He has a weakness for elephants and was touched by the death of a gorilla, but there’s no love lost between President Trump and sharks, according to an account by porn star Stormy Daniels, who claims she had an affair with Trump a decade ago.

In an interview Daniels gave to In Touch magazine in 2011 — the transcript of which was published online Friday — she described meeting Trump at his private bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel in July 2006.

“The strangest thing about that night — this was the best thing ever — you could see the television from the little dining room table and he was watching ‘Shark Week,’” Daniels said. “He was watching a special about the U.S.S. something and it sank and it was like the worst shark attack in history. He is obsessed with sharks. Terrified of sharks. He was like, ‘I donate to all these charities and I would never donate to any charity that helps sharks. I hope all the sharks die.’ He was like riveted. He was like obsessed. It’s so strange, I know.”

Daniels said that after dinner, she and Trump “moved to the sofa so he could get a better view of ‘Shark Week.‘”

In a separate report about Daniels’s alleged yearlong affair with Trump published by Mother Jones on Thursday, the adult film star, who considered running for the U.S. Senate in 2009, reportedly told a campaign consultant the same “Shark Week” story.

Trump has expressed his disdain for sharks on Twitter.

In 2013, he ranked sharks just above “haters and losers.”

“Sorry folks, I’m just not a fan of sharks,” he tweeted. “And don’t worry, they will be around long after we are gone.”

Sharks are last on my list – other than perhaps the losers and haters of the World! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 4, 2013





Sorry folks, I'm just not a fan of sharks – and don't worry, they will be around long after we are gone. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 4, 2013





Story continues

The same year, when a Twitter follower complained that Trump’s casinos serve shark-fin soup, the real estate mogul seemed incredulous.

“You like sharks?” he tweeted in reply.





The reaction to Trump’s apparent fear of sharks was swift.

We need someone at CPAC to dress up as a shark this year. Just for Donald. — Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) January 19, 2018





So what we're saying is the Democrats should run a shark for president 2020 — Jamie McKelvie (@McKelvie) January 19, 2018









Trump fears sharks because he'll believe anything television tells him https://t.co/0ONuBzE3r2 pic.twitter.com/bbr4g8Q0eW — Jonathan Chait (@jonathanchait) January 19, 2018





It's the last day of Trump's first year in the White House, we're 15 hours from a govt shutdown and Twitter is losing its mind about Trump telling an adult film star about his aversion to sharks because 2018. — Carrie Dann (@CarrieNBCNews) January 19, 2018





it’s time for the washington media to ask every republican member of congress where they stand on the important issue of sharks — David Mack (@davidmackau) January 19, 2018





I know it’s anti-science but the truth is, I’m with Trump on the shark thing. — Ben Dreyfuss (@bendreyfuss) January 19, 2018





Apparently Trump’s hatred of sharks is unrelated to his disdain for “Shark Tank,” a reality business show that he considered inferior to his own “Apprentice” franchise.

The success of Shark Tank over the years is a total joke compared to the success of The Apprentice, one of the biggest hits in T.V. history. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 11, 2013





Sharks aside, there’s a reason why the story just surfaced. Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was paid $130,000 before the 2016 presidential election for keeping silent about her alleged sexual relationship with Trump.

Daniels said she first met Trump at a 2006 celebrity golf tournament in Nevada, where they had the first of numerous sexual encounters. At the time, Trump had been married to his wife Melania for less than two years.

According to the Journal, the alleged payment was arranged by the Trump Organization’s longtime lawyer, Michael Cohen, just weeks before Election Day. On Friday, the newspaper reported that Cohen used a private company and pseudonyms to keep the exchange quiet. The arrangement reportedly came as Daniels was in talks with ABC’s “Good Morning America” and Slate magazine to go public with her account.

Both the White House and Cohen have denied the reports.

“This matter was asked and answered during the campaign,” White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah told reporters on Thursday. “Anything else should be directed to Mr. Cohen.”

“These rumors have circulated time and again since 2011,” Cohen said in a statement to the New York Times. “President Trump once again vehemently denies any such occurrence, as has Ms. Daniels.”

_____

Read more from Yahoo News: