Story highlights "I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose voters," Trump said

Trump has repeatedly pointed to the loyalty of his supporters

Sioux Center, Iowa (CNN) Donald Trump boasted Saturday that support for his presidential campaign would not decline even if he shot someone in the middle of a crowded street.

"I could stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose voters," Trump said at a campaign rally here.

After the event, Trump declined to answer when asked by CNN to clarify his comments.

The GOP front-runner has repeatedly pointed to the loyalty of his supporters, many of whom tell reporters and pollsters that almost nothing could make them change their mind about voting for Trump in the presidential race.

Trump's comments come as the debate about gun violence in America has taken center stage in American political discourse amid several highly publicized mass shootings.