Ahead of a Hillary Clinton speech which will attempt to link Donald Trump’s campaign to the "alt-right" -- the radical faction of the conservative movement -- the Republican nominee countered the suggestion that his supporters are bigoted today in New Hampshire.
"The news reports are that Hillary Clinton is going to try and accuse this campaign, and all of you, and the millions of decent Americans ... who support this campaign, your campaign, of being racists," Trump said at a campaign rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, "which we’re not."
Trump dismissed Clinton’s accusation as a "tired, disgusting argument."
"When Democratic policies fail, they are left with only this one tired argument: ‘You're racist. You're racist. You're racist,’" Trump said. "They keep saying it: ‘You're racist.’ It's a tired, disgusting argument and it's so totally predictable."
Donald Trump: 'Hillary Clinton Is a Bigot' Donald Trump Makes Appeal to Black Voters in Speeches but Relies on RNC for Outreach"To Hillary Clinton and her donors and advisers pushing her to spread smears and her lies about decent people, I have three words: Shame on you," he said.
Trump told the crowd gathered at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester that he doesn’t want to "dignify" Clinton’s remarks by "dwelling on them too much," but that his response was "required for the sake of all decent voters she is trying to smear."
In Clinton’s speech today in Reno, Nevada, she attacked Trump’s campaign as an "alt-right" movement built on fear and discrimination.
"From the start, Donald Trump has built his campaign on prejudice and paranoia," Clinton said. "He’s taking hate groups mainstream and helping a radical fringe take over one of America’s two major political parties."
Trump further suggested that demonstrations of appreciation for police officers have been misconstrued as displays of apathy towards minorities.
"People who support the police and want crime reduced and stopped are not prejudiced," said Trump. "They're concerned and loving citizens and parents whose heart breaks every time an innocent child is lost to totally preventable violence."
He again defended his immigration policy that includes building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and barring the entry of Muslim immigrants and refugees into the U.S., saying he will "100 percent" build the wall.
"First, on the border, the people of this country who want their laws enforced and respected, respected by all, and want their borders secured are not racists," Trump said, adding, "It makes you smart. It makes you an American. They're all patriotic Americans."
Trump’s comments sparked a "build that wall" chant from the crowd.
"On national security -- people who speak out against radical Islam and who warn about refugees are not Islamophobes," Trump said. "They are decent citizens who want to uphold our value as a tolerant society and who want to keep the terrorists the hell out of our country."
Trump pledged to "promote the values of tolerance, justice and acceptance."
"We will steadfastly reject bigotry and hatred and oppression in all of its ugly forms," Trump said.