Republicans instantly cried foul.
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Clinton was referencing an interview that Trump had with Larry King on his podcast “PoliticKING with Larry King”, which is licensed for television distribution to various channels, including RT America, a version of Russia Today, which is a state-run channel. Trump’s supporters “are not a “basket” of anything,” Pence said at the Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C. Farmers. Coal miners. Teachers.
Clinton made her comments at an LGBT fundraiser in NY late Friday, then walked them back Saturday, saying in a statement that it was “grossly generalistic, and that’s never a good idea”.
“That other basket of people are people who feel that the government has let them down, the economy has let them down, nobody cares about them, nobody worries about what happens to their lives and their futures, and they’re just desperate for change”, Clintons said.
Clinton, who has said she is the candidate who can unify a divided country, made the comment at an LGBT fundraiser Friday night at a New York City restaurant, with about 1,000 people in attendance.
Ms. Clinton has made similar comments in the past.
One the one hand, both are very broad, extremely negative generalizations about large segments of the American public.
Some of those were irredeemable, she said, but they did not represent America.
Romney, in comments unearthed from a closed-door fundraiser, cited 47 percent of people “who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it”. “I never thought I’d see the day where this has happened to our country”, he added.
Trump has attracted media ire for his open admiration of Vladimir Putin, a criticism somewhat undermined by the recent “agreement” with Russian Federation over the Syria question, and his suggestion that Iranian speedboats who buzz American naval vessels should be blown out of the water.
Mr. Trump and his supporters quickly pounced on the remark. But she still was generalizing a large segment of the American people.
Donald Trump speaks to Matt Lauer during the Commander in Chief Forum in Manhattan, New York, U.S., September 7, 2016.
Clinton campaign spokesman Nick Merrill, in response to the criticism, clarified via Twitter that the former first lady’s remarks were targeted at the so-called “alt-right” Trump backers.
One key difference between the two is that Romney’s comment might have alienated potential supporters.
The dismissal of so significant a portion of the electorate immediately called to mind then-Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s captured-on-video comment in 2012 that 47% of the US electorate believed they were victims and were dependent on government entitlements and thus were guaranteed Obama voters.
“Hillary Clinton should be ashamed of herself, and this proves beyond a doubt that she is unfit and incapable to serve as president of the United States”, he added.
Trump responded with a tweet on Saturday, calling Clinton’s comments “insulting” the voters. “The truly deplorable thing in this race is the shameful level of condescension and disrespect Hillary Clinton is showing to her fellow citizens”.
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Remember, this isn’t a new formulation. At a fundraiser on Friday, Hillary lashed out not just at Trump, but at his supporters – half of them, anyway.
