Hillary Clinton in Third 2016 Presidential Debate


On Abortion: Defunding Planned Parenthood hurts women cancer screening

I strongly support Roe v. Wade, which guarantees a constitutional right to a woman to make the most intimate, most difficult, in many cases, decisions about her health care that one can imagine. And in this case, it's not only about Roe v. Wade. It is about what's happening right now in America. So many states are putting very stringent regulations on women that block them from exercising that choice to the extent that they are defunding Planned Parenthood, which, of course, provides all kinds of cancer screenings and other benefits for women in our country. Trump has said he's in favor of defunding Planned Parenthood. He even supported shutting the government down to defund Planned Parenthood. I will defend Planned Parenthood. I will defend Roe v. Wade, and I will defend women's rights to make their own health care decisions. He said that there should be some form of punishment for women who obtain abortions. And I could just not be more opposed to that kind of thinking.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Abortion: Government shouldn't be involved with late-term decisions

Q: You've been quoted as saying that the fetus has no constitutional rights. You also voted against a ban on late-term, partial-birth abortions. Why?

A: Because Roe v. Wade very clearly sets out that there can be regulations on abortion so long as the life and the health of the mother are taken into account. And when I voted as a senator, I did not think that that was the case. The kinds of cases that fall at the end of pregnancy are often the most heartbreaking, painful decisions for families to make. I have met with women who toward the end of their pregnancy get the worst news one could get, that their health is in jeopardy if they continue to carry to term or that something terrible has happened or just been discovered about the pregnancy. I do not think the United States government should be stepping in and making those most personal of decisions. So you can regulate if you are doing so with the life and the health of the mother taken into account.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Abortion: Late-term decisions are most painful; leave government out

Q: What about the issue of late-term, partial-birth abortions?

CLINTON: Roe v. Wade very clearly sets out that there can be regulations on abortion so long as the life and the health of the mother are taken into account. The kinds of cases that fall at the end of pregnancy are often the most heartbreaking, painful decisions for families to make. I have met with women who toward the end of their pregnancy get the worst news one could get: that their health is in jeopardy if they continue to carry to term or that something terrible has just been discovered about the pregnancy. I do not think the United States government should be stepping in and making those most personal of decisions. So you can regulate if you are doing so with the life and the health of the mother taken into account.

TRUMP: If you go with what Hillary is saying, in the ninth month, you can rip the baby out of the womb of the mother just prior to the birth of the baby.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate, moderated by Chris Wallace Oct 19, 2016

On Budget & Economy: Don't add a penny to the national debt

Q: The nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget says, under your plan, debt would rise to 77% of GDP to 86% of GDP over the next 10 years.

CLINTON: If you look at the debt, I pay for everything I'm proposing. I do not add a penny to the national debt. I take that very seriously. So when I talk about how we're going to pay for education, how we're going to invest in infrastructure, how we're going to get the cost of prescription drugs down, and a lot of the other issues, I've made it very clear we are going where the money is. We are going to ask the wealthy and corporations to pay their fair share. And there is no evidence whatsoever that that will slow down or diminish our growth. In fact, I think just the opposite. We'll have what economists call middle-out growth. We've got to get back to rebuilding the middle class, the families of America. That's where growth will come from. That's why I want to invest in you. I want to invest in your family.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Corporations: Make economy work for everyone, not just the powerful

CLINTON: I'm reaching out to all Americans--Democrats, Republicans, and independents--because we need everybody to help grow the economy, make it fairer, make it work for everyone. We need your talents, your skills, your commitments, your energy, your ambition. I will stand up for families against powerful interests, against corporations. I will do everything that I can to make sure that you have good jobs, with rising incomes, that your kids have good educations.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate moderated by Fox News Oct 19, 2016

