December 6, 2015
Joining George Stephanopoulos on This Week for an interview this Sunday, Hillary Clinton derided Donald Trump as a “reality TV star” who is “part of the celebrity culture”, insulted the families of Americans murdered by Islamic terrorists in Benghazi on September 11, 2001, and refused to acknowledge last Wednesday’s mass murder in San Bernardino, CA, as Islamic terrorism.
Clinton, like all prospective Democratic presidential nominees, has courted Hollywood and celebrities for fundraisers and political assistance. While hardly an exhaustive list, she has been endorsed by Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, Robert DeNiro, Lena Dunham, Pharrell Williams, Beyonce, Magic Johnson, Katy Perry, Snoop Dogg, Waka Flocka Flame, 50 Cent, Eva Longoria, Ellie Goulding, Ariana Grande, Clay Aiken, Jennifer Lopez, Amy Poehler, Kerry Washington, Olivia Wilde, John Legend, Jesse Eisenberg, Richard Gere, Salma Hayek, America Ferrera, Kat Dennings, and Christina Aguilera. She has raised millions of dollars from exclusive fundraisers costing $2700 a person. Trump, by contrast, has raised virtually nothing from Hollywood and celebrity elements.
Insulting the families of Americans murdered at the Benghazi diplomatic compound by Islamic terrorists during her tenure of Secretary of State, Clinton said, “I can’t help it that people think there has to be something else there.” Stephanopoulos played clips from both Patricia Smith (mother of Sean Smith), and Charles Woods (father of Tyrone Woods), who have both described Clinton as lying to them about the circumstances under which children were murdered. In the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attack in Benghazi, Clinton joined with President Barack Obama and other White House officials such as Susan Rice in blaming an obscure “anti-Muslim” video on YouTube. Released emails from Clinton’s illegally-used private email server have since revealed that she and others knowingly lied when attributing the motivations of the Islamic terrorists to the video.
When asked by Stephanopoulos about the refusal by her and Obama to describe mass murder attacks such as those in San Bernardino as Islamic terrorism, Clinton replied, “Well, the problem is that that sounds like we are declaring war against a religion.” She continued, “I don't want to do that because, number one, it doesn't do justice to the vast numbers of Muslims in our own country and around the world who are peaceful people.” She closed with saying the term “radical Islam” somehow contributes to what she described as ISIS’s narrative of a clash of civilizations between Islam and the West.
Diminishing the prominence of Islamic terrorism as a category of broader international terrorism, Clinton invoked the recent murders at a Planned Parenthood location in Colorado Spring, CO, and Roseburg, OR. She said, “And let's not forget, though, a week before we had an American assault on Planned Parenthood and some weeks before that we had an assault at a community college.”
Responding to Jerry Falwell Jr.’s call for students at Liberty University and elsewhere to utilize their Second Amendment right to carry firearms to defend against future mass shooting, Clinton mischaracterized his comments “hateful,” implying that he was engaging in anti-Muslim rhetoric.
Notably, Stephanopoulos introduced his segment by stating that he had both worked for Bill Clinton and made charitable contributions to The Clinton Foundation, saying, “And a reminder for everyone watching, I worked for President Clinton, made charitable contributions in the past to the Clinton Foundation.” Stephanopoulos was criticized by right-wing and conservative media earlier this year when failing to disclose this information during a contentious interview with “Clinton Cash” author Peter Schweizer.
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