HFA Response To Trump’s New Ad

In response to Donald Trumps new campaign ad focusing on Hillary Clinton’s comments about Trump’s supporters, Hillary for America Deputy Communications Director Christina Reynolds released the following statement and response:

“As we’ve come to expect, Donald Trump gets quite a bit wrong in his new TV ad, ignoring Hillary Clinton’s comments that she did not mean half of his supporters were deplorable and her reference to the economic concerns of many of his supporters. That said, if he’d like to argue against Hillary’s claim that people who are racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic or Islamophobic are deplorable, we are happy to have that debate. Trump has spent the entire campaign offering divisive views that have given rise to far too much hatred and bigotry—Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine will continue to call that out.”

TRANSCRIPT	RECORD
VOICEOVER: Speaking to wealthy donors, Hillary Clinton called tens of millions of Americans “deplorable”	CLINTON CLARIFIED REMARKS Clinton Said She Regretted Being “Grossly Generalistic” In Her Comments. “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.” [Hillary for America, Statement, 9/10/16] IN THE FULL CONTEXT OF HER REMARKS, CLINTON SAID THANKFULLY, THE HATEFUL TRUMP SUPPORTERS “ARE NOT AMERICA” Clinton Said We Have To “Understand And Empathize With” Trump Supporters Who Feel “The Government Has Let Them Down” And Who Are “Desperate For Change.” “…thankfully they are not America. But the other basket, the other basket, and I know because I see friends from all over America here. I see friends from Florida and Georgia and South Carolina and Texas, as well as you know New York and California. But that other basket of people who are people who feel that government has let them down, nobody cares about them, nobody worries about what happens to their lives and their futures, and they are just desperate for change. It doesn’t really even matter where it comes from. They don’t buy everything he says but he seems to hold out some hope that their lives will be different. They won’t wake up and see their jobs disappear, lose a kid to heroine, feel like they’re in a dead-end. Those are people we have to understand and empathize with as well.’” [Transcript via NPR, 9/10/16] CLINTON HAS REPEATEDLY SAID THE VAST MAJORITY OF AMERICANS REJECT TRUMP’S BIGOTRY Clinton: “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 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.’” [Hillary for America, Statement, 9/10/16] Clinton: “So There May Be Some Folks Who Buy Into His Dark, Negative Vision, And Think He Maybe Could Be Their Voice, But I Don’t Think That Represents The Vast Majority Of Americans.” “And you know, the other thing that struck me about his speech was when he said, ‘I am your voice.’  Now, look, I will admit, maybe he does speak for some people, but I think it’s kind of hard to imagine him speaking for immigrants, for people with disabilities, for African Americans, for Latinos, for women, or even for working people who he has a history of stiffing, not supporting.  So there may be some folks who buy into his dark, negative vision, and think he maybe could be their voice, but I don’t think that represents the vast majority of Americans.” [Voter Registration Event in Charlotte, NC, 7/25/16] Asked If Americans Are Becoming Desensitized To Trump’s Rhetoric, Clinton Said “The Vast Majority Of Americans Are People Who Are Decent And Caring And Looking For Ways That We Can Come Together, Not To Be Divided By Fear And Hatred.” “QUESTION: Do you worry that Americans are becoming desensitized to this kind of rhetoric? HILLARY CLINTON: I think the uproar from Americans across our country in response to a number of the comments that Trump has made, but in particular to his derogatory comments about the Khans shows to the contrary, that the vast majority of Americans are people who are decent and caring and looking for ways that we can come together, not to be divided by fear and hatred.” [Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine at Press Avail in Ashland, OH, 7/31/16] Clinton On Trump Supporters: “I Think That The Core Of His Support Really Centers On The Disappointment In The Economy That So Many Americans Feel.” “YAMICHE ALCINDOR: My question is you’ve accused Donald Trump of using racist and sexist language, what does it say about the electorate that so many Americans are supporting him? HILLARY CLINTON: Well, I really believe that the core of his support — I’m not going to speak for everyone who supports him because I think there have been some quite distressing statements coming out of his rallies and his supporters and who has aligned themselves with him. But I think that the core of his support really centers on the disappointment in the economy that so many Americans feel. And what I have been saying is, you know, I want to bring this country together. I think we have three overarching goals: we need more economic opportunity; we need to protect our national security; and we have got to work toward American unity.” [Q&A at NABJ & NAHJ Convention in Washington, D.C., 8/5/16] CLINTON GAVE AN ENTIRE SPEECH ABOUT HOW THE ALT-RIGHT USES TRUMP’S CAMPAIGN TO PROMOTE THEIR HATE MOVEMENT Clinton: “Trump Is Reinforcing Harmful Stereotypes And Offering A Dog Whistle To His Most Hateful Supporters.” “Now, Trump’s lack of knowledge or experience or solutions would be bad enough.  But what he’s doing here is more sinister.  Trump is reinforcing harmful stereotypes and offering a dog whistle to his most hateful supporters. It’s a disturbing preview of what kind of President he’d be.” [Remarks on Trump’s Prejudice and Paranoia in Reno, NV, 8/25/16] Clinton: “This Is A Moment Of Reckoning For Every Republican Dismayed That The Party Of Lincoln Has Become The Party Of Trump.  It’s A Moment Of Reckoning For All Of Us Who Love Our Country.” “We wouldn’t tolerate this kind of behavior before and we wouldn’t tolerate it in our own homes.  And we shouldn’t stand for it in a presidential candidate. My friends, this is a moment of reckoning for every Republican dismayed that the Party of Lincoln has become the Party of Trump.  It’s a moment of reckoning for all of us who love our country and believe that America is better than this.” [Remarks on Trump’s Prejudice and Paranoia in Reno, NV, 8/25/16] Clinton On Trump: “Every Day, More Americans Are Standing Up And Saying ‘Enough Is Enough’ – Including A Lot Of Republicans.  And I Am Honored To Have Their Support In This Campaign.” “We can have our disagreements, and believe me, I understand that. I think that’s healthy. We need good debates, but we need to do it in a respectful way, not finger pointing and blaming, and stirring up this bigotry and prejudice.  Every day, more Americans are standing up and saying ‘enough is enough’ – including a lot of Republicans.  And I am honored to have their support in this campaign.” [Remarks on Trump’s Prejudice and Paranoia in Reno, NV, 8/25/16]
HILLARY CLINTON: You could put half of Trump’s supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. The racists, sexists, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, you name it.	TRUMP’S CANDIDACY HAS GIVEN THE ALT-RIGHT “LEGITIMACY THEY HAVE CRAVED FOR YEARS.” HEADLINE: “Donald Trump’s Alt-Right Brain” [Editorial, New York Times, 9/5/16] New York Times Editorial Board: Trump’s Candidacy Granted The Alternative-Right “The Legitimacy They Have Craved For Years.” “Mr. Trump says he isn’t signaling the alt-right when he says of immigrants, as he did again on Wednesday: ‘We have no idea who these people are, where they come from. I always say Trojan Horse. Watch what’s going to happen, folks. It’s not going to be pretty.’ Or when he said — in a line widely quoted on alt-right websites — ‘There is only one core issue in the immigration debate and it is this: the well-being of the American people.’ Mr. Trump’s white supremacist followers don’t take his disavowals too seriously. After all, he has enthusiastically retweeted bogus crime statistics and incendiary imagery from these websites and hired one of their biggest lights, Stephen Bannon of Breitbart News, to manage his campaign.  There aren’t enough of these people to put Mr. Trump in the White House. But his candidacy has granted them the legitimacy they have craved for years. For the first time, a candidate is using a major-party megaphone to shout the ideas they once could only mutter among themselves in the shadowy fringes of national debate.” [Editorial, New York Times, 9/5/16] THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN FORTIFIED THE WHITE SUPREMACIST MOVEMENT Donald Trump Was A Boon For White Supremacists, Who Used His Candidacy As A Tool To Expand Their Movement. “The Ku Klux Klan is using Donald Trump as a talking point in its outreach efforts. Stormfront, the most prominent American white supremacist website, is upgrading its servers in part to cope with a Trump traffic spike. And former Louisiana Rep. David Duke reports that the businessman has given more Americans cover to speak out loud about white nationalism than at any time since his own political campaigns in the 1990s. As hate group monitors at the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League warn that Trump’s rhetoric is conducive to anti-Muslim violence, white nationalist leaders are capitalizing on his candidacy to invigorate and expand their movement.” [Politico, 12/10/15] Politico: “The Ku Klux Klan Is Using Donald Trump As A Talking Point In Its Outreach Efforts.” [Politico, 12/10/15] Politico: “Stormfront, The Most Prominent American White Supremacist Website, Is Upgrading Its Servers In Part To Cope With A Trump Traffic Spike.” [Politico, 12/10/15] Stormfront Founder Don Black: “Demoralization Has Been The Biggest Enemy And Trump Is Changing All That.” “As hate group monitors at the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League warn that Trump’s rhetoric is conducive to anti-Muslim violence, white nationalist leaders are capitalizing on his candidacy to invigorate and expand their movement. ‘Demoralization has been the biggest enemy and Trump is changing all that,’ said Stormfront founder Don Black, who reports additional listeners and call volume to his phone-in radio show, in addition to the site’s traffic bump.” [Politico, 12/10/15]
