Hillary Clinton attacked Matt Lauer in a fundraising email the day after he moderated a forum between her and Donald Trump.
(Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)
In an email sent out to supporters on Thursday, the Democratic nominee said Lauer failed to fact check what her opponent said during the Commander-in-Chief forum on NBC Wednesday night. (RELATED: Here’s How Tonight’s Presidential Forum Between Trump And Clinton Will Work)
“Not only did the moderator, Matt Lauer, fail to fact-check Trump — he then kept the conversation moving,” the email read. “The worst part is, there’s nothing new about this happening.”
“We all know that Trump lies a lot. And we all know that many outlets in the press apparently lack the wherewithall to call him out — and help voters understand that what they’re hearing from Trump isn’t normal political talk, but an unprecedented descent into unqualified nonsense from a major-party presidential nominee.”
(Photo: Hillary Clinton email)
Lauer fielded a wave of criticism after he opened up the evening by asking Clinton about her email use while she was secretary of state.
LAUER: “So judgment is a key.”
CLINTON: “Temperament and judgment, yes.”
LAUER: “The word ‘judgment’ has been used a lot around you, Secretary Clinton, over the last year-and-a-half, and in particular concerning your use of your personal e-mail and server to communicate while you were secretary of state. You’ve said it’s a mistake.”
CLINTON: “Mm-hmm.”
LAUER: “You said you made not the best choice. You were communicating on highly sensitive topics. Why wasn’t it more than a mistake? Why wasn’t it disqualifying, if you want to be commander-in- chief?”
CLINTON: “Well, Matt, first of all, as I have said repeatedly, it was a mistake to have a personal account. I would certainly not do it again. I make no excuses for it. It was something that should not have been done.
But the real question is the handling of classified material, which is I think what the implication of your question was. And for all the viewers watching you tonight, I have a lot of experience dealing with classified material, starting when I was on the Senate Armed Services Committee going into the four years as secretary of state. Classified material has a header which says “top secret,” “secret,” “confidential.” Nothing — and I will repeat this, and this is verified in the report by the Department of Justice — none of the e-mails sent or received by me had such a header.”
(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
It’s worth noting that Lauer is listed as a “notable past member” on the Clinton Global Initiative’s website — along with Anderson Cooper and Katie Couric.
In the past, a Clinton Foundation official has said that the journalists who are part of the foundation were never asked to pay the $20,000 member fee.
“In fact, in 2012, we reclassified members of the media who participate as ‘guests’ rather than ‘members’ to acknowledge this distinction,” the official has said. (RELATED: Matt Lauer Will Moderate The First Forum Between Donald Trump And Hillary Clinton)
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