Im wolf blitzer in the situation room. Erin burnett out front starts right now. Donald trump taking aim at americas generals. Hillary clinton says no more troops in iraq as polls show trumps lead shrinks. Plus the Putin Obsession is, is it a smart political move or is trump being played . What is aleppo . The three words haunting gary johnson tonight. Lets go out front. Good evening, im erin burnett. Bitter battle, Hillary Clinton, donald trump in the biggest clash of the campaign so far launching nasty personal attacks on who is fit to lead america at war. Tonight clinton slamming trump saying hes scary and dangerous. Its hard to forget what trump did last night. It was a test and he failed it. He trash talked about americas generals saying that they have been, quote, reduced to rubble. He suggested he would fire them all and hand pick his own generals, since he knows so much about what it takes to be a general. Trump firing back citing clintons use of her private email server saying she put the nation at risk. This is yet more evidence that clinton is unfit to be your commanderinchief. By the way, the whole kocountry saw how unfit she was at the Town Hall Last Night where she refused to take accountability for her failed policies in the middle east. Now this battle coming as a new poll shows trump and clinton tied in a twoway race in florida and ohio. The stakes could not be higher. Right now clinton is peeking at the National Baptist convention
talking about her faith. And what she says is the importance of humility. Jeff cel nebraskany is on the trail in missouri. Tonight is about faith, but today was about anything but. Reporter perhaps not as consequential or grave as this discussion over National Security. There was far less talk about their qualifications than heated rhetoric about why their rival is not. As your commanderinchief, i will not trash our countrys most cherished values. I will defend them. This is yet more evidence that clinton is unfit to be your commanderinchief. The commanderinchief audition now at the heart of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trumps escalating clash. Trump says the fight against isis has failed blaming clinton along with President Obama. Under the leadership of barack obama and hillary
clinton, the generals have been reduced to rubble. Reporter today in North Carolina, she accused trump of trash talking u. S. Military leaders. What would Ronald Reagan say about a republican nominee who attacks americas generals and one thing you didnt hear from him was any plan to take on isis, one of the biggest threats facing our country. He says his plan is still a secret. Well, the truth is he doesnt have a plan. Trump insists he does. But says he will ask his generals for their plan 30 days after taking office. On iraq, clinton was blunt last night at a Military Forp Um on nbc. We are not putting Ground Troops into iraq ever again. We asked her today whether that was a promise she could keep if elected president. Isnt that ignoring Ground Forces there, and boxing yourself in should your Military Commanders if elected, advise
that you, in fact, need to do that . I think putting a big contingent of american Ground Troops in the ground in iraq and syria would not be in the best interest in the fight against isis and other terrorist groups. I support the air campaign. I support Special Forces. I support enablers. Shes acknowledged her support for the iraq war was a mistake. He has not. He supported the Ground Invasion at the time. Are you for invading iraq . Yeah, i guess so. I wish the first time it was done correct lu. Reporter even though now he says otherwise. I opposed going in. And i did oppose it. Reporter above all, the clash on National Security is a fight over judgment. Trump is asking voters thirsty for change to trust him. Clinton, at every turn, tries to highlight his thin resume. If we would have taken the oil, you wouldnt have isis. We dont send our brave Men And Women Around The World to
steal oil. Reporter it is that debate over judgment that also is at the heart of this. The Clinton Campaign believes the best way to make donald trump unacceptable in the minds of voters is to question his judgment on matters like National Security. Donald trumps objective is to make voters feel comfortable with him, the man who could have his hand on the nuclear codes. Erin . Jeff zeleny, thank you. Out front tonight, retired general jerry boykin and admiral jamie barnett. Thank you to both of you. Let me start with you. You heard donald trump say the generals have been reduced to rubble that the point that its embarrassing for the United States. As a retired three star general, do words like that ompbd you . It doesnt ompbd me. My interpretation is that the advice of our generals has been relatively ignored. Probably up until the last three to six months when it appears hes starting to listen to them. So i dont think that the
generals advocated for pullout of iraq in 2011. I think thats what trump was saying. Hillary clinton says donald trump is trash talking the generals. You just heard the general saying he disagrees. What do you say . I think this is a long line of things where donald trump has disrespected our serving military, our current veterans and military families. In this way, its outrageous. I served with some of the people hes talking about right now. These are the people that are executing and taking away the state from the islamic state. It just is another example why hes not fit temperamentally or otherwise and Hillary Clinton last night clearly demonstrate ed shes got the command of the fact, the issues, she has the judgment and the knowledge to go forward. And one of the things that came out last night is he doesnt have a plan for defeat iing isi. She does. So let me ask you about that. Last night she said there would
