Trump Hits Back at Chris Matthews' Birther Rant: 'He Used to Be a Much More Intelligent Man

Real estate mogul Donald Trump spoke to reporters after his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference Friday, March 15, 2013. (TheBlaze photo)

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- Donald Trump dismissed MSNBC's Chris Matthews' criticism of his CPAC invite, saying the host says what he says because he needs to make a salary from the liberal network.

"I've known Chris for a long time, I knew Chris when he was sort of a conservative guy, actually -- he's changed a lot, probably he needs that to get his salary on MSNBC," Trump told reporters in response to a question from TheBlaze after his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday.

Matthews went off on American Conservative Union head Al Cardenas during his show Thursday night for giving a speaking slot to "the No. 1 birther in the country" and called the real estate mogul "nutty on the issue of birtherism" for having cast doubt on which country President Barack Obama was born in.

"He's a much different guy than he used to be, he used to be a much more intelligent man," Trump told reporters.

He again took credit for Obama releasing his long-form birth certificate in 2011, saying in couching terms: "I did get him to release whatever it was he released."

Trump said he had "a little bit of regret" for ultimately not getting into the presidential race in 2012, calling it "an election we should have won."

He had harsh words for disgraced ex-Congressman Anthony Weiner, who resigned from office after sending lewd messages and was once reported to be considering a bid for mayor of New York City.

"Well, he's a pervert," Trump said. "It's very simple. The guy's a whackjob pervert."

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​Related:

• Chris Matthews Goes on Anti-Trump Birther Rant — and Gets Called Out on It: ‘Nobody’s Talking About It but You!’