavior,” said White House spokesman Josh Earnest on Wednesday.

Trump’s campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, was charged Tuesday for grabbing and bruising the arm of Michelle Fields, a reporter for Breitbart News, as she tried to ask the candidate a question during a March 8 campaign event in the US state of Florida.

Trump on Tuesday night argued that Lewandowski acted appropriately by getting physically involved when Fields approached him.

The White House spokesman indicated that the move should be condemned by any politician regardless of party affiliations.

“I am confident that neither President Obama nor President Bush would tolerate someone on their staff being accused of physically assaulting a reporter, lying about it and then blaming the victim,” Earnest told reporters.

After the incident, Trump took to US media to hurl accusations at the reporter.

“She had a pen in her hand,” the Republican front runner told CNN. "It could have been a knife. It might have been dangerous.”

Earnest argued in his daily briefing that Trump’s stance is not surprising.

"I am also confident in telling you nobody is particularly surprised that that's behavior that Mr. Trump doesn't just seem to tolerate, he seems to encourage," he added.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk