Trump goes vulgar in swipe at Clinton

  • 23/12/2015
US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump addresses the crowd during a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan (Reuters)
US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump addresses the crowd during a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan (Reuters)

Donald Trump has dismissed claims that a remark he made about Hillary Clinton was sexually derogatory.

Mr Trump has been labelled a bully by the Clinton camp after he used crude language to describe her 2008 bid for the presidency and poked fun at her taking a bathroom break during a debate.

Mr Trump's final rally before Christmas was full of interruptions and insults for Ms Clinton.

"She's terrible," said Mr Trump. "'Donald Trump is on video and ISIS is using him on the video to recruit', and it turned out to be a lie. She's a liar.

"I'm watching the debate and she disappeared. Where did she go? I know where she went. It's disgusting. I don't want to talk about it."

It is pretty standard for Mr Trump – abrasive, accusatory, slightly bizarre – but it's nothing compared to this:

"Hillary, that's not a President. Even a race to Obama, she was going to beat Obama. She was going to beat; she was favoured to win and she got 'schlonged'. She lost. I mean she lost."

That Yiddish vulgarism prompted Ms Clinton's spokeswoman, Jennifer Palmieri, to tweet the campaign would not respond but "everyone who understands the humiliation this degrading language inflicts on all women should".

"You are looking at somebody who's had a lot of terrible things said about me," said Ms Clinton in Iowa today.

Ms Clinton cast Mr Trump's insult as a form of bullying.

"It's important to stand up to bullies wherever they are and we shouldn't let anybody bully their way into the presidency," she said.

In New Hampshire GOP rival Jeb Bush took a swipe at both candidates.

"She's great at being the victim," he said.

"But it's not a sign of strength to insult people with profanity. It's not a serious thing."

Watch the video for the full CBS News report.