Trump says he’ll be the ‘great unifier’

Donald Trump appeared undeterred Sunday in the face of new polls in Iowa showing him falling behind retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, stressing that he’s the “unifier” the country needs.

A Des Moines Register poll showed Carson leading Trump by 9 percentage points in the state.

Trump, who for months had led the crowded field of Republican presidential candidates, said he would bring bipartisanship to Washington at a time of immense polarization.

Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Trump focused on the battle last week between Republicans on the House Select Committee on Benghazi and Hillary Rodham Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, who testified before the panel for nearly 11 hours.

“The level of hatred between Republicans and Democrats was unbelievable. ... I’ve never seen anything like it,” Trump said. “I’m going to unify. This country is totally divided. Barack Obama has divided this country unbelievably. And it’s all, it’s all hatred, what can I tell you. I’ve never seen anything like it. ... I’ve gotten along with Democrats and I’ve gotten along with Republicans.”

Trump, whose appeal as a political outsider has helped his candidacy flourish, said that if elected, he’d be a “great unifier for our country.”

For Trump, criticism of both parties is nothing new. He’s relentlessly assailed his rivals, including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, for being “low-energy.”