A spokesman for Russian President Putin won’t respond directly to Donald Trump’s latest accolade for the Russian leader. “The man has very strong control over a country”, Mr Trump said.
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The Republican also renewed his praise for Putin and his disdain for President Barack Obama, arguing that “it’s a very different system and I don’t happen to like the system, but certainly, in that system, he’s been a leader, far more than our president has been a leader”.
Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday that the Kremlin is watching the USA campaign closely, but takes its rhetoric with a pinch of salt.
In a sit-down with CNN’s Dana Bash at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, the GOP vice presidential nominee said Donald Trump was speaking “boldly” as did the 40th president of the United States.
“Every Republican holding or seeking office in this country should be asked if they agree with Donald Trump about these statements”, Ms Clinton said on the airport tarmac.
Democrats are livid that at a televised forum on national security broadcast live from NY on Wednesday night, Mr Trump appeared to get an easier ride from the NBC moderator, Matt Lauer, than she did. Mr Trump said at the event they had been “reduced to rubble” serving Mr Obama.
Mr Obama, now on an overseas visit, said: ‘I don’t think the guy’s qualified to be president of the United States and every time he speaks, that opinion is confirmed’.
Reiterating remarks she made during a news conference earlier in the day, Clinton added, “I was trying to think about what other presidents would be imagining hearing that, coming out of the nominee for the Republican Party?”
Clinton vowed not to send USA ground troops to fight IS in Iraq or Syria, while highlighting her national security experience compared to Trump’s unpredictability in the face of the terrorism threat.
Trump has been focusing on his national security policy in the past few days, including announcing that his plan to combat ISIS would include ordering military generals to put together a plan to defeat the terrorist group in his first 30 days. Asked to square his request for military options with that criticism, Mr Trump said simply: “They’ll probably be different generals”. “I think what he exhibits is thuggery, and we should be clear-eyed about that”.
“We actually do. I’ll leak it to you later”, Pence said.
Wednesday’s forum served as a preview of sorts for Clinton and Trump’s highly anticipated debates. The candidates will face off for the first time on September 26 at Hofstra University.
Clinton reiterated that she had made mistakes in relying on a personal email account and private server as secretary of state and in voting for the 2003 invasion of Iraq as a senator. But she defended her support for USA military intervention to help oust a dictator in Libya, despite the chaotic aftermath.
Mr Trump said he was “shocked” by what he heard at the briefings.
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Trump’s speech on Friday comes after the candidate took the unusual step of criticizing US policy in a program aired on Thursday night on Russian government-funded television network, RT, a 24-hour news channel that broadcasts in both English and Russian.