be no more Ground Troops in iraq ever again. Those were her words. Today you heard her. There wasnt be a big contingent of Ground Troops. Youre criticizing donald trump for not having a plan, but hers appears to be changing hour by hour as well. Shes always said that. The fact of the matter is shes recognized we have enablers there to do the airstrikes, trainers, Special Forces. Shes always acknowledged that. Shes talking about having all these people in combat in harms way. Shes talking about large contingent of combat troops. We dont want to put an iraq force like we did in in 2003. What we want to happen is for the people in the middle east to put the boots on the ground so that they can do it over the long haul. Thats what shes talking about. No troops is different than a big contingent. When you talk about people being in harms way, thats what people see as troops on the ground. There are no change. Shes acknowledged that we have troops there. What i would say is we need to
enable the people in the kurds, syrian Freedom Forces to go and take back this from isis. Shes got a threepoint plan. Defeat isis where they have these strongholds in the middle east. Thats happening. We need to continue to execute that. Disrupt the terrorist network worldwide. Make sure were safe at home by increasing our intelligence, sharing information, working with our allies. We have heard nothing from donald trump on anything. He even revealed he doesnt have a plan when he said when i come up with a plan. Thats an equal quote from last night. What do you say, general . Well, to begin with, erin, nobody has won a war by telling the enemy how youre going to fight them. Its a a terrible mistake and this is endemic of the Obama Administration as well that has told the enemy what were going to do. We are making a foolish mistake by doing that. Secondly, it does not recognize the admiral calls them enablers. He probably should call them combat troops. They are Special Forces that are in combat. So dont tell them they are not combat forces. But the final thing is one of the things that i believe is that donald trump has signalled his willingness and eagerness to restore military readiness. Our military is in sad shape right now from a a readiness perspective. Thats one of the reasons im supporting donald trump is because he will make an allout effort to listen to his generals, take their recommendations and then apply those in restoring our military readiness. Thats what america has to have. When it comes to the war on isis, general, today Hillary Clinton stood by her comments that donald trump is a Recruiting Tool for isis. She was speaking in an interview with israeli television. Heres how she answered the
question. Trump has made islam and muslims part of his campaign. Basically, argues that the jihadists see this as a great gift. They are saying, oh, please, allah, make trump president of america. The former director of the National Counterterrorism center. You said in a radio interview, islam is not a religion and does not deserve First Amendment protection. Do you think comments like yours and donald trump supporting a ban on muslims Coming To America help isis recruit . If you believe that isis is influenced by the comments by donald trump or by me, you dont know anything about what the jihadists are up against. The Muslim Brotherhood in america and the Jihadi Network globally are going to attack us because its theological. They are going to attack us
because we are a western democracy and because we are infidels. If you dont understand that and you can honestly say that we are increase iing their recruiting,u know absolutely nothing about why these people do what they do and thats the problem. Our president has never faced up to why they motivated to do what they do against us. Admiral . I have to totally disagree. I mean the things that donald trump says are used in the recruiting. He shows up in recruiting video. Its not just that hes helping isis and Terrorist Organizations like that, hes also damaging our alliances and our partners in the middle east. Muslim countries All Over The World who listen to this and wonder what america is about. We need them. Those are the people we want on the ground. These are the people we need to work with to defeat isis. And to go off on rants about islam and that somehow islam is against america when millions
