Hillary Clinton says she reacted in “horror” to the second apparent assassination attempt against Donald Trump, calling it a “terrible thing,” but denounced the former president for continuing to “throw red meat out there to get people riled up.”
“This is such a terrible thing to happen twice in our country in a relatively short period of time, and it’s frightening to see violence being threatened and used in a political campaign,” Clinton told Katie Couric on Monday when asked about the incident.
Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was charged Monday with two gun crimes after he allegedly pushed the muzzle of a rifle through the fence along the perimeter of Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course in Florida while he was there, prompting a Secret Service agent to fire at him.
When asked about a message Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday that placed blame on President Biden and Vice President Harris for taking politics to a “whole new level of Hatred, Abuse, and Distrust,” Clinton condemned her 2016 presidential opponent.
“I do worry about political violence. I worry about threats. I worry about what’s being said online,” Clinton said.
“If he were really a leader, he should be doing what he can to calm the waters, not try to just continue to throw red meat out there to get people riled up.”
Clinton said Trump has remained a “durable” political figure because he “keeps people agitated. He keeps people angry. He keeps people upset.”
“I think it helps to have some sense of history and to know that in many society’s political systems, people who have an ability to connect with the fears, and the insecurities, and the anger and the hatreds of people in their society are very effective demagogues,” Clinton said.
“I think what he has done is to open that door to that in our country.”
The 76-year-old former first lady praised President Biden for his “patriotic decision” to exit the White House race in July and endorse Harris.
Saying she didn’t have any “inside information” on Biden’s decision, Clinton told Couric she was flabbergasted by the president’s disastrous debate against Trump in June.
“When we saw the debate, like every other American, we were surprised — shocked even,” she said of her and former President Clinton’s reaction.
“It just couldn’t be recovered,” Clinton said.
Harris, Clinton said, has run a “near-perfect campaign.”
As the first woman major-party nominee in American history, Clinton said she “wasn’t sure how I would feel when another woman would be so close to breaking that glass
ceiling – and I was thrilled.”
Clinton called delivering a speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago last month an “emotional moment” for her.
“It felt like it truly was the passing of the torch,” Clinton told the audience.
“It’s not just breaking through the glass ceiling; it’s about what’s on the other side of the glass ceiling.”
The wide-ranging chat also included some lighter moments.
After Couric spotted Clinton sporting a friendship bracelet, the former White House hopeful said a woman in the crowd had given her the Taylor Swift-inspired accessory.
“And I love having them because I love Taylor Swift,” Clinton said to cheers.
Asked if Swift’s public backing of Harris’s campaign in an Instagram post last week would make a difference in the White House race, Clinton replied, “I am somebody who believes there are many, many, many different doors that can open to bring somebody to voting, and voting for a particular candidate, and celebrities can do that.”
“Somebody who may not think much about voting — they’re young, or they’re busy, or whatever the reason might be — that can break through,” Clinton said. “I think all of that makes a difference.”
“These elections are so close, they’re all on the margins, and anything that can inspire somebody to actually go and hopefully vote for their own future — which means voting for Vice President Harris — is good,” Clinton said.
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