Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said he will “absolutely” bring an era of bipartisanship and declared he would be “a great unifier.”
Trump said of the House Select Committee on Benghazi’s questioning of former Secretary of State Clinton, at a hearing last week, “I thought she did OK. I felt she was going to do OK. It was a very partisan and it looked quite partisan. The level of hatred between Republicans and Democrats was unbelievable. The level of — you’ve never seen anything like it. I’ve been doing this for a long time. I get along with everybody and I’ve always gotten along with everybody. In all the years I’ve been involved in politics, I have never seen dislike, hatred, whatever you want to call it between two parties like you have now.”
He continued, “I think it hurts both parties. I think it hurts the country. To be honest with you, it hurts the country. ”
Host Jake Tapper asked, “You’re talking about Trump administration bringing in an era of bipartisanship?”
Trump answered, “I think so … I’m going to unify. this country is totally divided. Barack Obama has divided this country unbelievably and it’s all hatred. What can I tell you? I’ve never seen anything like it. I’m going to unify the country. Sometimes I’ll say that and people say — but the people that know me and I’m talking about some of the biggest people in the world they call up and say it’s right. I’ve seen it. And, you know, one of the big knocks on me was that over the years I’ve gotten along with Democrats and with Republicans. I said that’s a good thing. As a businessman I had ab obligation to do that. I get along with everybody. I will be a great unifier for our country.”
Tapper said, “Hillary Clinton at the debate, the Democratic debate was asked to name enemies of which she was proud and she said Republicans.”
Trump responded, “I don’t consider her an enemy. She’s an opponent. I don’t consider her an enemy. She can be easily beaten by her record. I’m not talking about the Benghazi record. Hundreds of phone calls came from the ambassador asking for help and nothing was done. People are forgetting the things that took place during the hearing. But I don’t consider that. I just say that her record — her record in government. If you look at her she was in favor of the war with Iraq. It was a disaster. I wasn’t. I should be given credit because in 2003 I came out with a major statement front page all over the place I don’t know why. I was just a businessman. I wasn’t a politician that we shouldn’t go into Iraq because it’s going destabilize the Middle Sast and Iran will end up taking over Iraq. Which is, by the way, after spending $2 trillion, thousands of lives, wounded warriors, who I love all over the place. Iran is taking over Iraq as we speak, by the way, What they don’t have ISIS has. So we shouldn’t have done it. Hillary Clinton voted in favor of the war.”
He added, “I was against Iraq but we shouldn’t have left the way we left. If you remember, I told you very early on if we’ going to leave take the oil. Right now you know who has the oil China is buying the oil. They don’t have ten cents and they’re the biggest customer. You have the oil going ISIS and the oil going to Iran and Iran will end up with most of it. And ISIS will have plenty. They have plenty of money because they took the oil because we were stupid. I said take the oil when we leave. But we shouldn’t have really left. We shouldn’t have gone in but then we shouldn’t have left. So Bush shouldn’t have gotten us in and Obama shouldn’t have taken us out.”