VOICEOVER: People like you, you, and you	TRUMP DESCRIBED THE AFRICAN AMERICAN AND HISPANIC COMMUNITIES AS IMPOVERISHED AND CRIME-RIDDEN Trump On The African-American Community: “You Have So Many In Poverty And The Crime Is Horrible And The Education Is Terrible And They Live Terribly.” TRUMP: “But you have tremendous numbers of African-Americans that have really had a hard time. I mean, beyond belief. And, you know, I read the numbers where you have so many in poverty and the crime is horrible and the education is terrible and they live terribly. And I say, what do you have to lose? I say to them, what do you have to lose? Give it to me. I’m going to fix them. And a lot of people are agreeing with me. What do you have to lose. The Democrats and the Hillary Clintons of the world have done a terrible job. She has been there for 35 years. She has done a terrible job. But the Hillary Clintons of the world have done a terrible job, Eric, and I say, what do you have to lose? I will fix it and you know what? A lot of people are agreeing.” [O’Reilly Factor, Fox News, 9/1/16] TRUMP HAS DESCRIBED AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITIES IN INSULTING AND IGNORANT TERMS HEADLINE: “Donald Trump’s Description Of Black America Is Offending Those Living In It” [New York Times, 8/24/16] New York Times: “The Unrelievedly Dire Picture He Has Painted Of Black America Has Left Many Black Voters Angry, Dumbfounded Or Both. Interviews With Roughly A Dozen Blacks Here Turned Up No One Who Found Any Appeal In Mr. Trump’s Remarks.” “But the unrelievedly dire picture he has painted of black America has left many black voters angry, dumbfounded or both. Interviews with roughly a dozen blacks here turned up no one who found any appeal in Mr. Trump’s remarks. More common was the suggestion that Mr. Trump was trying to appeal to whites who might support him.” [New York Times, 8/24/16] TRUMP CRITICIZED A FEDERAL JUDGE’S ABILITY TO DO HIS JOB BECAUSE OF HIS HERITAGE Trump Claimed Federal Judge Gonzalo Curiel Could Not Preside Over His Case Without A Conflict Of Interest Because He Was “Of Mexican Heritage.” “Trump said U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel had ‘an absolute conflict’ in presiding over the litigation given that he was ‘of Mexican heritage’ and a member of a Latino lawyers’ association. Mr. Trump said the background of the judge, who was born in Indiana to Mexican immigrants, was relevant because of his campaign stance against illegal immigration and his pledge to seal the southern U.S. border.” [Wall Street Journal, 6/2/16] TRUMP CALLED TO BAN AN ENTIRE GROUP OF PEOPLE BASED ON THEIR RELIGION 12/7/15: Trump Called For A “Total And Complete Shutdown Of Muslims Entering The United States,” Citing “Great Hatred Towards Americans By Large Segments Of The Muslim Populations.” “Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on. According to Pew Research, among others, there is great hatred towards Americans by large segments of the Muslim populations.” [Press Release, Donald Trump for President, 12/7/15] Trump Said He Was Not Rolling Back His Ban On Muslims: “In Fact, You Could Say It’s An Expansion.” “Donald Trump made clear this weekend that he has not rolled back his proposal to ban Muslims from entering the United States, despite top allies insisting that he had… ‘I don’t think so. I actually don’t think it’s a rollback. In fact, you could say it’s an expansion,’ Trump said. ‘I’m looking now at territory. People were so upset when I used the word ‘Muslim’: ‘Oh, you can’t use the word ‘Muslim.’ Remember this. And I’m okay with that, because I’m talking territory instead of Muslim.’” [Washington Post, 7/24/16; Meet the Press, 7/24/16] TRUMP CALLED IMMIGRANTS CRIMINALS AND RAPISTS Trump: “When Mexico Sends Its People, They’re Not Sending Their Best… They’re Bringing Drugs. They’re Bringing Crime. They’re Rapists.” TRUMP: “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” [Trump Presidential Campaign Announcement, New York NY, 6/16/15] TRUMP REPEATEDLY MADE SEXIST ATTACKS Trump On Megyn Kelly: “You Could See There Was Blood Coming Out Of Her Eyes, Blood Coming Out Of Her Wherever.”“Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said Friday night that Fox News Channel anchor Megyn Kelly ‘had blood coming out of her eyes’ when she  aggressively questioned him during Thursday’s presidential debate. ‘She gets out and she starts asking me all sorts of ridiculous questions,’ Trump said in a CNN interview. ‘You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever. In my opinion, she was off base.’” [Washington Post, 8/8/15] Trump On Fiorina: “Look At That Face! Would Anyone Vote For That? Can You Imagine That, The Face Of Our Next President?”“When the anchor throws to Carly Fiorina for her reaction to Trump’s momentum, Trump’s expression sours in schoolboy disgust as the camera bores in on Fiorina. ‘Look at that face!’ he cries. ‘Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president?!’ The laughter grows halting and faint behind him. ‘I mean, she’s a woman, and I’m not s’posedta say bad things, but really, folks, come on. Are we serious?’ And there, in a nutshell, is Trump’s blessing and his curse: He can’t seem to quit while he’s ahead.” [Rolling Stone, 9/9/15] Trump On Hillary Clinton: “Do You Think She Looks Presidential? I Don’t Think So.” “GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump went after Hillary Clinton Tuesday for the way she looks, saying she just doesn’t seem presidential. ‘Do you think she looks presidential? I don’t think so,’ Trump said to his crowd at a rally in Ashburn, Virginia.” [Huffington Post, 8/2/16; Trump Campaign Rally, Ashburn VA, 8/2/16] TRUMP DEFENDED HIS SUGGESTION THAT SEXUAL ASSAULTS SHOULD BE EXPECTED IF WOMEN ARE ALLOWED TO SERVE IN THE MILITARY WITH MEN Trump Defended His 2013 Tweet Suggesting Sexual Assault Was Inevitable “When They Put Men And Women Together” In The Military: “It Is A Correct Tweet. There Are Many People Think That’s Absolutely Correct.” LAUER: “In 2013, on this subject, you tweeted this. Quote, 26,000 unreported sexual assaults in the military. Only 238 convictions. What did these geniuses expect when they put men and women together? End quote.” TRUMP: “Well, it is a correct tweet. There are many people think that’s absolutely correct. We need to have a –“ [Commander In Chief Forum, MSNBC, 9/7/16]
VOICEOVER: Deplorable	TRUMP SAID HE WAS PROUD TO BE A BIRTHER USA Today: Trump “Was Perhaps The Most Prominent Voice Of The ‘Birther’ Movement.” “Trump has been an outspoken critic of President Obama and was perhaps the most prominent voice of the ‘birther’ movement, which asserted, erroneously, that Obama was not a natural-born U.S. citizen. On Monday, he took a shot at the newest entrant to the 2016 Republican field, Jeb Bush, tweeting: ‘Do we really need another Bush in the White House — we have had enough of them.’ If there’s one thing Trump brings to the 2016 campaign, it’s confidence. ‘I’m the most successful person ever to run for the presidency, by far,’ he told The Des Moines Register in a recent interview.” [USA Today, 6/16/15] March 2011:  Trump:  “I’m Proud To Be” A Birther.  “Well I thought he was very nice to me, though. I mean, I understand that. And he doesn’t want to be labeled as a birther, probably. I’m proud to be. I mean, I’m very proud of it. I don’t like the term. I think it’s a demeaning term to the people that believe that he should have a birth certificate. .” [Laura Ingraham Show, AUDIO 06:30-07:00, 3/30/11]
VOICEOVER: You know what’s deplorable?	TRUMP ATTACKED A GOLD STAR FAMILY WHO LOST THEIR SON IN IRAQ HEADLINE: “Donald Trump Criticizes Muslim Family Of Slain U.S. Soldier, Drawing Ire” [New York Times, 7/30/16] HEADLINE: “Donald Trump’s Slander Of Captain Humayun Khan’s Family Is Horrifying, Even For Trump” [Vox, 7/30/16] Trump Claimed The Mother Of A Fallen Muslim Soldier Did Not Speak At The Democratic Nation Convention Because “Maybe She Wasn’t Allowed To Have Anything To Say, You Tell Me.” “Donald J. Trump belittled the parents of a slain Muslim soldier who had strongly denounced Mr. Trump during the Democratic National Convention, saying that the soldier’s father had delivered the entire speech because his mother was not ‘allowed’ to speak…But, he added, ‘If you look at his wife, she was standing there, she had nothing to say, she probably — maybe she wasn’t allowed to have anything to say, you tell me.’” [New York Times, 7/30/16; This Week, ABC, 7/31/16] Trump Suggested His Business Career Was A Sacrifice Comparable To The Loss Of Khizr Khan’s Son: “I Think I Have Made A Lot Of Sacrifices.” STEPHANOPOULOS: “How would you answer that father [Khan]? What sacrifice have you made for your country?” TRUMP: “I think I have made a lot of sacrifices. I’ve work very, very hard. I’ve created thousands and thousands of jobs, tens of thousands of jobs, built great structures. I’ve done — I’ve had tremendous success.” STEPHANOPOULOS: “Those are sacrifices?” TRUMP: “Oh, sure. I think they’re sacrifices.” [This Week, ABC, 7/31/16]
VOICEOVER: Hillary Clinton viciously demonizing hard working people like you.	TRUMP QUESTIONED HOW STUPID THE PEOPLE OF IOWA AND THE COUNTRY WERE Donald Trump: “How Stupid Are The People Of Iowa? How Stupid Are The People Of The Country To Believe This Crap?” “With his voice growing louder and louder, Trump questioned what sort of person would attack his mother. He questioned how a belt buckle could stop a blade, stepping away from the podium to demonstration how such an attack might happen and how his own belt buckle wouldn’t stay in place long enough to stop a knife. ‘Anybody have a knife?’ Trump asked the audience, which was screened by Secret Service agents who began protecting him this week. ‘You want to try it on me?’ Trump was flabbergast: ‘How stupid are the people of Iowa? How stupid are the people of the country to believe this crap?’” [Washington Post, 11/13/15; Donald Trump Campaign Rally, Fort Dodge Iowa, 11/12/15] TRUMP SAID HE LOVES THE “POORLY EDUCATED,” BRAGGING HE WON THAT GROUP OF VOTERS Trump: “We Won With Poorly Educated — I Love The Poorly Educated.” TRUMP: “We won the evangelicals. We won with young. We won with old. We won with highly educated. We won with poorly educated — I love the poorly educated. We’re the smartest people, we’re the most loyal people.’” [Trump Campaign Rally, Las Vegas NV, 2/23/16] TRUMP MOCKED A DISABLED REPORTER HEADLINE: “Trump Mocks New York Times Reporter With Disability” [Chicago Tribune, 11/25/15] Chicago Tribune: “Trump Appeared To Mock Kovaleski’s Physical Condition; The Reporter Has Arthrogryposis, Which Visibly Limits Flexibility In His Arms. ‘Now, The Poor Guy — You’ve Got To See This Guy, “Ah, I Don’t Know What I Said! I Don’t Remember!”’ Trump Said As He Jerked His Arms In Front Of His Body.” “On stage Tuesday, Trump berated Times investigative reporter Serge Kovaleski for his recent recollection of an article he had written a few days after the attacks. Trump appeared to mock Kovaleski’s physical condition; the reporter has arthrogryposis, which visibly limits flexibility in his arms. ‘Now, the poor guy — you’ve got to see this guy, “Ah, I don’t know what I said! I don’t remember!”’ Trump said as he jerked his arms in front of his body. The gesture was all the more personal because Kovaleski covered Trump while reporting for the New York Daily News between 1987 and 1993, a tumultuous period for Trump in which he struggled through several financial setbacks.” [Chicago Tribune, 11/25/15]
DONALD J. TRUMP: I’m Donald Trump, and I approve this message.

