On Saturday, Tim Kaine gave the keynote address at the Human Rights Campaign National Dinner in Washington, DC. During his speech, Kaine spoke about his personal support for the LGBTQ community and Hillary Clinton’s campaign pledge to ensure equal rights for the LGBTQ community is ensured with the passage of the Equality Act. Kaine, a Catholic, spoke about the Catholic Church’s position on same-sex marriage saying, “My full, complete, unconditional support for marriage equality is at odds with the current doctrine of the church that I still attend. But I think that’s going to change, too.” He also criticized Donald Trump’s position on LGBTQ rights saying that Trump is “no friend to this community, and he’s no friend to the value of equality.” A video of Kaine’s speech is below.
While in Washington, DC, Kaine also attended a DC for45 fundraising event for Hillary for America.
Today, Hillary for America Chair John Podesta released the following statement regarding Donald Trump’s campaign:
“It’s no surprise that Donald Trump is defending his most offensive views and extremist allies. This is the man who has spent 15 months insulting nearly every group in America — African Americans, Muslims, Latinos, Native Americans, immigrants, women, veterans, people with disabilities, and the list goes on. This is the man who hired Steve Bannon, a promoter of the racist ‘alt-right’ movement, to be his campaign CEO, and has inspired white supremacists and conspiracy theorists like David Duke and Alex Jones. So it’s no wonder Trump is standing up for them yet again. This is without a doubt deplorable — but this is who he is. This is what his campaign has always been about. And this is a fight we’re eager to have. As Hillary said today, we won’t back down. We will never stop calling out Trump’s bigotry and racist rhetoric, because we know our country is better than this. America is better than Donald Trump.”
Last week, the State Department announced that of the 15,000 emails found on Hillary Clinton’s email server turned over to the department by the FBI, 30 were related to the attacks in Benghazi, Libya. This past week, the State Department said that of the 30 emails, only three had been previously unreleased. The one new email is dated January 23, 2013 and is from Ambassador to Brazil Tom Shannon to Clinton’s aide Cheryl Mills complimenting Clinton on her handling of her testimony on Capitol Hill. Mills then forwarded the email to Clinton. The other two emails are forwarded copies of two previously released emails. A copy of the emails is embedded below, and a PDF copy can be downloaded HERE.
Last night, Hillary Clinton made a comment during a New York fundraiser that has gotten negative press. In her remarks, Clinton spoke about the supporters of Donald Trump saying that half of them are a “basket of deplorables.” Today, Clinton apologized for making the comment saying she was being “grossly generalistic.” She went on to outline her criticisms of Trump saying that she understands that many of his supporters are hard working Americans that, if elected, she will work for because she wants to build a country that is “strong together.” A copy of Clinton’s statement is below.
“Last night I was ‘grossly generalistic,’ and that’s never a good idea. I regret saying ‘half’ — that was wrong. But let’s be clear, what’s really ‘deplorable’ is that Donald Trump hired a major advocate for the so-called ‘alt-right’ movement to run his campaign and that David Duke and other white supremacists see him as a champion of their values. It’s deplorable that Trump has built his campaign largely on prejudice and paranoia and given a national platform to hateful views and voices, including by retweeting fringe bigots with a few dozen followers and spreading their message to 11 million people. It’s deplorable that he’s attacked a federal judge for his ‘Mexican heritage,’ bullied a Gold Star family because of their Muslim faith, and promoted the lie that our first black president is not a true American. So I won’t stop calling out bigotry and racist rhetoric in this campaign. I also meant what I said last night about empathy, and the very real challenges we face as a country where so many people have been left out and left behind. As I said, many of Trump’s supporters are hard-working Americans who just don’t feel like the economy or our political system are working for them. I’m determined to bring our country together and make our economy work for everyone, not just those at the top. Because we really are ‘stronger together.’”
On Friday, Hillary Clinton convened a group of bipartisan National Security experts to discuss a number of global issues. The key focus of the group’s discussion was defeating ISIS and combating terrorism. Following the meeting, Clinton held a press briefing during which she spoke about the importance of Republicans and Democrats working together on issues of national security. She also criticized Donald Trump saying that the experts she has spoken with are “chilled” by what Trump has said and proposed. A video of Clinton’s remarks is below as is a release from Hillary for America about the meeting, including list of those who attended.
Hillary Clinton today brought together a bipartisan group of distinguished national security officials to discuss the challenges our next commander-in-chief will face. Today’s conversation, which focused largely on defeating ISIS and the global network of terrorism, gave Clinton the opportunity to discuss these crucial issues with a wide range of experts with different background and diverse perspectives – something she has always been deeply committed to and will continue to seek as president.
Clinton said, “We won’t always see eye to eye, but when it comes to questions of war, peace and the safety of our country, we can’t let party affiliations stand between us. We need to put partisanship aside and work together for the good of all of us. I know we can do it. I have seen it happen under both Republican and Democratic presidents. That will be my goal if I am elected this fall.”
