Washington – Hillary Clinton today brought up the assassination of Sen. Robert Kennedy while defending her decision to stay in the race against Barack Obama.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
“My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. I don’t understand it,” she said, dismissing calls to drop out.
Obama’s camp immediately fired back.
“Sen. Clinton’s statement before the Argus Leader editorial board was unfortunate and has no place in this campaign,” Obama campaign spokesman said in a statement.
Clinton made her comments at a meeting with the Sioux Falls Argus-Leader’s editorial board while campaigning in South Dakota, where she complained that, “People have been trying to push me out of this ever since Iowa.”
Obama, the first African-American to advance so far in the race for the White House, has faced threats, sources have said.
Robert Kennedy, the younger brother of President John F. Kennedy, was gunned down in 1968 after winning the California primary. He had been a hero on the left for his civil rights agenda and calls to end the war in Vietnam.
U/D 6:26 PM
Clinton spokesman Mo Elleithee said the senator was only referring to her husband and Kennedy “as historical examples of the nominating process going well into the summer and any reading into it beyond that would be inaccurate and outrageous.”
Even so, Clinton decided within a couple of hours to make a personal apology.
“I was discussing the Democratic primary history and in the course of that discussion mentioned the campaigns of both my husband and Senator (Robert) Kennedy waged in California in June in 1992 and 1968 and I was referencing those to make the point that we have had nomination primary contests that go into June. That’s a historic fact,” she said.
“The Kennedys have been much on my mind the last days because of Senator Kennedy,” she added, referring to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy’s recent diagnosis of a brain tumor. “I regret that if my referencing that moment of trauma for our entire nation and in particular the Kennedy family was in any way offensive. I certainly had no intention of that whatsoever.
“My view is that we have to look to the past to our leaders who have inspired us, give us a lot to live up to, and I’m honored to hold Senator Kennedy’s seat in the United States Senate from the state of New York and have the highest regard for the Kennedy family,” she said.
See Video Below
What ever happened to Foster? He was never found. Now she makes such a statement?
Please, she meant to bring it as proof that there were nomination fights going on until June.
Is this Obama’s way of new politics? its as old as they get. To take a word out of a sentence, and use it in a way which she obviously didn’t mean.
Yes Change we can believe in is just words.
Would it have been better if she had mentioned lynchings?
go hillary go and continue to make mistakes
Another typical case of Hillary’s “foot in mouth syndrome”.
Where was everyone when liberal leftist congressman jesse jackson jr. a chairman of the obama campaig compared obama and hillary to BLACK OJ SIMPSON KILLING HIS WHITE WIFE? yes, he said it. so how about it? why the souble standard???
It sounded like a threat to me.
Vince Foster was found dead. This is a typical problem in America. You can’t say anything honest about people of color as you are immediately labeled a racist. This should serve as an example of things to come should Obama be elected.
all she meant was that it happened in june – even bobby jr. the son of the dead kennedy who carries his name understood and says she did nothing wrong. that should be the last word. the liberal media is spinning so theit king obama can be a victim.
And here is a statement from Robert F. Kennedy Jr:
“It is clear from the context that Hillary was invoking a familiar political circumstance in order to support her decision to stay in the race through June. I have heard her make this reference before, also citing her husband’s 1992 race, both of which were hard fought through June. I understand how highly charged the atmosphere is, but I think it is a mistake for people to take offense.”
dont let obama become president you will never get finishid with racisim.
Obama says “America is the greatest country so lets CHANGE it”……..
Is this the type of idiot you want for President?
Obama keeps on talking about change and hope.
Lets HOPE he is not the CHANGE others want.
stupid biased liberal media who want to elect obama…. even kennedy’s son has no problem with what she said.