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News Source: The New York Times

HFA Response to Commander-in-Chief Forum

Following Wednesday night’s Commander-in-Chief Forum on NBC, Hillary for America released several responses to criticisms levels against Hillary Clinton and proposals made by Donald Trump. All of HFA’s releases are presented below (Note: each release is separated by the bold title headers).

HFA Response to Commander-in-Chief Forum

In response to tonight’s forum, Hillary for America Chair John Podesta released the following statement:

“The difference tonight could not have been more clear. Hillary Clinton showed a firm command of the issues and the qualifications, experience and judgment to be commander in chief. In contrast, the nominee of the party of Ronald Reagan just attacked America’s generals and showered praise on Russia’s president. Trump sputtered his way through the forum, making clear his secret ISIS plan is no plan at all, doubling down on the idea that the military should have known better than to have men and women serve together and lying yet again about his early support for the war in Iraq.”

Hillary Clinton Has a Record of Supporting Our Veterans

Hillary Clinton has fought throughout her career to ensure that all veterans have access to the opportunities and tools they need to succeed upon returning home:

• Increased assistance for families caring for veterans. Hillary introduced the Heroes at Home Act of 2006 to enhance support for veterans suffering from PTSD and other mental health issues and she successfully amended the 2007 Defense Appropriations Act to establish a traumatic brain injury family caregiver training curriculum for DOD and VA hospitals.

• Expanded health care coverage for Reservists and National Guard members. Hillary worked across the aisle with Senator Lindsey Graham to expand access to military health insurance, ensuring that members of the Reserves and National Guard—and their families—had access to military health benefits even when they’re not deployed.
• Protected family members caring for wounded warriors. Hillary collaborated closely with Senator Chris Dodd to author and introduce new legislation that aimed to broaden protections afforded by the Family and Medical Leave Act to the family members of wounded service members. She is proud that the legislation was enacted as part of the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act.
• Supported survivors of fallen service members. Working with Republican Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Hillary introduced legislation to expand benefits afforded to surviving spouses. She joined with Republican Senator Chuck Hagel to introduce a bill to increase the gratuity paid to family members of fallen veterans from $12,000 to $100,000, a proposal that was enacted as part of the 2005 supplemental appropriations act. Hillary also served as an honorary chairman for the non-profit Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors, which provides resources and support to family members of those who have died in military service.

• Fought for a GI Bill for the 21st century: Hillary was a proud cosponsor of the bipartisan and historic Post-9/11 GI Bill signed into law in 2008.  She also introduced a GI Bill of Rights to expand educational, housing and entrepreneurial opportunities for soldiers, veterans and their families.

• Joined efforts to build veterans rehabilitation center. Hillary joined with Republican Senator John McCain to personally raise money for the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund. Their efforts were critical to building the Center for the Intrepid, a new $50 million state-of-the-art physical rehabilitation facility in San Antonio, Texas, designed specifically to help seriously wounded service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
• Fought to recognize Gulf War Syndrome and ensure Gulf War Veterans got the treatment they needed.  She met with sick veterans and researched Gulf War Syndrome before President Clinton announced the formation of a committee to study the issue and was a point person for the administration on the issue.

On this campaign, Clinton has laid out comprehensive plans not only to support our veterans and troops, but also to specifically improve the lives of military families:

• Military Times: Clinton unveils plan for veterans, military personnel: “[T]he former secretary of state’s plan refutes Republican proposals to outsource much of VA’s operations, labeling such a move as “privatization” of the department that could leave veterans ‘vulnerable to a health care market poorly suited to their needs’ Instead, Clinton proposes revamping the Veterans Health Administration, offering better coordination with military health care, private physicians and other existing resources while still leaving VA in the lead role…. Clinton also vows to place stronger oversight on VA operations, to include regular meetings in the Oval Office with the department secretary, and promises a fully interoperable health records system between VA and the Defense Department…. On the issue of veterans suicide, Clinton promises increased funding for VA mental health staffing and training, expansion of department counseling programs and promotion of ‘better prescriber and treatment practices’ that offer more alternatives than medication. Clinton says she also will create a standing President’s Council on Veterans to coordinate services across government agencies, convene a White House summit inviting key service organizations and state leaders, and continue work with Obama’s Joining Forces initiative.”

• Military.com/Virginian-Pilot: Clinton Offers Plans to Assist Military Families: “Arguing that the Pentagon has to be more sensitive to military families, Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton rolled out plans Tuesday to give service members more career flexibility and demand closer scrutiny of public schools teaching their children…. The former secretary of state proposes that members of military be able to more easily switch between active-duty, National Guard and reserve service ‘to make decisions good for their family and maintain a career with the military.’ She also would make permanent the Career Intermission Program that allows some military members to temporarily leave active duty for an extended period to pursue more education, care for children or tend to an ailing family member. Given the greater number of married couples who both are in uniform, Clinton wants the duty assignment process overhauled so that more spouses can serve near each other with neither losing ground in their career.”

• Bustle: 6 Feminist Points In Hillary Clinton’s Veterans Plan That Are Awesomely Inclusive: “This plan includes numerous points that are geared toward women, culminating in an inclusive proposal that, thankfully, addresses specific issues that women veterans face.

• TIME: Clinton: Stop For-Profit Colleges From Targeting Veterans: “Speaking before a roundtable with veterans in Reno, Nevada, Clinton focused her remarks on the so-called 90-10 rule. The rule requires for-profit colleges to accept at least 10% of their money from private dollars rather than federal financial aid and loans, with the idea of holding the schools more accountable to the open market. But an unintended loophole in the 90-10 rule means that federal military benefits like the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill can count toward schools’ 10%. That leads for-profit schools to aggressively target veterans in search of federal dollars, often deceptively. Proponents of a new bill say that veterans at many for-profit schools have high dropout rates and leave badly in debt. Clinton would plan to close the loophole.”

• WMUR: Clinton rolls out vets plan, promises to fight full-fledged privatization of VA

• Washington Post: Clinton promises better health care, other services, for female veterans

• ThinkProgress: As Republicans Call For Its Elimination, Clinton Releases Plan To Strengthen The VA

• Boston Herald: Hillary Clinton Vows ‘Zero Tolerance’ For VA Delays

Hillary Clinton op-ed in Military Times: Taking care of vets is ‘sacred responsibility’

Hillary Clinton’s Comprehensive Plan to Defeat ISIS and the Threat of Radical Jihadism

The threat we face from terrorism is real, urgent, and knows no boundaries. Hillary Clinton knows that ISIS cannot be contained, it must be defeated.  Doing so takes more than empty talk and a handful of slogans. It takes a real plan, real experience, and real leadership. Donald Trump lacks all three. He won’t even say what his plan to defeat ISIS is.

Hillary Clinton has laid out a comprehensive plan to defeat ISIS and keep American safe at home.  She understands that it’s not enough just to take out specific groups or leaders – we must have a comprehensive strategy to win the long game against the global terrorist network and its ideology.

First, we need to take out ISIS’s strongholds in the Middle East by intensifying the coalition air campaign, supporting our partners on the ground, and pursuing diplomacy to end Syria’s civil war and close Iraq’s sectarian divide, because those conflicts are keeping ISIS alive.

Second, we need to lash up with our allies to dismantle the global network that supplies money, arms, propaganda and fighters to the terrorists.  This means targeted efforts to root out ISIS hubs and affiliates and preventing terrorist organizations from establishing hubs elsewhere, choking off the networks that facilitate their growth and expansion.

And third, we need to harden our defenses at home, including by launching an intelligence surge to ensure law enforcement has the information they need to detect and disrupt plots, working with Silicon Valley to shut down terrorist propaganda online, and keeping guns out of the hands of suspected terrorists.  Hillary has also proposed establishing a “lone wolf” task force to identify and stop radicalized individuals who may or may not have contact and direction from any formal organization.

As we do all of this, we cannot allow terrorists to intimidate us into abandoning our values or allowing us to be driven by fear to embrace policies that would actually make us less safe.  Hillary knows that all communities need to be engaged in the fight against ISIS.  As the Director of the FBI told Congress recently, anything that erodes trust with Muslim-Americans makes the job of law enforcement more difficult.  American Muslims are on the front lines of efforts to combat radicalization, and we need to increase trust and cooperation with law enforcement.  Since 9/11, law enforcement agencies have worked hard to build relationships with Muslim-American communities. They are the most likely to recognize the insidious effects of radicalization before it’s too late, and the best positioned to help us block it. Hillary knows we should be intensifying contacts in those communities, not scapegoating or isolating them. And as we engage in this fight, we will be stronger with our allies and partners standing with us, particularly in the Muslim world, as we cannot win this fight alone.

Praise for Hillary’s Plan

• New York Times’ David Brooks: “This week we had a chance to watch Hillary Clinton respond in real time to a complex foreign policy challenge. On Thursday, six days after the Paris attacks, she gave a comprehensive antiterrorism speech at the Council on Foreign Relations. The speech was very impressive. While other candidates are content to issue vague calls to get tough on terror, Clinton offered a multilayered but coherent framework, not only dealing with ISIS but also putting that threat within the crosscutting conflicts that are inflaming the Middle East.… [Clinton] is thoughtful and instructive on both the big picture and the right way forward.”
• CNN: “Michael Desch, an expert in international security at Notre Dame University, said that Clinton’s speech was polished and showed her to be ‘head and shoulders’ above Republican candidates on framing an anti-ISIS strategy.”
• US News & World Report’s Dave Catanese: “A strong performance delivered with the poise of an incumbent president”
• Politico’s Roger Simon: “Hillary gives one of her best speeches ever on world terror. So presidential, they practically played ‘Hail to the Chief.’”
• Defense One’s Kevin Baron: “[Clinton’s speech is the] Most comprehensive and detailed Mideast/Isis plans I’ve heard from any US leader so far, of late”
• Quartz: “…talking about how to actually tackle Islamist extremism is complicated and politically fraught. It’s easier to play to fears about outsiders than to develop a substantive program. At least one US politician has given some thought to an idea about what to do: Presidential contender and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton delivered a speech today (Nov. 19) outlining her plan to battle the nexus of Islamist ideology that ISIL has created in the Middle East’s failed states… It’s a cohesive approach…”
• New York Times’ David Brooks: “This week we had a chance to watch Hillary Clinton respond in real time to a complex foreign policy challenge. On Thursday, six days after the Paris attacks, she gave a comprehensive antiterrorism speech at the Council on Foreign Relations. The speech was very impressive. While other candidates are content to issue vague calls to get tough on terror, Clinton offered a multilayered but coherent framework, not only dealing with ISIS but also putting that threat within the crosscutting conflicts that are inflaming the Middle East.… [Clinton] is thoughtful and instructive on both the big picture and the right way forward.”
• CNN: “Michael Desch, an expert in international security at Notre Dame University, said that Clinton’s speech was polished and showed her to be ‘head and shoulders’ above Republican candidates on framing an anti-ISIS strategy.”
• US News & World Report’s Dave Catanese: “A strong performance delivered with the poise of an incumbent president”
• Politico’s Roger Simon: “Hillary gives one of her best speeches ever on world terror. So presidential, they practically played ‘Hail to the Chief.’”
• Defense One’s Kevin Baron: “[Clinton’s speech is the] Most comprehensive and detailed Mideast/Isis plans I’ve heard from any US leader so far, of late”
• Quartz: “…talking about how to actually tackle Islamist extremism is complicated and politically fraught. It’s easier to play to fears about outsiders than to develop a substantive program. At least one US politician has given some thought to an idea about what to do: Presidential contender and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton delivered a speech today (Nov. 19) outlining her plan to battle the nexus of Islamist ideology that ISIL has created in the Middle East’s failed states… It’s a cohesive approach…”

Donald Trump: Not Fit to Serve as Commander-in-Chief

Donald Trump seeks our nation’s highest office, but he so utterly lacks the temperament required of the United States’ Commander-in-Chief it would be laughable if it weren’t so frightening. As Hillary Clinton reminded us in June, some of the comments he has made about world affairs are so ignorant, incoherent, and/or outrageous, it is hard to believe they actually came out of the mouth of a presidential nominee. As Hillary Clinton has said, Donald Trump is a loose cannon, and loose cannons tend to misfire.

