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| Republicans keep focus on Hillary Clinton health after Rove comments | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican national committee, on Sunday refused to acknowledge growing criticism of remarks made by GOP strategist Karl Rove about the health of Hillary Clinton, the presumed Democratic frontrunner for the 2016 presidential election. | Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican national committee, on Sunday refused to acknowledge growing criticism of remarks made by GOP strategist Karl Rove about the health of Hillary Clinton, the presumed Democratic frontrunner for the 2016 presidential election. |
| Asked on NBC if Rove should apologise for suggesting Clinton may have suffered brain damage in a fall in December 2012, as many pundits have demanded, Priebus said: “I don't think there's a graceful way to bring up the age, health and fitness of a candidate who wants to be president of the United States.” | Asked on NBC if Rove should apologise for suggesting Clinton may have suffered brain damage in a fall in December 2012, as many pundits have demanded, Priebus said: “I don't think there's a graceful way to bring up the age, health and fitness of a candidate who wants to be president of the United States.” |
| Rove, appearing on Fox News Sunday, said he was "not questioning her health”. | Rove, appearing on Fox News Sunday, said he was "not questioning her health”. |
| “What I'm questioning is whether or not it's a done deal that she's running. And she would not be human if she did not take this into consideration." | “What I'm questioning is whether or not it's a done deal that she's running. And she would not be human if she did not take this into consideration." |
| Priebus, who noted that the 69-year-old former first lady, senator and secretary of state had “decades of history for us to exploit”, said: “The more important issue for me as leader of this party is what was the record of Hillary Clinton as secretary of state – Benghazi, Boko Haram, Syria, Russia. Those are the issues for her which I think will cause her to reconsider whether she wants to run.” | Priebus, who noted that the 69-year-old former first lady, senator and secretary of state had “decades of history for us to exploit”, said: “The more important issue for me as leader of this party is what was the record of Hillary Clinton as secretary of state – Benghazi, Boko Haram, Syria, Russia. Those are the issues for her which I think will cause her to reconsider whether she wants to run.” |
| Clinton was replaced as secretary of state in February 2013, by John Kerry. Kerry, a former Massachusetts senator and losing 2004 presidential candidate, has presided since then over the Obama administration's responses to crises in Syria and Ukraine and the current situation in Nigeria, in which the militant group Boko Haram kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls. | Clinton was replaced as secretary of state in February 2013, by John Kerry. Kerry, a former Massachusetts senator and losing 2004 presidential candidate, has presided since then over the Obama administration's responses to crises in Syria and Ukraine and the current situation in Nigeria, in which the militant group Boko Haram kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls. |
| Pressed by Meet the Press host David Gregory over whether he would like to “sidestep away” from Rove's comments or “double down”, Priebus said: “It doesn't matter. It's going to be an issue, it's going to come up at some time if Hillary Clinton runs for president. The issue of her health and age is going to come up. I'm not a doctor, but the issue is going to come up.” | Pressed by Meet the Press host David Gregory over whether he would like to “sidestep away” from Rove's comments or “double down”, Priebus said: “It doesn't matter. It's going to be an issue, it's going to come up at some time if Hillary Clinton runs for president. The issue of her health and age is going to come up. I'm not a doctor, but the issue is going to come up.” |
| Answering for the Democrats, Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri – a supporter of the Ready for Hillary political action committee – said: “I think Karl Rove is struggling to stay relevant.” | Answering for the Democrats, Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri – a supporter of the Ready for Hillary political action committee – said: “I think Karl Rove is struggling to stay relevant.” |
| She added: “They [Republicans] do not want Hillary Clinton to run … [but] Karl Rove engaging in cheap shots is not going to frighten Hillary Clinton.” | She added: “They [Republicans] do not want Hillary Clinton to run … [but] Karl Rove engaging in cheap shots is not going to frighten Hillary Clinton.” |
| Dianne Feinstein, the Democratic chair of the Senate intelligence committee, told CNN Rove's comments were "pathetic" and added of Clinton: "In my view, she's in the prime of her political life." | Dianne Feinstein, the Democratic chair of the Senate intelligence committee, told CNN Rove's comments were "pathetic" and added of Clinton: "In my view, she's in the prime of her political life." |
| Democrats in the House of Representatives are yet to decide whether to join a special select committee, set up by Speaker John Boehner, to investigate the administration's response to the September 2012 attack on a diplomatic outpost in Benghazi in which the US ambassador to Libya and three other Americans died. Clinton was secretary of state at the time. | Democrats in the House of Representatives are yet to decide whether to join a special select committee, set up by Speaker John Boehner, to investigate the administration's response to the September 2012 attack on a diplomatic outpost in Benghazi in which the US ambassador to Libya and three other Americans died. Clinton was secretary of state at the time. |
| The decision to set up the panel, which will conduct the eighth investigation into the attack, has been criticised for being overtly political, particularly in a midterm election year. | The decision to set up the panel, which will conduct the eighth investigation into the attack, has been criticised for being overtly political, particularly in a midterm election year. |
| On Sunday the Associated Press noted statements about Benghazi made by several Republicans who have been appointed to the committee. | On Sunday the Associated Press noted statements about Benghazi made by several Republicans who have been appointed to the committee. |
| Regarding Representative Lynn Westmoreland, of Georgia, the AP noted: “Democrats have targeted Westmoreland for 'politicising' Benghazi because he serves as deputy chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, which has begun an election-year fundraising drive linked to the attack.” | Regarding Representative Lynn Westmoreland, of Georgia, the AP noted: “Democrats have targeted Westmoreland for 'politicising' Benghazi because he serves as deputy chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, which has begun an election-year fundraising drive linked to the attack.” |
| On NBC, Priebus said: “[Clinton] is coming out with a book, I think it's called Hard Choices or something like that. She's made a sequence of bad choices, sweeping things under the rug. Benghazi shouldn't be swept under the rug, with four diplomats who died.” | On NBC, Priebus said: “[Clinton] is coming out with a book, I think it's called Hard Choices or something like that. She's made a sequence of bad choices, sweeping things under the rug. Benghazi shouldn't be swept under the rug, with four diplomats who died.” |
| On CNN, Feinstein called the new Benghazi investigation “a hunting mission for a lynch mob”. | On CNN, Feinstein called the new Benghazi investigation “a hunting mission for a lynch mob”. |