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Clinton added, “National security experts on both sides of the aisle are chilled by what they’re hearing from the Republican nominee. That may be the number one reason why this election is the most important in our lifetime. So I’m not waiting until November, I’m bringing Democrats and Republicans together now because I plan to get right down to work on Day One. The stakes are too high, and the issues too serious for anything less than that level of preparedness. Americans should be able to count on their president and Commander-in-Chief to provide rational, confident and even keeled leadership, especially in tumultuous times like these so I’m very grateful to the men and women that I met with today — experts with a broad range of understanding and willingness to share their insights– and I look forward to receiving their advice in the days and weeks ahead.”
Today’s conversation included a wide range of experts, including nonpartisan military leaders as well as top national security officials who served under both Democratic and Republican administrations.
Working Session Participants:
General John Allen, USMC (ret.), former Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS, former Commander of the International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces Afghanistan (via videoconference)
Rand Beers, former Deputy Homeland Security Advisor and former Acting Secretary of Homeland Security
Daniel Benjamin, Former Ambassador-at-large and Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the U.S. Department of State
Ambassador Reuben Brigety, Former U.S. Ambassador to the AU, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
Secretary Michael Chertoff, former Secretary of Homeland Security
Richard Fontaine, former foreign policy advisor to Senator John McCain
Chris Fussell, former Aide-de-Camp to then-Lieutenant General Stanley McChrystal at the Joint Special Operations Command, former Navy Seal
Kathleen Hicks, former Principal Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, former Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Strategy, Plans, and Forces
Juliette Kayyem, former Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security
Michael Morell, former Acting Director and Deputy Director of the CIA
Secretary Janet Napolitano, former Secretary of Homeland Security (via videoconference)
Matt Olsen, former Director of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC)
General David Petraeus, USA (ret.), former Director of the CIA, former Commander of the International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces Afghanistan (via videoconference)
Admiral James Stavridis, USN (ret.), former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO (via videoconference)
Vikram Singh, Former Deputy Assistant secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia
Michael Vickers, former Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence
This morning, the campaign also rolled out an updated list of 110 retired generals and admirals who have endorsed Hillary Clinton as the only candidate in this race prepared to be commander-in-chief, 15 of whom came out in the 48 hours after the Commander-In-Chief Forum.
Clinton is honored by the overwhelming support of those who have served our country and looks forward to continuing these important national security discussions with bipartisan leaders in the coming months. In a new Hillary for America television ad released today, Hillary Clinton makes the case that the “Only Way” we solve problems is bringing people together like she did today.
On Friday, campaign events were held across on the country on behalf of Hillary Clinton and featured speeches from Tim Kaine, Bill Clinton, and Senator Elizabeth Warren. Kaine began in Birmingham, Alabama where he attended a fundraiser, toured the 16th Street Baptist Church, and spoke to the press about Donald Trump’s divisive rhetoric and the allegations that the Trump Foundation illegally gave campaign donations to the Florida state Attorney General. A video of Kaine’s press briefing is below.
Kaine then returned to his home state of Virginia where he and his wife, Anne Holton, attended a rally in Norfolk. During his speech, Kaine spoke about his time in Virginia where he has served a Governor and is currently one of the state’s Senators. Kaine spoke about a number of Clinton’s platform points and went after Donald Trump for his praise of dictators saying, “If you can’t tell the difference between leadership and dictatorship, you wouldn’t have passed a fifth-grade civics exam. You shouldn’t be a president of the United States. … Tyranny is not leadership. Persecution is not leadership.” A video from the event is below.
In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Bill campaigned on behalf of his wife and spoke about a number of Hillary’s platform points and criticized a number of proposals made by Trump. Bill spoke about the importance of this election, but said that can sympathize with the anger that many voters and Trump supporters are feeling. He warned, “Don’t substitute anger for answers. Don’t substitute resentment for responsibility. Remember empowerment comes from being stronger together. We can do it. You can do it. But Hillary, to do it, has to win Pennsylvania and that’s you.” Bill continued, “We need answers, not anger. And she [Hillary] is the only candidate offering any.” A video of Bill’s speech is below.
The final event of the day was a speech by Senator Warren who campaigned on behalf of Hillary in Philadelphia. Warren spoke to a crowd of supporters about the importance of defeating Trump and electing Hillary in November. She covered a number of Hillary’s proposals before delivering a series of one-liners attacking Trump. In her speech, Warren referred to Trump as “the large orange elephant in the room,” called the controversial Trump University “Scam University,” and went after his praise of Russian president Vladimir Putin. Warren’s speech offers a mix of clever criticism of Trump and important policy proposals. A video from the event is below.
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, a Hillary for America fundraiser was held for American citizens living abroad. The event featured a conversation with Melanne Verveer, Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues for the State Department.
Hillary Clinton Speeches 