Donald Trump
Donald TrumpReuters

US President Donald Trump recounted minute-by-minute details of the US strike that killed Iran's top military commander Qassem Soleimani during remarks to high-dollar Republican donors at his South Florida estate, according to audio obtained by CNN.

Trump, who spoke at a GOP fundraising dinner Friday evening, offered new details about the strike that killed Soleimani, claiming that Soleimani was "saying bad things about our country" before the strike, which led to his decision to authorize his killing.

"How much of this s*** do we have to listen to?" Trump asked. "How much are we going to listen to?"

Trump did not describe an "imminent threat" that led to his decision to kill Soleimani. He told Fox News last week that Soleimani was plotting attacks on four US embassies.

In his remarks before the Republican donors, he instead said Soleimani was a "noted terrorist" who "was down on our list" and "was supposed to be in his country" before traveling to other nations in the region.

Trump described in detail watching remotely as Soleimani arrived at Baghdad International Airport, where he was met by Iraqi paramilitary leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the head of Kata'ib Hezbollah, saying the strike he authorized took out "two for the price of one."

He went on to recount listening to military officials as they watched the strike from "cameras that are miles in the sky."

"They're together sir," Trump recalled the military officials saying. "Sir, they have two minutes and 11 seconds. No emotion. '2 minutes and 11 seconds to live, sir. They're in the car, they're in an armored vehicle. Sir, they have approximately one minute to live, sir. 30 seconds. 10, 9, 8 ...'"

"Then all of a sudden, boom," he went on. "'They're gone, sir. Cutting off.' "

"I said, where is this guy?" Trump continued. "That was the last I heard from him."