Roughed up by critics, Matt Lauer jokes with Dana Carvey

That recalled a gaffe made by Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential nominee at the time.

When King asked about reports that US intelligence agencies are investigating whether Russian Federation is trying to disrupt the election, Trump said that he’s skeptical. “If he says great things about me, I’m going to say great things about him”. “It’s a very different system and I don’t happen to like the system, but certainly, in that system, he’s been a leader, far more than our president has been a leader”. “What did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together?”

Mr Trump, a NY businessman who has never run for political office before, regularly says things that some consider insulting, racist or off-color. “There are many people that think that that’s absolutely correct”.

Asked whether the solution was to keep women from serving in the military, Trump said no.

The forum underscored a debate that’s rapidly becoming a focal point in the race: Is the first female presidential nominee of a major USA party being judged fairly?

Former prime minister John Howard isn’t impressed by Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton in the USA presidential race, saying “I’m glad I’m not an American”.

Taking Iraq’s oil, Graham said, would “start World War III”.

“One has to be careful not to succumb to flattery when there are issues like this that are very important for us to resolve”, he said, referring to tensions between the USA and Russian Federation. “And if I create that perception, then I take responsibility”.

“In terms of competency, I think Trump fell way short”, Graham said.

She specified that she believes the word “deplorable” was reasonable to describe much of Trump’s campaign.

“There is no evidence my account was hacked”, she said.

Tim Kaine (D-VA), said that Clinton did not need to apologize for her comments. Trump himself calling it “a new low”, while his campaign called on her to apologize for a sentiment they say betrays contempt for voters. “Always have, always will”.

Mrs Clinton’s comment could nevertheless end up being a boon to Mr Trump. He added that Trump was describing a “sense that he got recently that in fact our President had not taken all of the counsel of our military advisers in confronting and defeating ISIS”. She also flushed out several national security priorities if she is elected, including trying to take out the leader of the Islamic State and vowing to defeat the extremist group without putting USA troops on the ground in Iraq or Syria.

Republican opponents have no shortage of examples which they say demonstrate that it’s Clinton who expects deferential treatment. Clinton said “I regret saying “half” – that was wrong”.

As part of their effort, Clinton and her team have begun tip-toeing into a topic they’ve often tried to avoid: sexism.

“I would rather be dealing with Iran on all of those issues, without having them racing to a nuclear weapon”, she said.

Mike Pence on Thursday defended his running mate’s statement that Vladimir Putin is a stronger leader than President Barack Obama, calling it “inarguable”.

“There is an agenda out there … to do just that”, she said.

The event, televised live, was organized by the nonpartisan Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

Trump proved beyond a doubt during the forum that he is not ready to lead the military. Last year, he insulted Sen.

“It doesn’t really have to do with anything about public policy”, Corker said of Trump’s remarks about Putin. And while she’s finally getting more face time in front of the press – bringing reporters on her plane and doing a Thursday press conference – she also has plenty of money to buy more controlled visibility, in the form of attack ad after attack ad.

Polls show Trump has more support from the military community.

And while Trump is still leading overwhelmingly among military members, that support appears to be slipping. In Florida, the two candidates are tied at 47 percentage points.