On Education: Free college education for families make less than $125000

I feel strongly that we have to have an education system that starts with preschool and goes through college. That's why I want more technical education in high schools and in community colleges, real apprenticeships to prepare young people for the jobs of the future. I want to make college debt-free and for families making less than $125,000, you will not get a tuition bill from a public college or university if the plan that I worked on with Sanders is enacted.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Families & Children: I have 30 years of experience helping kids and families

Trump raised the 30 years of experience, so let me just talk briefly about that. Back in the 1970s, I worked for the Children's Defense Fund. I was taking on discrimination against African-American kids in schools. He was getting sued by the Justice Department for racial discrimination in his apartment buildings. In the 1980s, I was working to reform the schools in Arkansas. He was borrowing $14 million from his father to start his businesses. In the 1990s, I went to Beijing and I said women's rights are human rights. On the day when I was in the Situation Room, monitoring the raid that brought Osama bin Laden to justice, he was hosting the "Celebrity Apprentice." So I'm happy to compare my 30 years of experience, what I've done for this country, trying to help in every way I could, especially kids and families get ahead and stay ahead, with your 30 years, and I'll let the American people make that decision.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Foreign Policy: Clinton Foundation raised $30M to help Haiti

We at the Clinton Foundation spend 90% of all the money that is donated on behalf of programs of people around the world and in our own country. I'm very proud of that. We have the highest rating from the watchdogs that follow foundations. I'd be happy to compare what we do with the Trump Foundation, which took money from other people and bought a six-foot portrait of Trump. I mean, who does that? It just was astonishing. But when it comes to Haiti, Haiti is the poorest country in our hemisphere. The earthquake and the hurricanes, it has devastated Haiti. Bill and I have been involved in trying to help Haiti for many years. The Clinton Foundation raised $30 million to help Haiti after the catastrophic earthquake and all of the terrible problems the people there had. We have done things to help small businesses, agriculture, and so much else. And we're going to keep working to help Haiti because it's an important part of the American experience.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate moderated by Fox News Oct 19, 2016

On Free Trade: I fought illegal dumping of Chinese steel and aluminum

TRUMP: Our country is stagnant. We've lost our jobs. We're not making things anymore. Our product is pouring in from China, pouring in from Vietnam, pouring in from all over the world. She wants to sign Trans-Pacific Partnership.

CLINTON: When I saw the final agreement for TPP, it didn't meet my test: Does it create jobs, raise incomes, and further our national security? I'm against it now. There's only one of us on this stage who's actually shipped jobs to Mexico: that's Donald. He's shipped jobs to 12 countries. But he mentioned China: one of the biggest problems we have with China is the illegal dumping of steel and aluminum into our markets. I have fought against that as a senator. I've stood up against it as secretary of state. Donald has bought Chinese steel and aluminum. In fact, the Trump Hotel right here in Las Vegas was made with Chinese steel. So he goes around with crocodile tears about how terrible it is, but he has given jobs to Chinese steelworkers, not American steelworkers.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate, moderated by Chris Wallace Oct 19, 2016

On Government Reform: We need Supreme Court to stand up to the powerful

I feel strongly that the Supreme Court needs to stand on the side of the American people, not on the side of the powerful corporations and the wealthy. For me, that means that we need a Supreme Court that will stand up on behalf of women's rights, on behalf of the rights of the LGBT community, that will stand up and say no to Citizens United, a decision that has undermined the election system in our country because of the way it permits dark, unaccountable money to come into our electoral system. It is important that we not reverse marriage equality, that we not reverse Roe v. Wade, that we stand up against Citizens United, we stand up for the rights of people in the workplace, that we stand up and basically say: The Supreme Court should represent all of us. That's how I see the court, and the kind of people that I would be looking to nominate to the court would be in the great tradition of standing up to the powerful, standing up on behalf of our rights as Americans.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Government Reform: Unprecedented Russian interference in presidential election

Q: What about allegations of Russian involvement in this election?

TRUMP: I don't know Putin, but he has no respect for our president and no respect for [Hillary Clinton].

