Hillary Clinton stated in an interview with BBC Radio 4 that Joe Biden “did the right thing” by stepping aside in the US presidential election following his poor debate performance against Donald Trump earlier this year. “I was with him a week before that disastrous debate and I saw no reason why he should have stepped down,” Clinton noted. “But once that debate happened, he could not recover, and he did the right thing,” she added.
Clinton, who ran against Trump in 2016, expressed her belief that “the future of democracy is at stake” in the upcoming election, which is projected to be extremely close. She has fully supported Kamala Harris, Biden’s replacement as the Democratic candidate, urging her to “defeat Donald Trump to break the fever that he has caused in our political system.”
“The two candidates have presented extremely different agendas for where they want to take our country,” Clinton explained during her discussion with Today presenter Amol Rajan. She emphasized that the election’s outcome would have significant implications not only for the US but also for global issues, such as “whether or not we continue supporting Ukraine, whether we can get some kind of workable resolution in the Middle East, and so much else.”
Clinton also referenced Trump’s prior statements indicating a potential cut in US aid for Ukraine. Following a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in New York, Trump remarked that he had “a very good relationship” with both Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We both want to see a fair deal made,” he stated, adding that the war “should stop” and expressing confidence that both leaders desire an end to the conflict.
Additionally, Clinton criticized Trump’s commitment to initiating mass deportation of illegal immigrants if he were to be elected.
“Let’s start with one million,” JD Vance, Trump’s vice-presidential pick, stated in August regarding their plan. “That’s where Kamala Harris has failed. And then we can go from there.”
Clinton responded to concerns about Trump’s potential policies, saying, “He is going to have a military presence [in US cities] to achieve his goals. If you look a certain way, if you talk a certain way, you will be subject to these Draconian measures.”
When asked what drives Trump’s support, Clinton noted, “People support him for different reasons,” including feelings of being “overlooked” and “unseen,” or perceptions that “the economy doesn’t work for them.”
She acknowledged that the Democratic Party has struggled with messaging, stating, “I think our problem is frankly we are not the most effective messengers about what we see and what we’re trying to do to address these real and legitimate concerns that people have. I recognize and accept my share of the responsibility.”
Clinton added, “It is hard in a time when politicians are expected to be more entertaining, where social media demands that you be outrageous, that you say something that breaks through, to do the hard, boring work of actually getting things done.”
When asked if Biden should have withdrawn from the race earlier than he did in July, she strongly rejected the idea but praised Harris for having “performed flawlessly” since then.
The election is set for November 5, with the new president taking office in January. Current polls indicate a tight race in seven crucial states, with just one or two percentage points separating the candidates.
Clinton, 76, made history as the first woman nominee for president from a major political party when she ran against Trump in 2016. Married to Bill Clinton since 1975, he served as president from 1993 until 2001. She is currently promoting her new memoir, a collection of essays titled “Something Lost, Something Gained: Reflections on Life, Love and Liberty.”
