Hillary Clinton took aim at Donald Trump in an address today before the nation’s largest annual pro-Israel policy conference, blasting the Republican frontrunner’s professed neutral stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and calling him ill-equipped to be commander-in-chief.
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While Clinton started Monday speaking at the pro-Israel Aipac conference in Washington DC, Sanders – who on Sunday admitted to having been ” creamed ” by Clinton in southern states but predicted gains out west – was campaigning in those western states.
But Mrs Clinton, the former US Secretary of State, said: “America can’t ever be neutral when it comes to Israel’s security and survival”.
Clinton said she would make it a priority if elected to preserve the U.S.-Israeli relationship, ensuring Israel has a qualitative military edge.
The comments marked a thinly veiled reference to Trump, who last month vowed to be a “a neutral guy” when it came to Middle East issues, sparking intense criticism from allies of Israel from both parties. “I’ll tell you what, I don’t know one Jewish person that doesn’t want to have a deal, a good deal, a proper deal, but a really good deal”, he said, hinting that while “it’s probably one of the toughest deals” to make, he could be the right person to get it done.
Mr Trump and the two other remaining Republican presidential candidates Ted Cruz and John Kasich, were due to speak later at the same conference.
Rob Barkan at the Observer had a few ideas of his own about Sanders’ absence, writing that “Progressives shouldn’t give Bernie Sanders too much credit for skipping a major pro-Israel conference tomorrow”. But this loyal friend of Trump does outline one scenario for a general election, should it finally pit the two current front-runners against one another. Trump, of whom I am not a supporter, has called to enforce our immigration laws and stated the obvious to most: Many of these lawbreakers are not the best their home country had to offer.
In a Friday letter to AIPAC President Roger Cohen, Sanders explained that his absence was simply the result of his campaign schedule, which “prevents me from attending”. Trump said his Jewish son-in-law, Jared Kushner, helped him write the speech.
“We will never allow Israel’s adversaries to think a wedge can be driven between us”, she said. He will also be the only presidential candidate among the five not in attendance at the event.
“We know that the more people learn about Bernie, the more they like him”, said Jose Miranda, the director of Bernie Sanders’ campaign in Arizona. Trump’s payroll included 100 people at the end of February, exceeding the 88 employed by Texas Sen.
Trump also dismissed Clinton’s critique about his potential qualifications to serve as president.
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Today marks the first time Clinton and Trump have been scheduled to address the same audience in a single day.