Here are five reasons why Donald Trump is temperamentally unfit to serve as president:

1. He wants more countries to have nuclear weapons:

COOPER:  So you have no problem with Japan and South Korea having nuclear weapons 
TRUMP:  At some point we have to say, you know what, we’re better off if Japan protects itself against this maniac in North Korea, we’re better off, frankly, if South Korea is going to start to protect itself

2. He has said he would order our military to carry out torture:

TRUMP: “Don’t tell me it doesn’t work — torture works… Waterboarding is fine, but it’s not nearly tough enough, ok?”

3. He has threatened to abandon our NATO allies:

TRUMP: “We don’t really need NATO in its current form. NATO is obsolete… if we have to walk, we walk.”

TRUMP, on whether he’d defend NATO allies from a Russian invasion: “Have they fulfilled their obligations to us? If they fulfill their obligations to us, the answer is yes.”

4. He won’t have to listen to our generals or ambassadors because of his “very good brain,” but he counts running the Miss Universe pageant as experience with Russia and he doesn’t understand Iran or its nuclear program:

TRUMP: “I’m speaking with myself, number one, because I have a very good brain and I’ve said a lot of things…my primary consultant is myself”

TRUMP: “I know Russia well. I had a major event in Russia two or three years ago, Miss Universe contest, which was a big, big, incredible event.”

TRUMP: “When those restrictions expire, Iran will have an industrial-size military nuclear capability ready to go.” (Politifact: False.)

TRUMP: “I know more about ISIS than the generals do. Believe me.”

5. He praises dictators….

Vladimir Putin

TRUMP: “I will tell you, in terms of leadership, he’s getting an ‘A,’ and our president is not doing so well.”

Saddam Hussein

TRUMP: “You know what, he did well. He killed terrorists. He did that so good.”

Kim Jong Un

TRUMP: “And you’ve got to give him credit. How many young guys — he was like 26 or 25 when his father died — take over these tough generals…. It’s incredible. He wiped out the uncle. He wiped out this one, that one. I mean, this guy doesn’t play games.”

…and picks fights with our allies:

Then-British Prime Minister David Cameron

TRUMP: “It looks like we are not going to have a very good relationship. Who knows?”

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan

TRUMP: “Let’s take an I.Q. test… I think they’re very rude statements and frankly, tell him, I will remember those statements.”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel

TRUMP: “What Merkel has done is incredible, it’s actually mind boggling. Everyone thought she was a really great leader and now she’s turned out to be this catastrophic leader. And she’ll be out if they don’t have a revolution.”

President of Mexico Enrique Peña Nieto

TRUMP: “I don’t know about the Hitler comparison [President Nieto made]. I hadn’t heard that, but it’s a terrible comparison. I’m not happy about that certainly. I don’t want that comparison, but we have to be strong and we have to be vigilant”

Pope Francis

TRUMP: “I don’t think [the Pope] understands the danger of the open border that we have with Mexico. I think Mexico got him to [criticize the wall] it because they want to keep the border just the way it is. They’re making a fortune, and we’re losing.

Trump’s Real History With Veterans

Despite Donald Trump’s occasional  lip service on the trail, Trump has been disrespecting our veterans for decades, continually proving he’s unqualified and temperamentally unfit to be commander-in-chief.

From planning to put the VA on a path to privatization, to firing reservists for their continued service to the nation, to lying about donations to veterans’ charities, to scamming veterans and their families through Trump University, to opposing the post-9/11 GI Bill, to insulting prisoners of war and our military, it’s clear veterans deserve better than Trump as their leader.

Trump Would Put the VA on a Path to Privatization:

• WSJ: “Donald Trump Says He Would Make VA System More Privatized”
• MSNBC: “Donald Trump Is Serious About Privatizing Veterans’ Care”

Trump Repeatedly Attacked A Gold Star Family

• NYT: “Donald Trump Criticizes Muslim Family of Slain U.S. Soldier, Drawing Ire”
• NYDN: “Gold Star families demand apology from Trump as he continues to blast parents of slain Muslim-American U.S. Army captain”
• Washington Post: “Republicans denounce Trump as confrontation with Muslim parents escalates”

Trump Businesses Have Fired Reservists For Their Continued Service to the Nation

• HuffPo: “Trump Institute Fired Veteran For ‘Absences’ After He Was Deployed To Afghanistan”
• CNN: “Iraq war veteran claims Trump University fired her for serving in the Army Reserve”
• HuffPo: “Third Veteran Dumped By Trump Because Of Military Service”

Trump Repeatedly Lied About Donations To Veterans Charities

• Washington Post: “Here’s how we found out about Donald Trump’s phantom $1 million donation to vets”
• Mother Jones’ Kevin Drum: “If character is supposed to be important in our presidents, this is evidence of the most contemptible kind of character imaginable. He tried to cheat a bunch of veterans!”
• CNN: Trump’s website boasted that he gave $1 million to the 1995 Nation’s Day Parade, but the event’s organizer said that’s about three times more than he actually gave.
• CNN: “After signing a deal to launch his brand of vodka, Trump went on CNN’s ‘Larry King Live’ in 2006 and described the venture, saying, ‘I’m giving the money to charity.’ … [T]he vodka company sent multiple press releases stating it would donate sales proceeds to the Walter Reed Society, a charity supporting programs at Walter Reed Hospital. The charity’s administrator tells CNN the donations amounted to about ’a few hundred dollars.’”

Trump Scammed Veterans Through Trump University

• CNN [VIDEO]: 40-year Navy veteran scammed out of more than $26,000 by Trump University
• Ex-Marine: “[Trump University] was a con. I’m 25-years-old, barely making $3,000 a month and they told me to increase my credit limit. I just maxed out three credit cards and I’m supposed to be able to qualify for loans to buy real estate? Those stupid principles have led me to borrow $700,000 of other people’s money and lose it all. I’m still paying off some of that debt to this day.”
• TIME: “The records indicate, for example, that Trump University collected approximately $40 million from its students–who included veterans, retired police officers and teachers–and that Trump personally received approximately $5 million of it”

Trump Attempted To Kick Disabled Veterans Who Were Vendors Off The Street Across Two Decades

• 1991: Trump Letter to State Assemblyman John Dearie: “While disabled veterans should be given every opportunity to earn a living, is it fair to do so to the detriment of the city as a whole or its tax paying citizens and businesses?… Do we allow Fifth Ave., one of the world’s finest and most luxurious shopping districts, to be turned into an outdoor flea market, clogging and seriously downgrading the area?”
• 2004: Trump Letter to Mayor Bloomberg: “Whether they are veterans or not, they should not be allowed to sell on this most important and prestigious shopping street… I hope you can stop this very deplorable situation before it is too late.”

Trump Insults Our Military

• Trump: “Our military is a disaster.”
• NYT: “Donald J. Trump, who received draft deferments through much of the Vietnam War, told the author of a coming biography that he nevertheless ‘always felt that I was in the military’ because of his education at a military-themed boarding school.”

Trump on Armored Humvees: “If a bomb goes off our wounded warriors–instead of losing their legs, their arms, worse, they’re okay. They go for a little ride upward and they come down.”

Foreign Policy Experts, Allies, Republicans, Voters Share Concern Over Trump’s Pro-Putin Leanings

Donald Trump’s bizarre admiration for Vladimir Putin, his embrace of pro-Kremlin policies that undercut American interests and threaten our allies, and his campaign’s deep ties to Russia have been a cause for great alarm across the board.

Foreign Policy Experts and Analysts:

Op-ed by Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul: Why Putin wants a Trump victory (so much he might even be trying to help him): “Putin has rational motives for wanting Trump to win: Trump champions many foreign policies that Putin supports. Trump’s most shocking, pro-Kremlin proposal is to “look into” recognition of Crimea as a part of Russia…. Trump has demanded that other NATO members essentially pay us for protection… Trump has also disparaged our allies in Asia, creating new opportunities for Russian influence…. On the whole, Trump advocates isolationist policies and an abdication of U.S. leadership in the world. He cares little about promoting democracy and human rights. A U.S. retreat from global affairs fits precisely with Putin’s international interests.”

Reuters: Senior ex-CIA official: Putin made Trump ‘an unwitting agent’ of Russia: “A former top CIA official attacked Donald Trump on Friday as a danger to national security, saying President Vladimir Putin had made the Republican presidential candidate an ‘unwitting agent’ of Russia. Putin had flattered Trump into supporting positions favorable to Russia, Michael Morell, a longtime CIA officer and former deputy director of the agency, said in an opinion piece in The New York Times. ‘In the intelligence business, we would say that Mr. Putin had recruited Mr. Trump as an unwitting agent of the Russian Federation,’ Morell said”

Politico: Is Putin playing Trump like he did Berlusconi?: “[T]he Berlusconi-Putin bromance has acquired a new resonance, as foreign policy analysts and even some U.S. officials see unsettling echoes in the recent long-distance kinship between the Russian leader and Donald J. Trump. It may even suggest that Putin is applying a specific method to the GOP nominee. In recent years Putin has befriended several major Western European politicians, including former leaders of France and Germany, who openly challenge U.S. and European policies toward Russia, including NATO’s buildup in Eastern Europe and economic sanctions punishing Putin’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.”

Slate’s Franklin Foer: Putin’s Puppet: If the Russian president could design a candidate to undermine American interests—and advance his own—he’d look a lot like Donald Trump.: “Donald Trump is like the Kremlin’s favored candidates, only more so. He celebrated the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU. He denounces NATO with feeling. He is also a great admirer of Vladimir Putin.”

United States Allies:

NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg on Trump’s NATO comments: “I will not interfere in the U.S. election campaign, but what I can do is say what matters for NATO. Solidarity among Allies is a key value for NATO. Two world wars have shown that peace in Europe is also important for the security of the United States.”

Estonian Foreign Ministry on Trump’s NATO comments: “Estonia’s commitment to our NATO obligations is beyond doubt and so should be the commitments by others.”

Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics on Trump’s NATO comments: “We take our commitments seriously. We hope and expect that all our allies, big and small, take their commitments the same.”

Foreign Policy: Ukrainian Officials to Donald Trump: Please Stop Talking About Our Country: “Ukrainian Ambassador Valeriy Chaly to Washington told CNN on Monday that ‘everybody was surprised’ by Trump’s comments, which are ‘in contradiction with [the] official position of [the] White House, of the United States, and of Republicans before.’ … Chaly’s remarks came after former Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk also condemned Trump’s comments on Ukraine, saying in a Facebook post on Sunday that the presidential candidate had violated ‘the very values of the free world, civilized world order, and international law.’ … Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov also lashed out at Trump, saying in a separate Facebook post that his “shameless statement…on possible recognition of Crimea as Russia is a diagnosis of a dangerous fringe politician.’”

