Trump at CPAC: 'Hillary was the 1st birther'

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – Donald Trump assured activists at the Conservative Political Action Conference Friday that he is seriously considering a presidential bid and has no interest in any publicity stunt to boost his business or his brand on television.

The billionaire businessman said that on a scale of 100, he would peg his chances of running for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination at about 75 to 80.

In a question-and-answer session on the CPAC stage with Fox News host Sean Hannity after his speech, Trump said he still believes the computer-generated, long-form birth certificate for Barack Obama posted on the White House website April 27, 2011, is fake.

He touted his role in forcing Obama to make public his birth certificate.

“Hillary Clinton wanted to see Obama’s birth certificate; she was the first birther,” Trump explained to Hannity. “Then McCain tried really hard and really viciously to get Obama’s birth certificate.

“I’m not a sitting senator, not a sitting anything – I’m a good businessman – but I was able to get the White House to produce Obama’s birth certificate,” Trump boasted. “John McCain failed. Couldn't get it. But Trump comes along and said ‘birth certificate’ and Obama gave the birth certificate.”

Continuing with the subject, Trump noted that he and others began to question whether or not the document presented by the White House was legitimate.

“So, Hillary Clinton wanted to see Obama’s birth certificate, John McCain wanted it and I wanted it. Obama didn’t produce the birth certificate for them, but he did it for me," he said.

“I certainly wanted it,” Trump concluded. “Now all we have to do is find out whether or not it is real.”

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Trump took aim at former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush as a possible 2016 GOP presidential candidate.

“In favor of Common Core and weak on immigration; I don’t see Jeb Bush as winning,” Trump told the CPAC audience.

Trump also attacked the Obama administration for pushing trade deals that he claimed will allow more jobs to go to China – an attack that prompted Twitter comments pointing out Trump has manufacturing ties in China.

“In Barack Obama, we have a president who is incompetent,” Trump insisted in a speech that jumped from topic to topic.

“I guarantee you that Congress will continue to spend, even though President Obama broke the law declaring amnesty,” he predicted, even as the Senate was debating whether or not to fund the Department of Homeland Security. “We’re going to have people flooding into this country worse than it’s ever been. They’re coming across the borders now by the thousands and it’s only going to get worse.”

Trump castigated GOP members of Congress.

“The Republicans are going to have to toughen up,” he said. “Republicans are going to have to toughen up on the IRS, on Benghazi, on immigration, on Obamacare – a total lie and a total and complete disaster.”

Trump declared: "Nobody would be tougher on ISIS than me."

He said Gen. Douglas MacArthur must be spinning in his grave.

"You have to hit ISIS hard, and you have to hit them now. But instead, take (Bowe) Bergdahl, we made a deal for five terrorists who are out there right now trying to kill us.”

Next, Trump turned to Iran, insisting that Tehran "cannot have a nuclear weapon.”

From there, Trump jumped to the border.

“We need strong borders,” he said. “We need a wall. I can tell you that if I run for president, the king of building buildings, the king of building walls, will build a wall on the border. That I can assure you. We will have an executive order. We have to knock it out fast.”

Trump then turned to the federal program establishing uniform education standards known as Common Core and quickly shifted to gun rights, all in the same sentence.

“Common Core is bad,” he said, “but the Second Amendment is good. Now Obama is going to take away the bullets. They can’t get the guns, so now they’re going to take away the bullets.”

Trump ripped into Mitt Romney for losing the 2012 presidential election.

“I came down very hard on Mitt Romney because he let us down; he really let us down,” Trump said. “That should have been an election that was won. That was an easy election to win, probably easier than the next one in 2016.”

Check out WND's extensive coverage of the 2015 Conservative Political Action Conference:

Jeb Bush replies to booing: 'I want to be your 2^nd choice'

CPAC crowd chants: 'President Paul!'

John Bolton: Hillary 'unfit to command'

Rick Perry: America will survive Obama as it did Carter

Jeb Bush bracing for CPAC walkout

Rubio: Hillary 'yesterday,' Obama 'failed'

Scott Walker 'wants to make America great again'

Sarah Palin: Obama's VA 'killing our veterans'

Jindal pounds Common Core in CPAC speech

Cruz: Hillary 'embodies the corruption of Washington'

'Next 20 months will be very dangerous'