Both Democratic presidential candidates shied away from a yes or no answer when asked “is Donald Trump a racist?” during Wednesday night’s debate.
The Washington Post’s Karen Tumulty started by posing the question to Hillary Clinton near the beginning of the debate, which drew murmurs from the crowd.
“Karen, I’m going to follow my friend Sen. Sanders’ model here,” the former secretary of state began. “If I’m fortunate enough to be the Democratic nominee, there will be a lot of time to talk about him. I was the first one to call him out. I called him out when he was calling Mexicans rapists, when he was engaging in rhetoric that I found deeply offensive.”
Clinton continued: “I am pleased that others are also joining in making clear that his rhetoric, his demagoguery, his trafficking in prejudice and paranoia has no place in our political system. Especially from somebody running for President who couldn’t decide whether or not to disavow the Ku Klux Klan and David Duke. So people can draw their own conclusions about him.”
But Tumulty didn’t let her off the hook. She further pressed Clinton to describe Trump’s character.
“I think it’s un-American. I think what he has promoted is not at all in keeping with American values, Karen,” she responded.
Clinton also said she would make the case against Trump if he’s the Republican presidential nominee without engaging in “the kind of language he uses.”
“I think that’s a better way for the American people to draw their conclusions,” she finished.
Tumulty then asked Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) the same question.
He answered that the American people will never elect a president who insults Mexicans, Muslims, women and blacks. Sanders also evoked Trump’s involvement in the birther movement.
“You know, I find it very interesting, Karen, my dad was born in Poland. I know a little bit about the immigrant experience,” Sanders said. “Nobody has ever asked me for my birth certificate. Maybe it has something to do with the color of my skin.”
When Tumulty pressed him about Trump’s character, Sanders responded that in the last national poll, “we were running 18 points ahead of Donald Trump.”