AP: Trump’s Russia reset ideas alarming allies, many in US:  “Donald Trump’s flurry of offhand remarks and abrupt zingers on Russia — praising Vladimir Putin, dismissing NATO — have jolted the world, not to mention the U.S. presidential campaign. With Russia’s behavior rattling nerves in the U.S. and abroad, the Republican presidential nominee is accused of cozying up to a ‘dictator.’ Of threatening the very underpinnings of America’s relationship with Europe. And of naivete.”

Bloomberg: Trump’s NATO Skepticism Raises Alarm for Allies Near Russia: “Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump sent alarm rippling through Eastern Europe after he said the U.S. would only defend NATO states attacked by Russia if those nations “have fulfilled their obligations to us,” his strongest comments to date on the military alliance’s future if he enters the White House.”

Republicans:

Washington Post: Republicans are among a new list of foreign policy experts denouncing Trump: “Several Republicans are among a group of former cabinet officers, senior officials and career military officers who denounced Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Thursday, calling his recent remarks on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Russia ‘disgraceful.’”

New York Times: 50 G.O.P. Officials Warn Donald Trump Would Put Nation’s Security ‘at Risk’: “Many of those signing it had declined to add their names to the letter released in March. But a number said in recent interviews that they changed their minds once they heard Mr. Trump invite Russia to hack Mrs. Clinton’s email server — a sarcastic remark, he said later — and say that he would check to see how much NATO members contributed to the alliance before sending forces to help stave off a Russian attack. They viewed Mr. Trump’s comments on NATO as an abandonment of America’s most significant alliance relationship.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham on Trump’s NATO comments: “Statements like these make the world more dangerous and the United States less safe. If Mr. Trump is serious about wanting to be commander-in-chief he needs to better understand the job which is to provide leadership for the United States and the free world…. I’m 100 percent certain how Russian President Putin feels — he’s a very happy man.”

Sen. Tom Cotton: “Vladimir Putin was a KGB spy and he never got over that. He does not have America’s best interests at heart and he does not have any American interests at heart. I suspect, after this week, when Donald Trump is the nominee and he begins to receive classified briefings, similar briefings to what I receive as a member of the Intelligence Committee, he may have a different perspective on Vladimir Putin and what Russia is doing to America’s interests and allies in Europe and the Middle East and Asia.”

BuzzFeed: “Earlier this month, [Rep. Adam] Kinzinger said he could not vote for Trump after the GOP nominee said that the US did not need to come to the defense of NATO members if attacked. This week, he called for an investigation into Trump and his campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, for alleged ties to Russia. ‘There’s been this affection in this campaign for Russia and Vladimir Putin, so in my thought, I have concerns for the chief advisor of Donald Trump having done work for a pro-Russian government in Ukraine,’ Kinzinger said on CNN this week.

TIME: GOP House Speaker Paul Ryan and other Republicans on Wednesday denounced Russia’s potential involvement in the U.S. presidential election without specifically criticizing GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, who earlier called on Russia to hack Hillary Clinton’s emails. ‘Russia is a global menace led by a devious thug. Putin should stay out of this election,’ said Brendan Buck, spokesman for Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan, in an email.”

Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Trump’s NATO comments: “I think he’s wrong on that.”

Politico: Trump’s competitors don’t want Putin’s approval: “Republican presidential candidates trailing Donald Trump are making it clear they don’t want the same endorsement the billionaire businessman and entertainer got from Russian President Vladimir Putin…. No thanks, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said in so many words on the Sunday political talk shows. Even Rick Perry, the former Texas governor and GOP presidential candidate, weighed in.”

Huffington Post: GOP Figures Disgusted By Trump Urging Russian Cyberattack: “[I]f any of his various statements at the press conference really stood out, it was probably the part where he called for state-sponsored Russian hackers to conduct cyber espionage on the United States for his electoral benefit… Inboden was hardly alone in registering his disgust with Trump. GOP strategist Stuart Stevens, who advised Mitt Romney, the party’s nominee in 2012, suggested that Trump’s remarks would have merited an immediate court-martial if they’d been made by anyone answering to the commander in chief”

American Voters:

Washington Post: Russian meddling in U.S. election backfiring on Putin, hurting Trump: “Those voters [of Eastern European descent] for whom McCain fought so hard in 2008 are still out there. They normally would be very inclined to vote for someone like Trump — on paper, they look just like his core supporters — but Putin’s clear preference for him over Clinton (combined with Trump’s naiveté on all things Russia) gives them great pause.”

New York Times: Ukrainian-Americans, Long Fond of the G.O.P., Greet Donald Trump With Despair: “Ukrainian-Americans have felt at home in the Republican Party since Franklin D. Roosevelt and Stalin divided control of Europe at Yalta. But across the United States — and especially in swing state Ohio, where Mr. Trump became the party’s nominee — they are watching the 2016 presidential race with a mix of confusion and fear. ‘The party’s dead as far as I’m concerned,’ Mr. Szmagala declared.”

Former George W. Bush speechwriter Marc Thiessen: Trump’s Putin bromance is driving away Eastern European-American voters: “In July, during the Republican convention, I pointed out here that Donald Trump’s questioning whether he would come to the defense of Central and Eastern European countries if Russia attacked them – and Trump’s changing the GOP platform to strip out the provision of defensive weapons to Ukraine – could cost him millions of once-solid Republican votes in key swing states like Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Florida.”

Donald Trump Supported the Iraq War, No Matter How Many Times He Claims Otherwise

This completely bogus Trump claim has been fact checked so many times it’s hard to believe we still need to say this, but one more time can’t hurt: Donald Trump supported the Iraq War before it started. In fact, in 2002, Trump said he supported invading Iraq. While Hillary Clinton has clearly stated that her vote was a mistake, Donald Trump continues to lie about his own stance on the war nearly every time he opens his mouth.

Here’s what Trump himself has said on the matter:

Donald Trump, 2000: “I’m no warmonger. But the fact is, if we decide a strike against Iraq is necessary, it is madness not to carry the mission to its conclusion.”

BuzzFeed: In 2002, Donald Trump Said He Supported Invading Iraq

In a 2002 interview with Howard Stern, Donald Trump said he supported an Iraq invasion. In the interview, which took place on Sept. 11, 2002, Stern asked Trump directly if he was for invading Iraq. “Yeah, I guess so,” Trump responded. “I wish the first time it was done correctly.”

The Hill: Trump day after Iraq invasion: It’s ‘a tremendous success’: “Republican primary front-runner Donald Trump claimed on the second day of Operation Iraqi Freedom that it appeared to be “a tremendous success from a military standpoint.” Speaking to Fox News’ Neil Cavuto on March 21, 2003, Trump predicted the war would continue to bolster Wall Street.

Bill O’Reilly: “All right, let’s stay in Iraq for a minute. You’re given this intelligence from five different agencies. You don’t move against this guy?”

Trump, 2004: “Perhaps, if I was given that… if that intelligence was actually given, perhaps.”

BuzzFeed: Trump In 2006: Clinton Should Be Forgiven For Iraq Vote “Based On Lies Given To Her”

Donald Trump is already going after Hillary Clinton for her vote to authorize the Iraq War in 2002, but in an interview in 2006, he said she should be forgiven because her vote was based on misinformation.

Maureen Dowd, New York Times: [Trump] thinks John McCain has lost the 2008 election by pushing to send more troops to Iraq but that Hillary should be forgiven for her “horrendous” vote to authorize the war. “Don’t forget that decision was based on lies given to her,” he says. “She’s very smart and has a major chance to be our next president.”

And here’s what reporters and fact checkers have to say:

BuzzFeed: There’s No Record Of Donald Trump Being Against The Iraq War Before It Started

An extensive BuzzFeed News review was unable to find any Trump statements on the Iraq War before the invasion in March 2003, but did find two statements he made the week the war started, one calling it “a mess” and one saying it would have a positive impact on the stock market.

PolitiFact: Donald Trump was not ‘loud and clear’ in Iraq War opposition

Trump often repeats this line, and we’ve rated a similar Trump claim Mostly False, because he didn’t appear to take any public position on the war until after the March 2003 invasion. In this more recent version of the statement, he also said he stated his opposition to the war “loud and clear.” But the public record of his positions is thin.

FactCheck.org: Donald Trump and the Iraq War

There is no evidence that we could find, however, that he spoke against the war before it started, although we did find he expressed early concerns about the cost and direction of the war a few months after it started.

New York Times: In Fact | Donald Trump Opposed Iraq War — but After It Started

Donald J. Trump took a moment to separate himself from his rivals by declaring that he had gone on the record with his opposition of the Iraq war some 11 years ago — in July 2004. The claim, however, left out the reality that his opposition came well after the war was already underway. The war began in March 2003.

FLASHBACK: Support For Libyan Intervention Was Widespread, Included Trump and Pence

Donald Trump and his allies love to attack Hillary Clinton over the Libyan intervention. Curiously, they never seem to mention that Trump himself supported it. Repeatedly. And on his own video blog. And his running mate, Mike Pence backed the intervention as well, publicly thanking then-Secretary Clinton for her efforts on Libya.

• BuzzFeed: Trump Claims He Didn’t Support Libya Intervention — But He Did, On Video

• Trump, 2011: “I can’t believe what our country is doing. Qaddafi in Libya is killing thousands of people…. But we have go in to save these lives; these people are being slaughtered like animals. It’s horrible what’s going on; it has to be stopped. We should do on a humanitarian basis, immediately go into Libya, knock this guy out very quickly, very surgically, very effectively, and save the lives.”

• Trump, 2011: “[At] this point, if you don’t get rid of Gadhafi, it’s a major, major black eye for this country.”

• BuzzFeed: Mike Pence Publicly Thanked Hillary Clinton In 2011 For Her Efforts On Libya. Pence: “I also want to thank you, specifically, for the efforts by the administration and your offices to further isolate Libya during a time of extraordinary tragedy in the streets, tragedy of which I think we’re probably only partially aware.

Donald Trump’s lies and hypocrisy aside, the reality is that in 2011, support for the Libyan intervention was widespread, at home and abroad. There was strong bipartisan support from U.S. leaders at home for the administration’s effort to impede Qadhafi’s brutality, and our closest NATO allies, partners in the region, and Libyan people were all making urgent calls for U.S. action.

Top Republicans were making calls for bold American leadership in this international crisis:

Feb. 22, 2011 – John McCain and Joe Lieberman: “The horrific situation in Libya demands more than just public condemnation; it requires strong international action. … Some Libyan diplomats have bravely called for a no-fly zone to stop the Qaddafi regime’s use of airpower to attack Libyan civilians.  We support this course of action.”

Feb. 24, 2011 – Marco Rubio: “We should immediately engage willing partners to limit the regime’s ability to wage war against its own citizens.  These measures could include (but are not limited to) pressing bordering nations to stop the flow of mercenaries into Libya, finding ways to restore severed communications, imposing a no-fly zone to protect civilians against aircraft attacks, and mobilizing a humanitarian relief effort.”

Feb. 28, 2011 – Lindsey Graham: “What I would suggest is that we really keep implementing U.N. sanctions on the economic side, on the travel side, go after assets. And a no fly zone would make a lot of sense to me.”

