Trump, Clinton Trade Barbs on 'Nastiest Day'

They're calling each other bigots
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 26, 2016 5:02 AM CDT
Updated Aug 26, 2016 6:33 AM CDT
Clinton, Trump Accuse Each Other of Racism
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks during at a campaign event at Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno, Nev., on Thursday.   (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Thursday was what Politico calls "the nastiest day of the general election battle so far," with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump trading insults and accusations of racism. In a campaign video and speech Thursday, Clinton linked Trump to the far right and described him as a "profoundly dangerous" candidate who is "taking hate groups mainstream." Trump, speaking to CNN, described Clinton as a "bigot" who "talks a good game" but is doing nothing for minorities. He also called her a bigot on Wednesday, telling a rally she saw people of color as nothing but votes. In other developments:

  • Reuters reports that a federal judge in Florida has ordered the State Department to release Clinton emails from the week of the Benghazi attack by no later than Sept. 13, a month earlier than planned.

  • In a speech in New Hampshire Thursday, Trump described Clinton's accusation of racism as an attack on "millions of decent Americans" who support him, the Washington Post reports. "It's the oldest play in the Democratic playbook," he said. "When Democratic policies fail, they are left with only this one tired argument: You're racist, you're racist, you're racist."
  • The New York Times notes that Clinton's Thursday remarks, in which she accused Trump of peddling "racist lies" and giving new strength to an "emerging racist ideology known as the alt-right," appeared to be aimed largely at moderate Republicans. Trump's campaign is "a moment of reckoning for every Republican dismayed that the Party of Lincoln has become the Party of Trump," she said.
  • Trump, speaking to CNN Thursday, said he doesn't want the votes of white supremacists and he doesn't know what the term "alt-right" even means, the Hill reports. "Nobody even knows what it is, and she didn't know what it was," said Trump, whose new campaign chief, Steve Bannon, has described Breitbart as "the platform for the alt-right."
  • Politico reports that Trump's apparent shift on immigration policy has annoyed Ann Coulter, but amused Rush Limbaugh. "Who knew that it would be Donald Trump to come on and convert the GOP base to supporting amnesty the same week Ann Coulter's book comes out,” Limbaugh laughed Thursday. Jeb Bush, meanwhile, told another radio host that it's "disturbing" how Trump seems to be "morphing into" the things he was against.
(More Election 2016 stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X