Donald Trump questions how Christa Pike's execution failed: "Should be easy to do"

President Donald Trump expressed disbelief over Christa Pike 's failed execution and wondered how it could have happened, since, in his view, administering the lethal drugs should be "easy."

Pike survived two rounds of lethal injection and became the first person in history to survive that method of execution .

"How does that happen?," Trump said. "Should be easy to do. It shouldn't be very difficult."

The president called the case "interesting" but avoided commenting on next steps, saying that decision is up to the state of Tennessee.

"That was an interesting situation, but you're going to have to speak to Tennessee about it. Whether or not they're going to go forward," he told reporters who traveled with him to Texas.

Christa Pike is still alive after the failed execution

Pike, 50, was set to become the first woman executed by the state of Tennessee in 200 years. She was convicted of torture and murder: in 1995 , when both were teenagers, she brutally beat a classmate to death and mutilated her body with a box cutter.

She is currently still alive and in critical condition.

Her attorneys said Thursday that during the failed procedure she endured at least seven attempts with needles. Randy Spivey , one of them, called what happened "cruel and torturous" and asked Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee to commute her sentence to life in prison.

Pike had asked to die by hanging

Pike had previously asked to be executed by hanging. She argued that the damaged veins in her arms would make it difficult for those carrying out the execution to access them to administer the pentobarbital.

Gov. Lee suspended all executions in Tennessee while the case is reviewed and called what happened to Pike a "tragedy."