Feb. 28, 2011 – Susan Collins: “I do believe our allies may be able to join together with us to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya to help protect the people from Gadhafi,” she said. “Any actions that we take I believe should be in concert with our allies.”

March 1, 2011 – By unanimous consent, the Senate adopts a resolution urging the UN Security Council to take “further action to protect civilians in Libya from attack, including the possible imposition of a no-fly zone over Libyan territory.”

March 7, 2011 – Newt Gingrich: “Exercise a no-fly zone this evening, communicate to the Libyan military that Gadhafi was gone … All we have to say is that we think that slaughtering your own citizens is unacceptable and that we’re intervening. And we don’t have to send troops. All we have to do is suppress his air force…”

March 13, 2011 – John McCain: “First, the president [Barack Obama] should recognize Libya’s transitional national council, which is based in Benghazi but representative of communities across the country, as the sole legitimate governing authority of Libya, just as France has done.  Second, the president should take immediate steps to implement a no-fly zone in Libya with international support.”

March 30, 2011 – Marco Rubio, to Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid: “I am writing to seek your support for bringing a bi-partisan resolution to the Senate floor authorizing the President’s decision to participate in allied military action in Libya. Furthermore, this resolution should also state that removing Muammar Qaddafi from power is in our national interest and therefore should authorize the President to accomplish this goal. To that end, the resolution should urge the President to immediately recognize the Interim Transitional National Council as the legitimate government in Libya.”

NATO Allies and Regional Partners were ramping up their efforts to defend the Libyan people:

Feb. 23, 2011 – France– The Guardian: “Nicolas Sarkozy is leading the calls for a NATO-imposed no-fly zone to be enforced over Libya to ‘prevent the use of that country’s warplanes against [its] population.’ Sarkozy, the current president of the G8 and G20 economic forums, has also called for the European Union to impose sanctions against Libya and suggested that the assets of the family of the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, should be frozen.”

Feb. 27, 2011 – Italy– Associated Press: “Italy has effectively suspended a treaty with Libya that includes a nonaggression clause, amid turmoil in the North African nation, the foreign minister said Sunday. The suspension removes a possible obstacle to Rome taking part in any peacekeeping operations in its former colony, or allowing the use of its military bases.”

Feb 28, 2011 – Britain– PM David Cameron: “We must not tolerate this regime using military force against its own people. In that context I have asked the Ministry of Defence and the Chief of the Defence Staff to work with our allies on plans for a military no-fly zone. Mr Speaker, it is clear that this is an illegitimate regime that has lost the consent of its people. My message to Colonel Qadhafi is simple: Go now.”

March 10, 2011 – Libyan Rebels – CNN: “The head of the interim government in eastern Libya pleaded Wednesday for the international community to move quickly to impose a no-fly zone over Libya, declaring that any delay would result in more casualties. ‘It has to be immediate action,’ Mustafa Abdul-Jalil told CNN in an exclusive interview in this eastern opposition stronghold. ‘The longer the situation carries on, the more blood is shed. That’s the message that we want to send to the international community. They have to live up to their responsibility with regards to this.’”

March 12, 2011 – Arab States – New York Times: “The Arab League asked the United Nations Security Council on Saturday to impose a no-flight zone over Libya in hopes of halting Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi’s attacks on his own people, providing the rebels a tincture of hope even as they were driven back from a long stretch of road and towns they had captured in the three-week war. The extraordinary move by the 22-nation bloc — an extremely rare invitation for Western military forces on Arab territory — increases the pressure on the Obama administration…”

Trump: Generals Have Been ‘Reduced to Rubble’

Donald Trump wants to be Commander-in-Chief, but he continuously insults and disrespects our United States’ military on the campaign trail – and even before. Just now, he said our generals have been “reduced to rubble.”

At a rally in Urbandale, IA he said, “so our military is weak.” [Urbandale IA, 1/15/16]

At a rally in Harrington, DE he said, “the military is in shambles.” [Harrington DE, 4/22/16]

At a rally in Westfield, IN he said, “we don’t win with our military.” [Westfield, IN, 7/12/16]

At a rally in Wilmington, NC he said, “our military is depleted… we can’t beat ISIS.” [Wilmington, NC 8/9/16]

Trump has called the United States’ military a disaster, said “the generals aren’t doing so well” and proclaimed he knew more about ISIS than the generals do.

Trump’s alarming rhetoric goes all the way back to the Reagan Administration, when Trump took out ads saying, “the world is laughing at America’s politicians as we protect ships we don’t own, carrying oil we don’t need, destined for allies who won’t help.”

This type of denigration of our our military has been called out left and right, from political leaders to those who serve and worry about what a Donald Trump presidency would mean for the military:

Air Force Gen. Paul Selva, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: “At no time in my career have I been more confident than this instant in saying we have the most powerful military on the face of the planet.”

Sen. Tim Kaine: “Trump has been going around saying repeatedly the American military is a disaster. That’s a direct quote…[T]here’s 1.6 million people who serve in the military of this country voluntarily during a time of war, and one of them is one of my kids When I hear Donald Trump say the American military is a disaster, I want to go through the screen and shake the guy…We do not need a commander in chief who is going to talk about our troops with disrespect and contempt. We ought to have a commander in chief who talks about our troops with respect and gratitude. That’s why Secretary Clinton is down in Hampton today meeting with veterans and military families.”

An Open Letter On Donald Trump From GOP National Security Leaders: “Recognizing as we do, the conditions in American politics that have contributed to his popularity, we nonetheless are obligated to state our core objections clearly: His vision of American influence and power in the world is wildly inconsistent and unmoored in principle. He swings from isolationism to military adventurism within the space of one sentence. His advocacy for aggressively waging trade wars is a recipe for economic disaster in a globally connected world. His embrace of the expansive use of torture is inexcusable.”

Reuters: Trump’s ‘America first’ speech alarms U.S. allies

Slate: Current, Former Soldiers Say Trump Would Be an Epic Disaster as Commander in Chief

It is understandable that Trump is confused about all of this. After all, it doesn’t sounds like he’s consulting with many experts about the state of our military, he just has the TV on.

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HFA Response to Trump Saying Clinton Did Not Look Presidential

Following comments from Donald Trump suggesting that Hillary Clinton does not look presidential, Hillary for America Deputy Communications Director Christina Reynolds has released the following:

“This isn’t the first time Donald Trump has had a problem looking at someone different from himself and actually seeing them. He questioned whether a distinguished judge could do his job because of his Mexican heritage. He looked at a mourning Gold Star mother and he made assumptions about her silence in grief. He looked at an accomplished anchor and suggested she was a “bimbo.” And he looked at a sitting president and said he wasn’t American. So it’s not surprising that Donald Trump doesn’t think Hillary Clinton looks presidential. This cycle, voters know all too well what’s not presidential: Donald Trump and his narrow views and divisive rhetoric.”

TRUMP LAUNCHED A SERIES OF RACIALLY TINGED ATTACKS ON A FEDERAL JUDGE, SAYING HE COULD NOT DO HIS JOB BECAUSE HE WAS OF MEXICAN HERITAGE

Trump: “He’s A Mexican. We’re Building A Wall Between Here And Mexico… He Is Giving Us Very Unfair Rulings, Rulings That People Can’t Even Believe.” TRUMP: Do you know that these people went to every attorney general practically in the country that they could and did you know this case was turned down by almost every attorney general from Texas to Florida, to many other states?

TAPPER: Is it not — when Hillary Clinton says this is a racist attack, and you reject that — if you’re saying he can’t do his job because of his race, is that not the definition of racism?

TRUMP: No. I don’t think so at all.

TAPPER: No?

TRUMP: No. He’s proud of his heritage. I respect him for that.

TAPPER: But you’re saying you can’t do his job because of that.

TRUMP: Look, he’s proud of his heritage, OK? I’m building a wall. Now, I think I’m going to do very well with Hispanics

TAPPER: He’s a legal citizen – TRUMP: Do you know why I’m going to do well with Hispanics? Because I’m going to bring back jobs and they are going to get jobs right now. They are going to get jobs. I think I’m going to do very well with Hispanics. But we are building a wall. He’s a Mexican. We’re building a wall between here and Mexico. The answer is, he is giving us very unfair rulings, rulings that people can’t even believe. This case should have ended years ago in summary judgment. The best lawyers I have spoken to so many lawyers, they said, this is not a case. This is a case that should have ended. [CNN, The Lead, 6/3/16]

A List of Each Time Trump Attacked Judge Curiel for His Mexican Heritage. Fusion outlined “every time that Trump said that Curiel could not be impartial in the case precisely because of his Mexican heritage.”

TRUMP SUGGESTED GHAZALA KHAN DID NOT SPEAK AT THE CONVENTION BECAUSE SHE WAS NOT ALLOWED TO

Trump Claimed The Mother Of A Fallen Muslim Soldier Did Not Speak At The Democratic Nation Convention Because “Maybe She Wasn’t Allowed To Have Anything To Say, You Tell Me.” “Donald J. Trump belittled the parents of a slain Muslim soldier who had strongly denounced Mr. Trump during the Democratic National Convention, saying that the soldier’s father had delivered the entire speech because his mother was not ‘allowed’ to speak…But, he added, ‘If you look at his wife, she was standing there, she had nothing to say, she probably — maybe she wasn’t allowed to have anything to say, you tell me.’” [New York Times, 7/30/16; This Week, ABC, 7/31/16]

TRUMP SUGGESTED MEGYN KELLY WAS A BIMBO AND RETWEETED A USER WHO CALLED MEGYN KELLY A “BIMBO”

Donald Trump: “I Refuse To Call Megyn Kelly A ‘Bimbo,’ Because That Would Not Be Politically Correct. Instead I Will Only Call Her A Lightweight Reporter!” [@realDonaldTrump, Twitter, 1/27/16]

Donald Trump Retweeted Several People Calling Kelly a “Bimbo:”here, here and here.

