Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump defended his attacks on a Mexican-American judge on Friday, resisting pressure from top Republicans to moderate his tone out of concern he is hurting his chances to win the White House.
Trump's bomb-throwing rhetoric helped him defeat 16 Republican rivals for the party's nomination for the Nov. 8 election. But facing a tough fight with expected Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, many Republicans want him to present a more disciplined image.
Feeling confident his method has been a winner, Trump so far has waved off some of the advice from Republicans who support him but want less loose talk.
In a CNN interview, Trump escalated his attacks on U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel, the son of Mexican immigrants who is the presiding judge in lawsuits involving fraud allegations against Trump University, the New York businessman's defunct real estate training school.
Trump suggested Curiel's Mexican heritage was influencing the judge's opinion about the case because Trump has campaigned on a platform of building a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico to stop illegal immigration.
"He's proud of his heritage," Trump said.
"He's a Mexican. We're building a wall between here and Mexico. The answer is, he is giving us very unfair rulings, rulings that people can't even believe. This case should have ended years ago on summary judgment," Trump said.
The judge a week ago unsealed documents related to the case.
Comments from the two top elected U.S. Republicans, House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, reflected continued worries among establishment Republicans about Trump.