Trump ad features Clinton barking like a dog
New campaign clip portrays Democratic candidate as a weak-kneed pup on foreign policy
As presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton consolidate their status as the likely Republican and Democratic nominees, respectively, the two have begun moving the focus of their attacks from their party rivals to each other.
And Trump’s campaign appeared to indicate Wednesday that it would be bringing his particular brand of blistering, no-holds-barred attacks on opponents to a general election race, with an ad comparing Clinton’s foreign policy to that of a subservient dog.
The short clip posted to Trump’s official Instagram account juxtaposes footage of Russian President Vladimir Putin and a masked jihadist with the words “When it comes to facing our toughest opponents, te Democrats have the perfect answer.” It then cuts to Clinton barking like a dog, and a shot of Putin laughing in apparent derision.
“We don’t need to be a punchline!” The ad concludes. “Trump — make America great again!”
Is this what we want for a President?
A video posted by Donald J. Trump (@realdonaldtrump) on
The Clinton clip was taken from a February rally in which the candidate suggested a fact-checking dog hold Republican candidates’ claims in check.
“I’m trying to figure out how we can do that with the Republicans you know?” she told supporters. “We need to get that dog and follow them around and every time they say things like ‘Oh, the great recession was caused by too much regulation–‘” she said, then immitated the bark.
Clinton too has begun peppering her campaign speeches in recent days with more direct attacks on Trump’s rhetoric, experience and plans.
In recent days Trump’s gladiator-style politics have led rivals to accuse him of turning the White House race into a violent circus.
By unleashing diatribes against Washington, insults against his rivals — from “little” Marco Rubio to “liar” Ted Cruz — stigmatizing Muslims and Hispanics, Trump stands accused of fanning hatred and spurring his partisans to violence.
President Barack Obama warned Tuesday that the 2016 race for the White House was damaging America’s image abroad, sounding the alarm on harsh campaign talk.
Lashing out at “vulgar and divisive rhetoric” in the race to replace him, Obama told a bipartisan group of lawmakers “this is also about the American brand.”
AP and AFP contributed to this report.