Page 5 - Aruba Today
P. 5
U.S. NEWS A5
Thursday 28 January 2016
LIFE is Beautiful
Coffee - Kitchen - Drinks
Voters conflicted on relevance of
Clinton’s family marriage dramas
NANCY BENAC presidency in history class Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at the Univer-
Associated Press and have come of age in sity of Iowa Field House, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016 in Iowa City, Iowa.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The a time of different attitudes
long-running drama of toward sexual harassment (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Hillary Clinton’s marriage and abuse.
— her husband’s infidel- Clinton’s Democratic rival, Trump debate boycott threat reverberating
ity and how she dealt with Bernie Sanders, complains
it — is back as a subtext in about being asked about JILL COLVIN into the New Hampshire pri- showed no interest in trying
this year’s U.S. presidential the Clintons’ “personal Associated Press mary election the following
race. stuff” when he’d rather fo- IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — week and beyond. to strike any sharp contrast
The issue has a new, sharp- cus on issues. But he’s also Donald Trump refused to The Iowa voting will be the
er edge this time: Voters are made clear he considers back down Wednesday first test of whether political with his host.
processing old events in an Bill Clinton’s past behav- from his threat to boy- newcomer Trump’s unorth-
era of heightened concern ior “totally, totally, totally cott this week’s Republi- odox campaign can get “We have got to do a lot
about sexual assault and disgraceful and unac- can presidential debate the thousands of enthusias-
after Republican Donald ceptable.” Interviews with in the U.S., leading rival tic supporters who show up better to protect the mid-
Trump characterized Dem- dozens of potential voters candidate Sen. Ted Cruz’ at rallies to turn out when it
ocratic candidate Clinton around the country reveal campaign to mock him as matters. dle class and working fami-
as an “enabler” of her hus- strong and opposing views “Ducking Donald.” Cruz, a blunt-spoken Texan
band’s indiscretions and al- about how — and whether Meanwhile, Democratic widely disliked by his col- lies,” Sanders said. “But it’s
leged that she had helped — Clinton should be mea- candidate and Vermont leagues in the U.S. Senate,
to discredit his accusers. sured by how she dealt with Sen. Bernie Sanders met is believed to have assem- also important to remem-
Both Clintons have tried her husband’s behavior. with Barack Obama at the bled a strong get-out-the-
not to engage, each ut- “The personal stuff is irrel- White House in what was vote operation. ber how far we’ve come in
tering the identical “I have evant,” pronounces Brian widely seen as a chance Among the Democrats,
no response” when ques- Brown, a 56-year-old for- for the president to display Sanders is counting on en- the last seven years under
tioned separately about mer professor and Demo- public neutrality in the heat- thusiastic younger voters
the matter. crat from Antrim, New ed and unexpectedly tight to boost turnout to offset the leadership of President
And plenty of Americans Hampshire. primary race to replace Clinton’s organizational
are right there with them on “I don’t like how she swept him — refuting suggestions strength. The two were Obama and Vice President
that: Bring up Bill’s behavior it under the rug, but then that he favors Sanders’ rival locked in a close contest in
and Hillary’s coping tech- again, you don’t know Hillary Clinton. Iowa. Biden.”
niques and they suddenly what goes on behind the The dual developments Talking to reporters in the
become monosyllabic and scenes,” says Jeff Daig- created new ripples of un- White House driveway, The White House said the
start glancing around for nault, a 46-year-old in- certainty days before vot- Sanders acknowledged
the exits. dependent from Largo, ing in the presidential race he and the president have president considered
But Hillary Clinton has Florida.“Hillary was an ac- begins Monday in this lead- had differences, but he
plopped the question complice,” says Amy Strick- off state. Both parties were said he has largely backed the 45-minute meeting a
squarely in Americans’ laps er, a 57-year-old conserva- bracing for close contests Obama’s agenda. Sanders
days before the Iowa cau- tive from Rochester Hills, in Iowa that will determine said the president has been chance to discuss ways the
cuses Monday open voting Michigan. which of their two leading “even handed” in his treat-
in the 2016 campaign. Clinton’s campaign has candidates will carry the ment of the candidates vy- two could work together
“I’m going to let the Ameri- rejected the notion that momentum from a victory ing to replace him, and he
can voters decide what’s she was actively involved and to talk broadly about
relevant and what’s not in aggressive efforts by
relevant,” she said when her husband’s presidential the state of the 2016 race.
asked about Trump’s ac- campaign and the Clinton
cusations during a recent White House to discredit Trump, a billionaire real es-
Democratic debate. women who claimed to
It’s no small matter for Clin- have had affairs with her tate mogul, raised the pros-
ton, who draws a lopsided husband or to have been
share of her support from sexually assaulted by him. pect of skipping Thursday’s
female voters and for de- “These are attempts to
cades has made advo- draw Hillary Clinton into Republican debate as he
cacy for women a big part decades-old allegations
of her persona. It’s espe- through fabrications that blasted Fox News Channel
cially important as she tries are unsubstantiated,”
to attract a generation of campaign spokesman Bri- for “playing games” and
younger women who only an Fallon said Wednesday.
learned about the Clinton q including anchor Megyn
Kelly as a debate modera-
tor. Trump’s campaign lat-
er said he definitely will not
participate.
Trump said he would hold
his own event in Iowa dur-
ing the debate to raise
money for wounded veter-
ans. q
