SUMTER, South Carolina — GOP frontrunner Donald Trump is answering critics that say he was too aggressive during his debate performance last Saturday night in Greenville, South Carolina.

“You have to be mean,” Trump said of correcting perceived lies about him in response to critics who said he was aggressive during the GOP primary debate last Saturday when Trump attacked former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, his brother President George W. Bush and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).

“The people that follow Trump are angry,” Trump said, confirming a previous allegation made by South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley about Trump supporters.

“We’re not angry people,” he corrected, but said his supporters can get upset with incompetent leaders.

Trump told roughly 3,500 supporters at the Sumter County Civic Center on Wednesday night that he’s a “common sense conservative,” adding, “we have to be smart.”