Mark Alderman, chairman of Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, and Jim Schultz, chair of Cozen O’Connor’s Government Law and Regulatory Affairs practice group, discuss Brexit and two controversies surrounding Hilary Clinton on NBC10 news.
In their evaluation of the candidates’ reaction to Brexit, Mark criticized Trump’s response, deeming it, “Another F- minus for Donald Trump as a world leader,” while Jim commented that he thought the referendum result mirrored Americans’ feelings towards the current U.S. administration. “The folks in England were disappointed and didn’t believe that their government was governing them appropriately and didn’t trust them just like the American public doesn’t trust elitist politicians like Hilary Clinton. Come November, you’re going to see an outpouring of support for Donald Trump because they don’t trust Hilary Clinton and they want to mix it up in Washington.” Mark disagreed with the comparison, calling it, “Apples and oranges … we are not the UK.”
Mark and Jim then transitioned the conversation to comment on two topics circling Hilary Clinton’s candidacy.
On June 27, Democrats released their own report on the Benghazi attack, which according to NBC10, indicated that Hilary Clinton never personally denied any requests for additional protection and did not delay the military’s response during the attack. Jim responded to those claims with, “The Democrats are once again covering the tracks for Hilary Clinton’s failed management of the Department of State …. She was the head of that agency [and as] the chief executive of that agency, the buck stops with her. It was woefully mismanaged … and it will be a disgrace if she doesn’t stand up and acknowledge it.” Mark’s counterpoint focused on demonstrating that the Republicans have continued to focus on what is now a non-issue that has already been resolved. He said, “[Republicans] play the Benghazi fantasy again and again. Secretary Clinton sat for 11 hours in front of a congressional committee. She was interrogated like she was a terrorist suspect, but she treated that committee with the respect that the committee did not show her. She answered every question; she acquitted herself honestly and honorably. Hit the pause on Benghazi and let’s talk about what the voters care about.”
Hilary Clinton remained the topic of discussion with Jim and Mark offering their take on the emails controversy, which reemerged again last week with recent reports alleging that she did not turn over another key email, according to NBC10. Mark acknowledged that the emails will continue to “haunt” Hilary Clinton, but also stated that “the American people don’t care.” Further, he explained, “Bernie Sanders said that no one gave a darn about her emails, but Donald Trump does and says that she should be in jail. As always he is distorted and extreme. She is not going to jail; she is not getting indicted; she is not getting arrested. Those are all Republican fantasies.” Jim disagreed with this stance, saying that “what she did was put our national security [and] confidential documents in jeopardy. And by doing that, she may have violated the Espionage Act and in fact, broken the law.” After offering several possible reasons for why he thinks she may have elected to use a separate email server, he concluded with, “It shows once again she can’t manage an agency. She’s distrustful, and she’s not fit to be president.”
To watch the complete interview, click here.