and millions of people are peaceful muslims and will work with us. Thank you both very much. I appreciate your time tonight. Thank you. Thank you. Out front next, Hillary Clinton in one of her most e vealing interviews on why shes perceived cold and aloof. And gary johnson with a stunning gaffe. What is aleppo . Youre kidding. No. Will it torpedo his campaign . Should a u. S. President ial candidate be saying this . He is really very much of a leader. You can say isnt that a tshl thing. The man has very strong control over our country. If youve gone to extremes to escape your nasal allergies. Try clarispray. From the makers of claritin. Clarispray provides 24hour, Prescription Strength relief from sneezing, runny nose, and nasal congestion. Return to the world. Try clarispray today. Be the you who doesnt cover your moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. Be the you who shows up in that dress. Who hugs a friend. Who is done with treatments that dont give you clearer skin. Be the you who controls your psoriasis with stelara® just 4 doses a year after 2 starter doses. Stelara® may lower your ability to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections and cancer. Some serious infections require hospitalization. Before treatment, get tested for tuberculosis. Before starting stelara® tell your doctor if you think you have an infection or have symptoms such as fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. Always tell your doctor if you have any signs of infection, have had cancer, if you develop any new skin growths or if anyone in your house needs or has recently received a vaccine. Alert your doctor of new or worsening problems, including headaches, seizures, confusion and Vision Problems these may be signs of a rare, potentially fatal brain condition. Some serious allergic reactions can occur. Do not take stelara® if you are allergic to stelara® or any of its ingredients. Most people using stelara® saw 75 clearer skin and the majority were rated as cleared or minimal wbr id wbr8550 at 12 weeks. Be the you who talks to your dermatologist about stelara®. I know more about isis then the apprgenerals do. Age. John mccain, a war hero. Hes not a war hero, hes a war hero because he was captured. I like people that werent captured ok. Donald trump compared his sacrifices to the sacrifices of two parents who lost their son in war. Wbr id wbr8850 how would you answer that father . What sacrifice have you made for your country . I think ive made a lot of sacrifices, built great structures. Ive had tremendous success, i think. Those are sacrifices . b f ot steps Crickets Chirping jet engine heart beat Water Splashing rain drops Engine Revving tires on wet road did you know dell. Com price matchelike the xps 13. Ing . Yeeeeaaaaahhh for you, glam rockers. We love your work. Intel® bong
tonight Hillary Clinton slamming donald trump for praising Vladimir Putin. Trump says he prefers putin to President Obama. That is not just unpatriotic and insulting to the people of our country as well as to our commanderinchief, it is scary. Because it suggests he will let putin do whatever putin wantsed to. And then make excuses for him. Trumps running mate mike pence is coming to his defense saying its inarguable that poout season a a stronger leader than obama. Barbara starr is out front. Donald trump doubling down on his praise of russian president Vladimir Putin. He does have an 82 Approval Rating according to the different pollsters. Insisting that russias harassment of the u. S. Military will stop under his presidency. Like this one from april and another one wednesday over the black sea that caught Donald Trumps attention. Take a look at what happened with their fighter jets circling one of our aircraft in it a very dangerous manner. Somebody said less than ten feet away. This is hostility. Yet that hostility from russia isnt stopping trump from extolling what he sees as putins virtues. Its a very different system. I dont happen to like the system, but certainly in that system hes been a leader. Far more than our president has been a leader. Trump says hed have a a better relationship with putin and russia than President Obama. The beautiful part of getting along russia wants to defeat isis as badly as we do. But u. S. Officials say that
isnt the case. That russia is propping up assad, not hitting isis. Russia with its support for the assad regime has made the situation more dangerous, more prolonged, more violent. Trump and the Obama Administration at odds over allegations of russias involvement with the alleged hack of the Democratic National committee in an attempt to disrupt u. S. Elections. Nobody knows that for a fact. You want me to start naming some of the things that President Obama does . Secretary of Defense Ash Carter appears to have little doubt issuing a stern warning to moscow. Make no mistake. We will defend our allies, we will counter attempts to undermine our collective security and not ignore attempts to interfere with our democratic processes. Its not exactly anything new for russia and the u. S. To be at logger heads, but this time around, the critical question, does Vladimir Putin think he might get a better deal if
donald trump is the next president . Barbara, thank you very much. Out front now, chief political analyst gloria borger. We hear this from donald trump last night. It is not the first time. Hes been criticized again and again for this. But he repeatedly praises Vladimir Putin. Let me just play for everyone so they can understand how much hes dug in on this. I think i get along very well with Vladimir Putin. Putin is a nicer person than i am. I would get along with russia and putin. Hes not going to make us look bad anymore. When people call you brilliant, its always good. Today bob corker who has said all kinds of positive things about trump warned him about that kind of flattery. Do you think theres a strategy behind donald trump praising Vladimir Putin . Is it possible that American Voters buy into this . That putin is strong . American voters dont like
putin. If you look at polling over the past few years, he has negative ratings. I think we have to take trump at his word that he admires putin and sees st