Trump admits in deposition harsh comments launched campaign

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump had his depositions in the nation’s capital in June, and although the transcripts had been released, the videos were sealed. At least they were until now.

BuzzFeed News filed court motions seeking the release of the videos. The media company made it available to the public on Friday what they had received.

The depositions were related to Trump suing Geoffrey Zakarian last year. The restaurateur withdrew from a lease to operate a high-end eatery in the newly opened Trump International Hotel in Washington hotel after the candidate characterized Mexicans as being criminals, drug dealers and rapists.

In a short segment from the deposition, Trump answers questions about the inflammatory comments he made about Mexicans.

In Trump's videotaped deposition, he implies that comments he made about Mexicans during his campaign kick off were premeditated. pic.twitter.com/3jmA9zjnmi

— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) September 30, 2016

Trump testified he didn’t think his widely criticized comments were “so bad” because he went on to win the Republican presidential nomination.

In the videotaped deposition, Trump claims that his presidential campaign could boost business at his hotels and increase the value of his personal brand.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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