And before that:
These same multiple people who told the press he was impressed with her in the interview also told the press that. Had they thought it was a joke, it seems unlikely they would have reported it to the press that way. They obviously aren't out to get Trump because they also said what you quoted above.
Not sure how old you are, but prejudice based on stature was a lot more common back in the 70's (and likely before that) than it is today. It's become a rather antiquated form of prejudice, but Trump is part of that generation. Since he openly mocks people with disabilities and seems bigoted toward women and minorities, I have no idea why your first impulse is to give him the benefit of the doubt.
I also notice that in your first post, you described this as a "joke" rather than a possible joke, as if you were certain. You are not.
You're cutting Trump slack to go against the grain here.
This is Trump, and when it comes to people leaking things, its almost impossible to know if they have a motive to cut him down.
As for me thinking its a joke, I thought it was implicit but I expanded in post 6. I'm not cutting Trump slack, I'm just not outraged by the incident and it happens to be about Trump. I think a thread for something like this is silly and anyone really offended about this is overreacting. Its like pointing to a flat tire while a building is on fire. Of all the things to focus on when it comes to Trump, this seems very unimportant.
If this were Obama, you would be more reasonable to focus on this. Obama had so very few gaffs that something like this sticks out. Trump does and says bad things well beyond this, and focusing on this splits our attention.
