Politics, pageants and presidential candidates! Former Miss Universe pageant owner Donald Trump reacted to Steve Harvey‘s megablunder from the live broadcast of the 2015 show on Sunday, December 20 — and naturally, he would’ve handled the scenario differently.
The outspoken 2016 GOP presidential hopeful first tweeted on Monday, December 21, about the viral incident, during which Harvey mistakenly announced Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez as Miss Universe — although the title was actually supposed to go to Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach.
“Very sad what happened last night at the Miss Universe Pageant,” Trump tweeted. “I sold it 6 months ago for a record price. This would never have happened!”
He then called into the Today show moments later this morning to speak to Matt Lauer about the incident. “Well, it was something that can happen. Steve Harvey is a great guy,” he noted diplomatically. “I like the way he got out and did it. It certainly was a terrible error. Terrible for the young woman from Colombia. Things happen. It’s live television, and the new owners are tremendous people. I owned it for 15 years, and I sold it.”
Indeed, he sold the organization following a megacontroversy this past June after he made offensive remarks about Mexican immigrants. NBCUniversal subsequently cut ties with Trump, and he eventually stepped down from his role as owner of the pageant.
As the former head honcho himself, Trump said he would’ve handled the situation differently if he were still in charge. “I’d tell you what I think I’d do: I’d make them a co-winner,” he continued. “Because what happened to the girl from Colombia is devastating. To give it to her for a couple of minutes, and then to take it away. I think … you have a whole country.”
Former Miss Colombia Paulina Vega won the title of Miss Universe in 2014, prompting magnanimous reactions from her native country.
“The entire country, they took a vacation for a week,” Trump, 69, recalled of the celebration in the South American country. “They were wild. I would recommend that they have a beautiful ceremony, which is good for the brand and Miss Universe, and do a co-winner, and I think something like that can work. And it was a tough evening, and Steve Harvey is a terrific guy. Things like this do happen.”
