Don: It was sarcasm

Donald Trump said Thursday that he was being sarcastic when he asked Russian hackers to go after Hillary Clinton and dig out her e-mails.

Trumptookk heat Wednesday when he said, “Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 e-mails that are missing.”

On Thursday, he insisted he was not being serious.

“Of course I’m being sarcastic,” Trump said on “Fox & Friends.” “But you have 33,000 e-mails de- leted, and the real problem is what was said on those e-mails from the Democratic National Committee . . . It’s disgraceful.”

US authorities suspect Russia was behind hacks that showed DNC staffers trying to undermine Bernie Sanders’ campaign.

During the interview, Trump also said that Russian chief Vladimir Putin is a better leader than President Obama.

“He’s certainly doing a better job than Obama is,” Trump said.