Hillary Clinton Says Republicans 'Talking Only About Me'
KEENE, New Hampshire -- During her first visit to New Hampshire as a presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton brushed off accusations about the Clinton Foundation's acceptance of donations from foreign governments, dismissing the reports made in a new book as simply being a "distraction" from the issues of her campaign.
"Well, we're back into the political season and therefore we will be subjected to all kinds of distractions and attacks and I'm ready for that. I know that that comes unfortunately with the territory," Clinton remarked at the end of a roundtable discussion at a local business here this afternoon, when asked by reporters about a new book, "Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich."
The book, set to be released next month, reportedly asserts that foreign entities have received special favors from her and her husband after donating to the Clinton Foundation or from paying former President Bill Clinton for speeches, particularly during Hillary Clinton’s tenure as secretary of State. Many of Clinton’s likely Republican opponents have used the book as a way to attack the democratic presidential candidate.
“It is, I think, worth noting,” Clinton added, “the Republicans seem to be talking only about me. I don’t know what they’d talk about if I wasn’t in the race. But I am in the race and hopefully we’ll get on to the issues and I look forward to that.”
Clinton’s campaign has also pushed back against the book – calling it a partisan hit job and noting that the book’s author, Peter Schweizer, is a former speechwriter consultant for George W Bush.
At least two Republican senators - Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tennessee, and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky - were briefed on the book prior to its release, ABC News confirmed.
Corker, who is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told ABC News he was briefed by Schweizer two to three weeks ago with a slideshow presentation in his Senate office. Paul, who has hinted about "big news" relating to the Clinton Foundation for several weeks, was briefed separately, but aides declined to detail who conducted the briefing or what was discussed.
Clinton is in New Hampshire for a two-day swing of the early primary state, where she is expected to continue holding intimate-style events with local business owners, employees and students.
Ahead of her visit, 19 Republican presidential prospects gathered in New Hampshire over the weekend and largely aimed their fire not at each other, but rather at Hillary Clinton. They hit her on a range of issues from her foreign policy, to the Clinton Foundation, to her recent Chipotle run.
"Hillary's going to raise $2.5 billion -- that's a lot of Chipotle, my friends," quipped Florida senator and Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio.
When asked about the barrage of attacks against her, Clinton hit back, although, unlike her opponents, refrained from calling anyone out by name.
"These issues are in my view distractions from what this campaign should be about, what I'm gonna make this campaign about," Clinton said at Whitney Brothers, a children's furniture manufacturing business. "I'll let other people decide what they want to talk about. I'm gonna talk about what's happening in the lives of people in New Hampshire and across the country."
ABC News' Michael Falcone and Arlette Saenz contributed to this report.