TRUMP LED THE BIRTHER CONSPIRACY, AND MAINTAINED HE DIDN’T KNOW WHETHER PRESIDENT OBAMA WAS BORN IN THE US

2015: Trump Said He Didn’t Know Whether President Obama Was Actually Born In The US. “Donald Trump says he’s still not convinced President Obama was born in America, but that he’s not interested in rehashing the issue. ‘I don’t know. I really don’t know,’ the 2016 Republican presidential candidate told CNN when asked on Thursday. ‘I don’t know why he wouldn’t release his records.’” [The Hill, 7/9/15]

USA Today: Trump “Was Perhaps The Most Prominent Voice Of The ‘Birther’ Movement.” “Trump has been an outspoken critic of President Obama and was perhaps the most prominent voice of the ‘birther’ movement, which asserted, erroneously, that Obama was not a natural-born U.S. citizen. On Monday, he took a shot at the newest entrant to the 2016 Republican field, Jeb Bush, tweeting: ‘Do we really need another Bush in the White House — we have had enough of them.’ If there’s one thing Trump brings to the 2016 campaign, it’s confidence. ‘I’m the most successful person ever to run for the presidency, by far,’ he told The Des Moines Register in a recent interview.” [USA Today, 6/16/15]

TRUMP SAID CLINTON DIDN’T “LOOK PRESIDENTIAL”

In an ABC interview, Trump Said Clinton Didn’t Have a Presidential Look. “I just don’t think she has a presidential look. And you need a presidential look. You have to get the job done,” Trump said. [ABC, 9/5/16]

Donald Trump Reportedly Said “Does She [Clinton] Look Presidential, Fellas? Give Me A Break.” “CLEVELAND — TRUMP on Clinton: “Does she look presidential, fellas? Give me a break.”” [Kevin Cirilli, Twitter, 9/5/16]

Trump: “In Effect, She’s Pledging To Abolish The Law Making Powers Of Congress And Assume The Powers Of An Imperial Leader. She’s Not An Imperial Leader, Is She? I Don’t Think So. She Doesn’t Even Look Presidential To Me.” TRUMP: “Beyond that, she’s pledged to add another executive amnesty in violation of both congressional law and the United States constitution. These actions from Hillary Clinton will trigger a crises greater than almost anything we’ve seen. This will be a constitutional crisis like we haven’t seen in our country. In effect, she’s pledging to abolish the law making powers of congress and assume the powers of an imperial leader. She’s not an imperial leader, is she? I don’t think so. She doesn’t even look Presidential to me. She certainly doesn’t.” [Roast N’ Ride, Des Moines IA, 8/27/16]

Trump: “You See Her Walk Onto The State, She Looks Presidential.’ I Don’t Think So. I Think I Look Presidential To Be Honest With You. Honestly, Who Do You Think China Would Be More Concerned In A Negotiation With? Trump Or Hillary?” TRUMP: “These [people] are not like, ‘Oh gee, I think Hillary is so great. She looks so presidential. You see her walk onto the state, she looks presidential.’ I don’t think so. I think I look presidential to be honest with you. Honestly, who do you think China would be more concerned in a negotiation with? Trump or Hillary?” [Trump Campaign Rally, Fort Lauderdale FL, 8/10/16]

Trump Said Hillary Clinton Did Not Look Presidential, But He Did.TRUMP: “Now you tell me she looks presidential, folks. I look presidential. You tell me, you tell me she looks Presidential. They are just watching and they’re looking and boy they’re salivating, they’re salivating, they’re saying that’s what we want, oh, that’s what we want. You know what she did and the lies that she told, over and over again, and her single greatest achievement, because everything she’s touched has turned bad.” [Trump Campaign Rally, Windham NH, 8/6/16]

Trump: “Bad Performance By Crooked Hillary Clinton! Reading Poorly From The Telepromter! She Doesn’t Even Look Presidential!” [@realDonaldTrump, Twitter, 6/2/16]

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HFA Releases History of Trump’s History of Disrespect for Veterans and Military Families

Following Donald Trump’s speech before the American Legion’s National Convention yesterday, Hillary for America released a collection of quotes in which Trump has been disrespectful of veterans, the military, and their families. The full release is below.

From firing employees because of their military service, to lying about donations to veterans’ charities, to scamming veterans through Trump University, here’s a refresher on some of Trump’s most offensive statements and positions regarding veterans and military families:

Trump has attacked veterans and military families, including a Gold Star family.

NYT: Donald Trump criticizes Muslim family of slain U.S. soldier, drawing ire. “Donald J. Trump belittled the parents of a slain Muslim soldier who had strongly denounced Mr. Trump during the Democratic National Convention, saying that the soldier’s father had delivered the entire speech because his mother was not “allowed” to speak.”

BuzzFeed: Trump: My position on keeping terrorists out is what bothered Khizr Khan. “Trump has faced backlash from Republicans and Democrats over his remarks but has continued to attack the Khans.”

And when Trump was done, his campaign and allies continued the attack.

Stephen Bannon: “No, we’re not going to get off Khizr Kahn, we’re going to stay on this guy. We’re going to stay on this relentlessly.”

NH1: A top trump veterans adviser tells NH1 News Khizr Khan has ‘disgraced his son: “State Rep. Al Baldasaro, a top New Hampshire adviser to Donald Trump on veterans issues, says that Khizr Khan has ‘disgraced’ his son and ‘used him as a political pawn.'”

Trump has also profited from ripping off veterans and military families, and his businesses have fired employees because of their military service.

• Huffington Post: Trump Institute fired veteran for ‘absences’ after he was deployed to Afghanistan. “Wright was deployed to Afghanistan in the spring of 2007. When he came home to his job, the Trump Institute fired him. “All of your absences,” Wright’s boss at the Trump Institute told him, had forced the company to “reevaluate your position with the Trump Institute.” It is a violation of federal law to penalize an employee for absences caused by military service.”
• CNN: Iraq war veteran claims Trump University fired her for serving in the Army Reserve. “Corrine Sommers, who worked for Trump University for five months, sued Trump University after she was dismissed in October 2007. She reached a confidential settlement in that case. But she later alleged that she was fired because of her military service in a November 2012 deposition she gave in a federal class action suit that accused the school of fraud. That deposition was unsealed this week.”
• Huffington Post: Third Veteran Dumped By Trump Because Of Military Service: “Yet in at least three cases, Trump’s companies have either fired, or refused to hire, military reservists because of the time commitments demanded of them by their service in the armed forces.”
• TIME: What the legal battle over Trump University reveals about its founder. “The records indicate, for example, that Trump University collected approximately $40 million from its students–who included veterans, retired police officers and teachers–and that Trump personally received approximately $5 million of it”
• CNN: 40-year Navy veteran scammed out of $26,000 by Trump University
• The Daily Beast: Trump University’s star student: ‘it was a con.’ “’It was a lie,’ said Maddings, an ex-marine now 32, who told The Daily Beast that he racked up around $45,000 in credit card debt to buy Trump University seminars and products. […]'[Trump University] was a con. I’m 25-years-old, barely making $3,000 a month and they told me to increase my credit limit. I just maxed out three credit cards and I’m supposed to be able to qualify for loans to buy real estate? Those stupid principles have led me to borrow $700,000 of other people’s money and lose it all. I’m still paying off some of that debt to this day.”

Trump has also repeatedly lied about donating to veteran charities.

• Mother Jones: Donald Trump tried to cheat veterans out of $1 Million. “Donald Trump tried to cheat veterans out of $1 million: “ I want to make this simple. Here’s what Donald Trump did recently: He pledged $1 million to help veterans; he tried to weasel out of it for months and hoped no one would notice; and when he finally got caught, he ponied up grudgingly and insulted the reporter who caught him.”
• Washington Post: Four months after fundraiser, Trump says he gave $1 million to veterans group.“Trump also said he had never actually promised that the fundraiser had raised $6 million. ‘I didn’t say six,’ Trump said. In a video of the event, Trump tells the crowd at the end, ‘We just cracked $6 million! Right? $6 million.’ When asked about that quote, Trump said, ‘Well, I don’t. I don’t have the notes. I don’t have the tape of it.’”
• CNN:Trump’s website boasts that he gave $1 million to the 1995 Nation’s Day Parade, but the event’s organizer said that’s about three times more than he actually gave.
• CNN:“After signing a deal to launch his brand of vodka, Trump went on CNN’s ‘Larry King Live’ in 2006 and described the venture, saying, ‘I’m giving the money to charity.’ […] the vodka company sent multiple press releases stating it would donate sales proceeds to the Walter Reed Society, a charity supporting programs at Walter Reed Hospital. The charity’s administrator tells CNN the donations amounted to about ‘a few hundred dollars.'”

Trump also attempted multiple times to kick disabled veteran street vendors off Fifth Avenue, near the home of Trump Tower.

• NYDN:“Do we allow Fifth Ave., one of the world’s finest and most luxurious shopping districts, to be turned into an outdoor flea market, clogging and seriously downgrading the area?”
• NY Post: Trump to Mayor: Boot fifth ave peddlers: “Whether they are veterans or not, they should not be allowed to sell on this most important and prestigious shopping street… I hope you can stop this very deplorable situation before it is too late.”

Trump signaled he wants to privatize the VA and that he opposed the post-9/11 GI bill.

• WSJ:Donald Trump adviser signals plan to change veterans’ health care. “While short on details, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee would likely push VA health care toward privatization and might move for it to become more of an insurance provider like Medicare rather than an integrated hospital system, said Sam Clovis, Mr. Trump’s chief policy adviser, in an interview.”
• Asked point-blank in May if he supported the Post-9/11 G.I., which has benefitedover 700,000 veterans and their family members, Trump said no.

He’s disrespected prisoners of war like Senator John McCain…

• Trump on Sen. John McCain: “He’s not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured, ok? I hate to tell you.”
• BuzzFeed: Trump: I Don’t Regret McCain Comments, My Poll Numbers Went Up

…compared his own “struggles” to the true sacrifices of those who serve our country…

• Trump said that despite never serving our country, he “always felt that I was in the military” because he was sent to a military-themed boarding school.

…and after a veteran even gave Trump his coveted purple heart to which Trump responded:

• “This was much easier.”

Ultimately, Trump has shown he is completely unfit to serve as commander in chief.

• Last year, Trump downplayed the dangers of war with modern technology, claiming that if an armored Humvee is hit with an explosive, our soldiers just “go for a little ride upward and they come down.”

Trump said earlier this year that our military is a “disaster.” Later on, at a campaign rally in Delaware, he went as far as to say that our military is in “shambles” and that it needed rebuilding.

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News Source: The Washington Post

Hillary for America Statement on Trump’s Teleprompter Regret

Hillary for America released a statement on Thursday following a speech by Donald Trump in which he said that he “regrets” some comments that he has made. HFA Deputy Communications Director Christina Reynolds responded to Trump’s “apology” with the following statement:

“Donald Trump literally started his campaign by insulting people.  He has continued to do so through each of the 428 days from then until now, without shame or regret.  We learned tonight that his speechwriter and teleprompter knows he has much for which he should apologize.  But that apology tonight is simply a well-written phrase until he tells us which of his many offensive, bullying and divisive comments he regrets—and changes his tune altogether.”

Need a Refresher on Who Trump Has Insulted?

• Here’s one, with 250 insults from Twitter: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/01/28/upshot/donald-trump-twitter-insults.html?_r=0
• Another collection of some groups he’s insulted from last year: http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/27/politics/donald-trump-insults-groups-list/
• And another one from February: http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/la-na-donald-trump-insults-20160218-htmlstory.html

Donald Trump’s Past Record of Regret:

On attacking the Khans, a Gold Star family:

• “I don’t regret anything.”

On assailing the ethics and motives of Judge Curiel:

• Asked if he regretted making his criticism of the judge personal, Trump said his side had been treated very unfairly.

On calling immigrants rapists:

• “No, I don’t apologize.”

On mocking a reporter with a disability:

• Trump denied he had mocked the reporter and demanded his own apology.

Update (8/20/2016): HFA has released a video to go along with their release.

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News Source: CNN

Memo: Trump Unfit To Be Commander In Chief

Today, Jake Sullivan, Hillary for America Senior Policy Advisor, released the following memo outlining the campaign’s arguments as to why they believe Donald Trump is unfit to be president. The full release and video are below.

