7 memorable quotes from the presidential forum

The real estate mogul added that if Putin “says great things about me, I’m going to say great things about him”.

The event is not related to the three presidential debates, with the the first of those scheduled for September 26 at Hofstra University in NY.

By virtue of a coin flip, Clinton took the stage first.

Clinton defended her support for US military intervention in Libya, despite the chaos that has consumed that country since then.

Democrat Clinton has spent much of the summer trying to paint Trump as ill-prepared to be commander in chief and too unpredictable to make decisions that put American service members in harm’s way. And she pledged to hold weekly Oval Office meetings with representatives from the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs to stay abreast of health care for veterans.

Clinton also criticized coal workers during a rally in Tampa earlier this week, pointing out that they were wearing Trump shirts and “screaming” at him when he visited the state.

The Republican presidential nominee insisted during a presidential forum Wednesday night that he has a private blueprint for defeating the extremist group.

Asked by a veteran as to what Trump would do about the US military’s epidemic levels of sexual assault, Trump responded with an answer in which he suggested there needed to be military courts set up to deal with the problem – but also defended the view sexual assault was a natural outcome of a sex-integrated military.

Trump defends an old tweet on military sexual assault: “No, not to kick (women) out”. And for the first time, he opened the door to granting legal status to people living in the US illegally who join the military.

“In an interview aired Tuesday on ABC’s Good Morning America”, Trump said, “the fact is Mexico will pay for the wall”, adding, “it was discussed that it wouldn’t be discussed, but they know my stance and I know their stance”. You see the relationship I have with the vets just by looking at the polls.

During the forum, Trump repeated a claim that has been previously debunked – that the businessman was “totally against the war in Iraq”.

The appearances mark an intense, two-day focus on national security by Trump, who has offered tough rhetoric on America’s challenges overseas but few details.

Trump is to use his Philadelphia speech to accuse Clinton of backing “military adventurism” for her handling of conflicts in Libya and the Middle East while she was Obama’s secretary of state from 2009-13.

Neither candidate had an advantage when it came to national security, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling in August. I have a concern about the rape of women on our armed forces.

USA investigators concluded Clinton was “extremely careless” in her handling of national security materials, but that no criminal charges were warranted. “I’m proud to support Secretary Clinton”.