Is Rick Perry a birther? 

In an interview with Parade Magazine’s Lynn Sherr, the Texas governor recounts a recent dinner he had with Donald Trump, who apparently brought up his doubts about whether President Obama was born in the United States.

Asked point-blank if he thinks Obama is an American citizen, Perry did not deliver an unqualified reply in the affirmative and suggested he has doubts about whether the certificate released by the White House showing Obama was born in the U.S. is real.

But at the same time, Perry insisted the controversy is a “distractive issue” and ultimately “doesn’t matter.”

Here’s the full exchange, courtesy of Parade:

Governor, do you believe that President Barack Obama was born in the United States?
I have no reason to think otherwise.
That’s not a definitive, “Yes, I believe he”—
Well, I don’t have a definitive answer, because he’s never seen my birth certificate.
But you’ve seen his.
I don’t know. Have I?
You don’t believe what’s been released?
I don’t know. I had dinner with Donald Trump the other night.
And?
That came up.
And he said?
He doesn’t think it’s real.
And you said?
I don’t have any idea. It doesn’t matter. He’s the President of the United States. He’s elected. It’s a distractive issue.