Clinton: Trump policies baffling

GOP rival visits restive city

Rep. Robert Brady, D-Pa., accompanies Hillary Clinton at a Democratic Party voter-registration event Tuesday at West Philadelphia High School.
Rep. Robert Brady, D-Pa., accompanies Hillary Clinton at a Democratic Party voter-registration event Tuesday at West Philadelphia High School.

PHILADELPHIA -- Hillary Clinton vowed Tuesday to conduct policies concerning national security and foreign affairs that Americans could be proud of, saying rival Donald Trump "just absolutely bewilders" her when he talks about his policies around the globe.

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Donald Trump greets Army veteran Mike Hanke during a campaign stop Tuesday at the Milwaukee County War Memorial Center in Milwaukee.

At a voter-registration rally in Philadelphia, Clinton mentioned the U.S. Olympic team's success in Rio de Janeiro, pointing to Team USA's gold as an example of an optimistic nation that runs counter to what she considers Trump's pessimism and negativity.

"It just absolutely bewilders me when I hear Donald Trump try to talk about national security," Clinton said, pointing to Vice President Joe Biden's dissection of Trump's foreign policy at a Pennsylvania event on Monday. "What [Trump] often says hurts us. It sends the wrong message to friend and foe alike." Turning to the Olympic team, she said, "Team USA is showing the world what this country stands for."

Trump said Monday that the country's national-security requirements demanded "extreme" vetting of immigrants seeking admission to the United States, pointing to the threat of the Islamic State extremist group and terrorism elements. But he offered few specifics about how the process might work or how it would be paid for by taxpayers. On Tuesday night, he posted on Facebook a pledge to "reject bigotry and hatred and oppression in all its forms, and seek a new future built on our common culture and values as one American people."

Both Clinton and Trump have sought to cast themselves as the most capable of battling terrorism. While the Republican businessman has vowed to project strength and decisive action against terror, the Democratic former secretary of state has pointed to her deep foreign-policy credentials.

Trump previously has called for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the U.S., and said in a speech in Ohio speech that he would overhaul the nation's screening process and block those who sympathize with extremist groups or fail to embrace U.S. values.

The Republican nominee has made changes to the nation's immigration system and the construction of a wall along the Mexican border a key part of his fight against terrorism and the Islamic State, which he compared to the struggle against communism during the Cold War.

As president, Trump said he would encourage immigrants to assimilate and urge parents, teachers and others to promote "American culture."

Trump traveled Tuesday to Milwaukee, the site of protests over the fatal shooting of a black man by a black police officer. His visit followed several days of violence that left businesses in flames.

Trump began his visit with a meeting with law enforcement officers at the Milwaukee County War Memorial Center on Lake Michigan, where he was joined by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Among those present were Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke and Inspector Edward Bailey. Clarke in an op-ed piece Monday blamed liberal Democrats and the media for the unrest that has rocked the city.

Trump also posed for photographs with a handful of veterans, including one wearing a "Hillary for Prison" T-shirt.

Clinton said Monday during a stop in Scranton, Pa., that the Milwaukee protests showed the nation had "urgent work to do to rebuild trust between police and communities" and that "everyone should have respect for the law and be respected by the law."

In an interview with Fox News, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker accused Clinton of "inflaming the situation" with her comments.

"I think people understand in that neighborhood and Sherman Park and in Milwaukee, they want law enforcement to step up and protect them," he said, adding that "statements like that" from Clinton and a "lack of leadership" from President Barack Obama "only inflame the situation."

Trump told Fox News that the shooting in Milwaukee may have occurred because the officer had a gun to his head.

"Who can have a problem with that?" Trump said in an excerpt of the interview, aired Tuesday. "If it is true, then people shouldn't be rioting."

While polls have shown Clinton building a lead, Democrats are fearful that a depressed voter turnout might diminish support among minority-group, young and female voters who powered Obama to two victories.

Clinton said at the voter-registration event at a Philadelphia high school that she's "not taking anybody anywhere for granted" in the race for the White House, saying the stakes "could not be higher."

August fundraising

Clinton's swing through Pennsylvania came as part of an expansive fundraising campaign.

The Democrat and her family have made four visits to Scranton donors since beginning her campaign last August, raising millions of dollars in a former industrial city more known for needing economic aid than giving it out.

Clinton already has been to 10 fundraisers in the first half of the month, and some of the biggest events are yet to come. She is on track to top the $90 million she raised for her campaign and Democratic allies in July.

August always has been one of the best months to raise money because voters tend to be more focused on summer vacations than politics, giving candidates more time to woo donors.

At least five August events have hit the seven-figure benchmark. Among them, a 60-person dinner where the minimum gift was $33,400 in an "estates only" area of Greenwich, Conn.

Last week, Clinton's fundraising campaign stopped in Miami Beach for two events. The larger one included 100 attendees donating at least $2,700. Later on the same day, Clinton hosted a more intimate group of 30, each of whom gave at least $50,000.

