Clinton blasts Trump's comments on military generals, Putin

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Hillary Clinton blasted Donald Trump on Thursday for his condemnation of American military generals and his praise for Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying her Republican opponent had "failed" at proving he can be commander in chief.

"Every Republican holding or seeking office in this country should be asked if they agree with Donald Trump about these statements," Clinton said in a news conference the morning after both candidates appeared at a national-security forum.

Trump did not respond directly to Clinton's critique Thursday. At a speech in Cleveland, he tagged his Democratic opponent with a new nickname -- "trigger-happy Hillary" -- and repeated his incorrect claim he opposed the war in Iraq "from the beginning."

Still, Clinton indicated later in the day she does not want the final weeks to be exclusively focused on Trump, unveiling plans for a series of policy speeches aimed at promoting a positive message.

That effort started Thursday night in Kansas City, Missouri, with an address on faith at the National Baptist Convention. Clinton took some thinly veiled shots at Trump, but she also made an appeal to African-American voters and reflected on her Methodist faith.

"I've made my share of mistakes. I don't know anyone who hasn't," Clinton said. "It's grace that lifts us up and grace that leads us home."

The discussion followed a Wednesday-night national-security forum.

Clinton repeatedly was challenged on her controversial email use at the State Department and her vote as a senator for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. She also fleshed out several national-security priorities if she is elected, including trying to take out the leader of the Islamic State and vowing to defeat the extremist group without putting U.S. troops on the ground in Iraq or Syria.

Trump did little to counter criticism he lacks detailed policy proposals, particularly regarding the Islamic State group. He insisted he has a private blueprint for defeating the extremist group and also would demand a plan from military leaders within 30 days of taking office.

But he was harshly critical of the military, saying America's generals have been "reduced to rubble" under Obama. Asked to square his request for military options with that criticism, Trump said simply: "They'll probably be different generals."

The Republican also renewed his praise for Putin and his disdain for President Barack Obama, saying the Russian enjoyed an 82 percent approval rating and arguing "it's a very different system, and I don't happen to like the system, but certainly, in that system, he's been a leader, far more than our president has been a leader."

Speaking to reporters Thursday morning, Clinton suggested she agreed with Democrats who say she is being held to a different standard in the White House race.

"I find it frustrating," she said. "But it's part of the landscape we live in."

With just two months until Election Day, national security has emerged as a centerpiece issue in the White House race.

Both candidates have said they have the upper hand, with Clinton contrasting her experience with Trump's unpredictability and the Republican arguing Americans worried about their safety will be left with more of the same if they elect Obama's former secretary of state.

Clinton's argument Trump is ill-prepared to be commander in chief has been bolstered by a flood of Republican national-security experts who are backing the Democratic nominee instead of their own party's pick.

Some of those Republicans will join Clinton today for what she dubbed a "working session" on the threat of terrorism. Those attending include Michael Chertoff, who served as Homeland Security secretary under President George W. Bush.

The national-security debate came as Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson drew attention for a foreign policy flub.

He was asked Wednesday on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" what he would do as president about Aleppo, the Syrian city at the center of the refugee crisis.

Johnson replied, "And what is Aleppo?"

Clinton reiterated that she had made mistakes in relying on a personal email account and private server as secretary of state and in voting for the 2003 invasion of Iraq as a senator.

But she defended her support for U.S. military intervention to help oust a dictator in Libya, despite the chaotic aftermath.

Trump stood by a previous comment that appeared to blame military sexual assaults on men and women serving together, but added he would not seek to remove women from the military.

And for the first time, he opened the door to granting legal status to people living in the U.S. illegally who join the military.