CLINTON: Well, that's because he'd rather have a puppet as president of the United States. It's pretty clear that the Russians have engaged in cyberattacks against the US, that you encouraged espionage against our people, that you are willing to spout the Putin line, break up NATO, do whatever he wants to do, and that you continue to get help from him, because he has a very clear favorite in this race. So I think that this is such an unprecedented situation. We've never had a foreign government trying to interfere in our election. We have 17 intelligence agencies who have all concluded that these cyberattacks, come from the highest levels of the Kremlin and they are designed to influence our election. I find that deeply disturbing.

TRUMP: She has no idea whether it's Russia, China, or anybody else.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate, moderated by Chris Wallace Oct 19, 2016

On Gun Control: I believe in 2nd amendment but 33,000 people died from guns

Dozens of toddlers injure themselves, even kill people with guns, because not everyone who has loaded guns in their homes takes appropriate precautions. But there's no doubt that I respect the 2nd Amendment, that I also believe there's an individual right to bear arms. That is not in conflict with sensible, commonsense regulation. Of course we're going to protect and defend the 2nd Amendment. But we're going to do it in a way that tries to save some of these 33,000 lives that we lose every year.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Homeland Security: If you are on no-fly list, you shouldn't have a gun

CLINTON: We need to keep our eye on ISIS. That's why I want to have an intelligence surge that protects us here at home, why we have to go after them from the air, on the ground, online, why we have to make sure here at home we don't let terrorists buy weapons. If you're too dangerous to fly, you're too dangerous to buy a gun.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate moderated by Fox News Oct 19, 2016

On Immigration: FactCheck: Yes, voted for a partial wall on Mexican border

[Clinton and Trump went back-and-forth on border security]:They both can claim to be correct here, based on these two YES votes by Hillary as Senator:
Source: OnTheIssues Fact-checking on Third 2016 Presidential Debate Oct 19, 2016

On Immigration: Ripping families apart would rip our country apart

I don't want to rip families apart. I don't want to send parents away from children. I don't want to see the deportation force that Trump has talked about in action in our country. It means you would have to have a massive law enforcement presence, where law enforcement officers would be going school to school, home to home, business to business, rounding up people who are undocumented. That is an idea that is not in keeping with who we are as a nation. It's an idea that would rip our country apart.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On Immigration: Vet immigrants; ask Muslim-Americans to help us

Q: What about Syrian refugees and Donald Trump's complaint that letting them in would be a "Trojan horse" for terrorists?

CLINTON: I am not going to let anyone into this country who is not vetted. We are going to be very careful, thorough vetting. That does not solve our internal challenges with ISIS and our need to stop radicalization, to work with American Muslim communities who are on the front lines to identify and prevent attacks.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate moderated by Fox News Oct 19, 2016

On Immigration: Focus on deporting violent criminals & path to citizenship

I have been for border security for years. I voted for border security in the United States Senate. And my comprehensive immigration reform plan of course includes border security. But I want to put our resources where I think they're most needed: Getting rid of any violent person. Anybody who should be deported, we should deport them.

We are both a nation of immigrants and we are a nation of laws and that we can act accordingly. And that's why I'm introducing comprehensive immigration reform within the first 100 days with the path to citizenship.

Now, what I am also arguing is that bringing undocumented immigrants out from the shadows, putting them into the formal economy will be good, because then employers can't exploit them and undercut Americans' wages. I want to get everybody out of the shadows, get the economy working, and not let employers exploit undocumented workers, which hurts them, but also hurts American workers.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate, moderated by Chris Wallace Oct 19, 2016

On Social Security: Replenish the Trust Fund by raising the cap

CLINTON: I am on record as saying that we need to put more money into the Social Security Trust Fund. That's part of my commitment to raise taxes on the wealthy. We want to replenish the Social Security Trust Fund by making sure that we have sufficient resources, and that will come from either raising the cap and/or finding other ways to get more money into it. I will not cut benefits. I want to enhance benefits for low-income workers and for women who have been disadvantaged by the current system.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate moderated by Fox News Oct 19, 2016

On Tax Reform: FactCheck: Hillary's plan raises taxes only for top 5%

Trump said, "Clinton's plan is going to raise taxes and even double your taxes. Her tax plan is a disaster. And she can say all she wants about college tuition. And I'm a big proponent. We're going to do a lot of things for college tuition. But the rest of the public's going to be paying for it. We will have a massive, massive tax increase under Hillary Clinton's plan."

