Trump says he could ‘shoot somebody’ and his fans would still love him

ASPIRING US president Donald Trump says his supporters are so loyal they would stick by him even if he shot somebody.

The billionaire businessman, who is currently the frontrunner for the Republican nomination for president, made the comments just nine days out from the Iowa caucuses opening voting in the 2016 campaign.

“I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters, OK?” Trump told an enthusiastic audience during a campaign rally at a Christian school in Sioux Center, Iowa. “It’s, like, incredible.”

Trump’s comments come as the debate about gun violence heightens in America following several highly publicised mass shootings.

Last month, 14 people were killed when two shooters opened fire in San Bernardino, California.

Trump, a supporter of the Second Amendment, has slammed US president Barack Obama for his use of executive orders to expand background checks on people who buy guns.

During the campaign rally, Trump also contrasted himself with rivals such as Texas senator Ted Cruz, his most serious challenger in the state, and went after conservative radio host Glenn Beck, who will be appearing at two rallies with Cruz.

He bashed Beck as a “loser” and “sad sack” and said former Alaska governor Sarah Palin’s endorsement, secured for Trump a few days earlier, was more important than if Beck had backed him.

Beck is among nearly two dozen conservative thinkers who penned anti-Trump essays for National Review magazine — a hit Trump to referred to repeatedly at the rally.

Another Republican candidate, Florida senator Marco Rubio, started a dash to the caucuses at Iowa State University in Ames, where he stressed that he represents the next generation of conservative leadership.

“Complaining and being frustrated alone will not be enough,” Rubio said. “It has to be someone who tells you exactly what they are going to do as president.”

Polls show Cruz and Trump leading in the state, but Rubio recently stepped up his Iowa campaign appearances in hopes of breaking into the top tier of candidates and putting himself in a stronger position for New Hampshire’s February 9 primary.