Guess Who Just Said He Could Have Beaten Obama

There could be a Republican in the White House, if only he'd believed in himself — so he says.

In an interview published late Friday, perennial presidential hopeful Donald Trump claimed that he could have bested President Barack Obama in 2012.

"I was leading in every poll," Trump told the Des Moines Register. "I regret that I didn't stay in. I would've won the race against Obama. He would've been easy. Hillary [Clinton] is tougher to beat than Obama, but Hillary is very beatable."

Donald Trump appears at a news conference after the 2012 Miss Universe Pageant at PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino on December 19, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Credit: Getty Images

The billionaire Trump, who has thrown his name into the hat for president multiple times since 1988 but who has never officially run, also promised to be "self-funding" if he runs in 2016.

He ragged on Republican competition, saying of Mitt Romney's 2012 campaign:

He failed. He choked. He's like a deal-maker that didn't close the deal. He shouldn't be running again. He had a great opportunity to win against a president that was absolutely lame, and he didn't do it. ... The 47 percent statement, which was a disaster, is not going away. Romneycare is not going away. All of his problems are not going away. He should get out and get out quickly.

Trump also dismissed the idea of former Florida governor Jeb Bush succeeding his brother and father as president.

"Frankly we've had enough of the Bushes," Trump said. "We're bushed out."

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