To: Interested Parties
From: Jake Sullivan, Hillary For America Senior Policy Adviser
Re: Trump Unfit To Be Commander In Chief
Date: Monday, August 15, 2016

This is not a normal election. Simply put, Donald Trump is unfit to be our commander in chief. This isn’t overcranked campaign rhetoric – national security experts across the political spectrum are issuing the same warning.

Trump is erratic. He’s thin-skinned. He’s vindictive. He praises dictators and displays a strange affinity for Putin. He trash talks America and threatens to abandon our allies. He uses dangerous rhetoric and proposes dangerous policies that play into the hands of terrorists. He talks casually about nuclear weapons. He knows nothing about foreign policy and he has no interest in learning.

Last week, we got yet another clear and alarming reminder of his lack of fitness for the job.  Reading off the talking points of Vladimir Putin and our other adversaries, Trump falsely claimed that Barack Obama founded ISIS. The world noticed. Just days later, the leader of Hezbollah – a terrorist organization that seeks Israel’s destruction – approvingly quoted Trump’s comments.

Hillary Clinton is uniquely qualified and prepared to assume the role of commander in chief. And Donald Trump is uniquely unqualified. She has serious plans to make our country more secure, and a record of leadership to back it up. He has neither. She is proud to call herself an American and of her work as a public servant. He calls America a third-world country.

The choice is clear. It’s not a choice between a Democrat and a Republican, but between a responsible leader who will keep us safe, and a volatile man who threatens our security.

Background:

Arrogance And Ignorance: A Dangerous Combination

When it comes to foreign policy – just like everything else – Donald Trump is convinced he knows more than anyone in the room. Asked who he consults to help shape his views, Trump explained that he mostly just relies on himself because he has “a very good brain.” His lack of interest in learning from others is reflected in his lack of knowledge of basic facts on foreign affairs:

• Donald Trump on who he speaks to on foreign policy: “I’m speaking with myself, number one, because I have a very good brain and I’ve said a lot of things.”

• Donald Trump on foreign policy experts: “Honestly, most of them are no good.”

• Donald Trump: “I know more about ISIS than the generals do. Believe me.”

• Washington Examiner: Trump says he has a secret plan to beat the Islamic State

• USA Today: Trump attributes Russia knowledge to hosting Miss Universe pageant there

• Boston Globe Editorial: “Not only did Trump not know the basics of the US nuclear triad (the Pentagon’s land, sea, and air contingent of nuclear forces)…”

• Times of Israel: Trump can’t differentiate between Hamas, Hezbollah

• Washington Post: Trump’s top example of foreign experience: A Scottish golf course losing millions

• Donald Trump: “Don’t tell me [torture] doesn’t work — torture works. (It doesn’t.)

• Weekly Standard: Trump Confuses Iran’s Quds Forces and Kurds Fighting ISIS

Proposals Trump Has Made Would Make Us Less Safe

Donald Trump has offered a lot of rhetoric but very few actual proposals. The few plans he has put forth – like his Muslim ban – are out of step with our values and our common sense. From suggesting we should abandon our allies to calling for bringing back torture, Trump’s policies would make us less safe. Some align with Vladimir Putin’s interests and not with American interests; others play into ISIS’ hands:

• Donald Trump: Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.

• Donald Trump: “It’s really rather amazing, maybe Syria should be a free zone for ISIS, let them fight and then you pick up the remnants.”

• Vox: Donald Trump: make America great again by letting more countries have nukes

• Donald Trump: “We don’t really need NATO in its current form. NATO is obsolete… if we have to walk, we walk.”

• BBC: Trump says US may abandon automatic protections for NATO countries

• Politico: Trump calls Geneva Conventions ‘the problem’

• Donald Trump: “The other thing with the terrorists is you have to take out their families”

• Donald Trump: “Don’t tell me it doesn’t work — torture works… Waterboarding is fine, but it’s not nearly tough enough, ok?”

• Donald Trump: “The case could be made, that let [Japan] protect themselves against North Korea. They’d probably wipe them out pretty quick….Good luck, folks, enjoy yourself. If they fight, that would be terrible, right? But if they do, they do.

• AP: Donald Trump encourages Russian hackers to spy on Hillary Clinton

• Politico: Trump changed views on Ukraine after hiring Manafort

• New York Times: “It is not clear that Mr. Manafort’s work in Ukraine ended with his work with Mr. Trump’s campaign. A communications aide for Mr. Lyovochkin, who financed Mr. Manafort’s work, declined to say whether he was still on retainer or how much he had been paid.”

• Mother Jones: Is Donald Trump’s Campaign Manager Still on the Payroll of a Ukrainian Political Leader?

• New York Times: “Handwritten ledgers show $12.7 million in undisclosed cash payments designated for Mr. Manafort from Mr. Yanukovych’s pro-Russian political party from 2007 to 2012, according to Ukraine’s newly formed National Anti-Corruption Bureau. Investigators assert that the disbursements were part of an illegal off-the-books system whose recipients also included election officials.”

• New York Times: “A separate deal also funneled Russian-linked oligarchic money into Ukraine… Mr. Deripaska agreed to pay a 2 percent annual management fee to Mr. Manafort and his partners, and put $100 million into the fund…”

Dangerous Rhetoric: Trump Praises Dictators, Bashes America And Our Leaders, Stokes Islamophobia

The Trump *candidacy* alone is undermining our national security.  He is the nominee representing one of America’s two major political parties.  His words matter.  Whether he’s praising dictators, channeling the talking points of our enemies, attacking American leaders and those who have sacrificed the most for our country, or stoking Islamophobia, those words are doing harm to our friends and emboldening our adversaries:

• Donald Trump: “You’ve got to give [Kim Jong Un] credit. How many young guys — he was like 26 or 25 when his father died — take over these tough generals…. It’s incredible. He wiped out the uncle. He wiped out this one, that one.”

• NBC News: Trump Calls Tiananmen Square Protests a ‘Riot,’ Defends Calling Crackdown ‘Strong’

• Donald Trump: “I will tell you in terms of leadership [Putin] is getting an ‘A,’ and our president is not doing so well.”

• Washington Post: Donald Trump praises Saddam Hussein for killing terrorists ‘so good’

• Huffington Post: Trump Once Praised Tyrants For Not Being Politically Correct

• International Business Times: Donald Trump: US becoming a ‘third-world country’

• Washington Post: The 100-plus times Donald Trump assured us that America is a laughingstock

• New York Times: Donald Trump Calls Obama ‘Founder of ISIS’ and Says It Honors Him

• ABC News: Hezbollah Leader Echoes Trump That Obama, Clinton Founded ISIS

• Donald Trump: “We don’t even really know who the leader [of ISIS] is.” (We do.)

• Donald Trump: “Our military is a disaster.”

• Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin: Trump insults Gold Star mom, freaks out U.S. allies

• Donald Trump: “[John McCain’s] not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured, ok? I hate to tell you.”

• BuzzFeed: Trump: I Don’t Regret McCain Comments, My Poll Numbers Went Up

• Donald Trump on our generals: “Well, they don’t know much, because they’re not winning.”

• Washington Post: Donald Trump says he ‘always wanted to get the Purple Heart’

• Reuters: Trump’s Anti-Muslim Rhetoric Is Fueling More Islamophobic Incidents

• Washington Post’s David Ignatius: Trump’s Islamophobia propels the Islamic State

Independent and Republican Experts Agree: Trump Is Uniquely Dangerous

When all of this is taken together, it paints a striking picture: Donald Trump isn’t a normal presidential nominee. He is a uniquely dangerous candidate. The result? Foreign policy experts across the board – from lifelong Republicans to apolitical national security officials – are speaking out to say they cannot accept the prospect of a Trump presidency:

• New York Times (8/8/16): 50 G.O.P. Officials Warn Donald Trump Would Put Nation’s Security ‘at Risk’: “He does not encourage conflicting views. He lacks self-control and acts impetuously. He cannot tolerate personal criticism. He has alarmed our closest allies with his erratic behavior. All of these are dangerous qualities in an individual who aspires to be president and commander in chief, with command of the U.S. nuclear arsenal.”

• Washington Post (8/8/16): Former GOP national security officials: Trump would be ‘most reckless’ American president in history

• Washington Post (8/4/16): Republicans are among a new list of foreign policy experts denouncing Trump: “We find Trump’s comments to be reckless, dangerous, and extremely unwise.  They contradict a core, bipartisan principle found in every U.S. administration — that our security in North America is indivisible with our democratic allies in Europe.”

• Washington Post (3/3/16): Trump is ‘fundamentally dishonest,’ say GOP national security leaders in open letter: “[Trump’s] vision of American influence and power in the world is wildly inconsistent and unmoored in principle. He swings from isolationism to military adventurism within the space of one sentence.”

• Former Acting CIA Director Mike Morell: In sharp contrast to Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Trump has no experience on national security. Even more important, the character traits he has exhibited during the primary season suggest he would be a poor, even dangerous, commander in chief…. In the intelligence business, we would say that Mr. Putin had recruited Mr. Trump as an unwitting agent of the Russian Federation.”

• GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger: “I’m an American before I’m a Republican. I’m saying for me personally, how can I support that? Because he’s crossed so many red lines that a commander in chief or a candidate for commander in chief should never cross.”

• GOP Rep. Richard Hanna: “[Trump’s] unhinged. It’s difficult to imagine why anyone could support him. He comes across as a demagogue. He comes across as a guy who, frankly, Putin has made a fool of.”

• ABC News: Gen. John Allen Says Donald Trump Could Cause ‘Civil Military Crisis’: “What we do have to do, George, is listen to what he’s been saying about our military,” Allen said. “He’s called it a disaster. He says our military can’t win anymore. That’s a direct insult to every single man and woman who’s wearing the uniform today.”

• Defense One: Former Bush Officials — Negroponte and Donley — Endorse Clinton. Former Air Force Secretary Michael Donley: “Her deep experience in public service, even temperament, willingness to listen to others and unifying message stands in stark contrast with Donald Trump, who has sown divisiveness at home, confused our allies abroad and shown repeatedly that he lacks the temperament, judgment, character and common decency the American people deserve and should expect in their leadership.”

• PoliticsUSA: Former Reagan/Bush Ambassador Calls Trump Incompetent As Republicans Flock To Clinton: “The Republican nominee for President has no government experience and has done nothing in his career to demonstrate that he is competent to be President. He has made repeated misstatements and inaccurate statements. He has insulted minorities, women, a war hero and Gold Star parents. He is unqualified and unfit to be President.”

• Republican foreign policy expert Max Boot: “Trump is an ignorant demagogue who traffics in racist and misogynistic slurs and crazy conspiracy theories. He champions protectionism and isolationism — the policies that brought us the Great Depression and World War II.”

• Former CIA Director Michael Hayden: “The jihadist narrative is that there is undying enmity between Islam and the modern world so when Trump says they all hate us, he’s using their narrative … he’s feeding their recruitment video.”
• Senior Romney Adviser and foreign policy expert, Gabriel Schoenfeld: Donald Trump’s rhetoric is helping ISIS — and vice versa

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