WASHINGTON Hillary Clinton derided Donald Trump as a feckless negotiator and told AIPAC that walking away from the Middle East was not an option for the US, a broadside against the Republican frontrunner that signaled her general election strategy.
We need steady hands, not a president who says he is neutral on Monday, pro-Israel on Tuesday and who knows what on Wednesday, the former secretary of state and frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nod said Monday, March 21, in an address to the annual AIPAC conference in Washington, DC.
America cant ever be neutral when it comes to Israels security and survival, Clinton said to repeated cheers and applause.
Some things arent negotiable and anyone who doesnt understand that has no business in being our president.
Trump, a real estate magnate, has staked much of his candidacy on his skills as a negotiator, and has made that the centerpiece of his pledge to seek Israeli-Palestinian peace. He also has said he would be neutral when brokering peace.
Clintons speech, running more than 30 minutes, made clear she would cast her experience as chief diplomat, senator from New York and first lady against Trumps bid to stake his claim to the presidency based on his success as as businessman.
In recent days, Clintons campaign has pivoted toward a strategy of challenging Trumps self-presentation, as the two have emerged as their partys likely candidates in the general election.
Clinton also took aim at calls to decrease American involvement in the region.
Candidates for president who think the United States of America can outsource Israels security to dictators or that America no longer has vital interests in this region are dangerously wrong, she said.
Two of the Republican candidates, Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, as well as Clintons Democratic rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., have called for a decreased American profile in the region and greater reliance on regional armies.
Clinton listed Trumps more controversial calls, including a ban on Muslim entry into the US and the violence he at times has encouraged at his rallies.
Tonight, you will get a glimpse of a potential US foreign policy that would insult our allies, not engage with them and embolden our adversaries, not defeat them, she said, referring to Trumps AIPAC speech on Monday night.
Clinton recalled the US failure to take in Jewish refugees from Nazi-occupied Europe and noted the forthcoming Purim holiday, when Esther risked her life to speak up against the oppression of Jews.
If you see bigotry, oppose it. If you see violence, condemn it. If you see a bully, stand up to him, she said to a standing ovation. Let us never be neutral or silent in the face of bigotry.