Clinton's work on the money circuit has kept her ahead of Trump in fundraising. But he came close to rivaling her haul in July, raising more than $80 million for his campaign and supportive Republican Party groups.

Having spent more than $50 million of his own money during the primary, Trump had no fundraising operation throughout the primary, meaning he was building one from scratch.

Trump has lined up at least two dozen August fundraisers, an increased pace over July and June.

Trump sees his greatest fundraising numbers not from high-dollar dinner events at posh homes -- though he's doing that, too, -- but from small donations pouring in online. Trump said more than $64 million of his total came from millions of Americans giving online or by mailing in checks.

Unlike Clinton, Trump's campaign does not provide background information about any fundraising activities. Neither Clinton nor Trump is allowing reporters in the room for the fundraisers.

Transition teams

Already looking beyond November, the two candidates are preparing for their potential administrations.

Clinton's campaign announced that former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, a former Colorado senator, would lead her White House transition team. It also will include former national security adviser Tom Donilon, former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm and two longtime Clinton advisers: Neera Tanden, the president of the Center for American Progress, and Maggie Williams, who now leads the Institute of Politics at Harvard University.

Two top campaign policy advisers for the Democrat, Ed Meier and Ann O'Leary, also will shift full time to the transition efforts. Heather Boushey, executive director of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, will be the team's chief economist.

"While our campaign remains focused on the task at hand of winning in November, Hillary Clinton wants to be able to get to work right away as president-elect on building an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top," John Podesta, Clinton's campaign chairman and the transition team president, said in a statement. "These individuals, who bring a deep level of experience in the work of presidential transitions, will help us build a team that is ready to govern after the general election."

The team will handle long-term planning for a potential Clinton White House should the former secretary of state win the election in November.

Trump already has tapped New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to lead his transition efforts.

The White House has been preparing for months to help oversee a transfer of power in January. Representatives of both the Clinton and Trump campaigns have been invited to begin attending transition-planning meetings and to arrange for intelligence briefings.

By law, both nominees have access to national security and other federal government briefings.

Ex-Fox exec an adviser?

To aide Trump's general election plans, Roger Ailes, the former Fox News chairman ousted last month over claims of sexual harassment, reportedly is advising the businessman as he begins to prepare for the presidential debates this fall.

Ailes is aiding Trump's team as it turns its attention to the first debate with Clinton on Sept. 26 at Hofstra University on Long Island, N.Y., according to four people briefed on the move, who insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter.

Two of them said Ailes' role could extend beyond the debates, which Trump's advisers see as crucial to vaulting him back into strong contention for the presidency.

It was not clear when Ailes began helping the campaign. He resigned his post at Fox News on July 21 during an investigation into allegations of sexual harassment by female former employees sparked by a lawsuit by former news anchor Gretchen Carlson.

It also was not immediately known whether Ailes, who received $40 million in an exit agreement with Fox News, will be paid for his work on the campaign, or how much time he will be devoting to it.

Susan Estrich, a lawyer representing Ailes, did not respond to emails and phone messages.

A spokesman for Trump, Hope Hicks, denied that Ailes was advising him in any capacity. Noting in an email that "Mr. Ailes and Mr. Trump have been friends for many years," she said their relationship was being mischaracterized.

"They speak occasionally, which isn't news," she said.

Ailes was a top adviser to Richard Nixon's presidential campaign in 1968. He also was a sought-after debate coach, working with Ronald Reagan in 1984 and readying Vice President George H.W. Bush for debates with the Democratic candidate, Gov. Michael Dukakis, in 1988.

Also enlisting campaign help from big names were the Democrats. On Monday night, Sen. Bernie Sanders' former campaign manager joined leaders of the Democratic National Committee on a conference call and pledged the senator would actively campaign for Clinton this fall.

Jeff Weaver, who guided Sanders' surprisingly strong challenge to Clinton, said he was invited by the committee's interim chairman, Donna Brazile, to be the "featured guest" on the call, which also included state party leaders.

"I think it was a genuine effort on the part of the DNC to make sure Sanders supporters feel welcome," Weaver said of the call, during which he said Sanders also would campaign for other candidates on the ballot and touted the work done in recent weeks to craft a progressive party platform.

Details of the call were first reported by Politico.

Sanders has no planned appearances on behalf of Clinton at this point, but "the schedule is being worked out now," Weaver said.

One way in which Clinton aides have said they would like to use Sanders is on college campuses, where he could make an appeal for students to register and vote. During the primaries, Sanders led Clinton among young voters.

Information for this article was contributed by Ken Thomas, Jill Colvin, Catherine Lucey, Lisa Lerer and Julie Bykowicz of The Associated Press; by John Wagner of The Washington Post; and by Matt Flegenheimer of The New York Times.

A Section on 08/17/2016

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