Fact-checked: "Clinton's plan wouldn't raise taxes at all for 95% of Americans, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. The very wealthiest would take the greatest hit, though a doubling is highly questionable. Two-thirds of her proposed increases would hit the top 0.1 percent of richest Americans, the center estimates. The main components of her tax plan: a minimum 30 percent tax on those earning at least $1 million a year, and a 5 percent tax surcharge for those earning more than $5 million a year. She would also cap the value of tax deductions and exclusions for wealthier taxpayers."

Source: Fox Business FactCheck on Third 2016 Presidential Debate Oct 19, 2016

On Tax Reform: I will not add taxes on anyone earning under $250,000

I have said repeatedly throughout this campaign: I will not raise taxes on anyone making $250,000 or less. I also will not add a penny to the debt. I have costed out what I'm going to do. He will, through his massive tax cuts, add $20 trillion to the debt. We know how to get control of the debt. When my husband was president, we went from a $300 billion deficit to a $200 billion surplus and we were actually on the path to eliminating the national debt. When President Obama came into office, he inherited the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression. He has cut the deficit by two-thirds. So, yes, one of the ways you go after the debt, one of the ways you create jobs is by investing in people. So I do have investments, investments in new jobs, investments in education, skill training, and the opportunities for people to get ahead and stay ahead. That's the kind of approach that will work.
Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate in Las Vegas Oct 19, 2016

On War & Peace: No US troops as occupying force in Iraq

CLINTON: I will not support putting American soldiers into Iraq as an occupying force. I don't think that is in our interest, and I don't think that would be smart to do. That would be a big red flag waving for ISIS to reconstitute itself. I'm going to push for a no-fly zone and safe havens within Syria to gain leverage on both the Syrian government and the Russians so we can have the kind of serious negotiation necessary to bring the conflict to an end.

TRUMP: Three months ago, I read that they're going to attack Mosul. Whatever happened to the element of surprise? We announce we're going after Mosul. These people have all left.

CLINTON: The goal here is to take back Mosul. It's going to be a hard fight. I've got no illusions about that. And then continue to press into Syria to begin to take back and move on Raqqa, which is the ISIS headquarters. I am hopeful that the hard work that American military advisers have done will pay off and that we will see a successful military operation.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate moderated by Fox News Oct 19, 2016

On War & Peace: Benefits of no-fly zone against ISIS outweigh risks

CLINTON: We need to go after the leadership [of ISIS]. There are an estimated several thousand fighters in Mosul. They've been prepared to defend. It's going to be tough fighting. But I think we can take back Mosul, and then we can move on into Syria and take back Raqqa.

TRUMP: Assad turned out to be a lot tougher than she thought. Everyone thought he was gone two years ago. He aligned with Russia. We don't know who the rebels are. But if they overthrow Assad, as bad as Assad is, you may very well end up with worse than Assad.

CLINTON: I think a no-fly zone could save lives and could hasten the end of the conflict. I'm aware of the concerns that you have expressed. This would not be done on the first day. This would take a lot of negotiation. And it would also take making it clear to the Russians and the Syrians that our purpose here was to provide safe zones on the ground. We've had millions of people leave Syria and those millions of people inside Syria who have been dislocated.

Source: Third 2016 Presidential Debate moderated by Fox News Oct 19, 2016

The above quotations are from Third Presidential Debate, Oct. 19, 2016, moderated by Fox News' Chris Wallace.
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Page last updated: Dec 09, 2018