Trump accuses Clinton of ‘bigotry’
WEST BEND (AP) — Donald Trump on Tuesday accused rival Hillary Clinton of “bigotry” and being “against the police,” claiming that she and other Democrats have “betrayed the African-American community” and pandered for votes.
“We reject the bigotry of Hillary Clinton, which panders to and talks down to communities of color and sees them only as votes — that’s all they care about,” the GOP nominee said in remarks delivered not far from Milwaukee — the latest city to be rocked by violence in the wake of a police shooting.
Trump, who is lagging behind in the polls, accused Clinton of being on the side of the rioters, declaring: “Our opponent Hillary would rather protect the offender than the victim.”
“The riots and destruction that have taken place in Milwaukee is an assault on the right of all citizens to live in security and to live in peace,” Trump said.
Clinton campaign spokeswoman Jennifer Palmieri responded with a statement yesterday accusing Trump of being the bigot instead.
“With each passing Trump attack, it becomes clearer that his strategy is just to say about Hillary Clinton what’s true of himself. When people started saying he was temperamentally unfit, he called Hillary the same,”Palmieri said.
“When his ties to the Kremlin came under scrutiny, he absurdly claimed that Hillary was the one who was too close to Putin. Now he’s accusing her of bigoted remarks —We think the American people will know which candidate is guilty of the charge,’’ she added.
Trump’s remarks, delivered via teleprompter in a rare departure from his usual freewheeling rally remarks, came after Clinton vowed Tuesday to conduct a national security and foreign policy that Americans could be proud of.
“It just absolutely bewilders me when I hear Donald Trump try to talk about national security,” Clinton said, pointing to Vice President Joe Biden’s dissection of Trump’s foreign policy at a Pennsylvania event Monday. “What (Trump) often says hurts us. It sends the wrong message to friend and foe alike.’’