Hillary Clinton jumped at the chance to hit Bernie Sanders, after the surging candidate took a jab at abortion provider Planned Parenthood.
Sanders raised the eyebrows of liberals on Tuesday night when, in an interview with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, he lumped in Planned Parenthood with the “establishment” groups against which his campaign was fighting. Maddow had asked him about the fact that, despite his record of support for gay rights and abortion rights, he was losing out on endorsements from many groups such as the Human Rights Campaign and Planned Parenthood.
After describing his battles against the establishment, Sanders answered, “I have friends and supporters in the Human Rights Fund and Planned Parenthood. But, you know what? Hillary Clinton has been around there for a very, very long time. Some of these groups are, in fact, part of the establishment.”
The statement provided an opening for Clinton at a time when liberals are rallying around Planned Parenthood as Republicans aim to defund it in the wake of videos portraying the group as trafficking fetal body parts. Clinton jumped at the chance.
“Really Senator Sanders? How can you say that groups like Planned Parenthood and Human Rights Campaign are a part of the ‘establishment’ you’re taking on?” Clinton tweeted on Tuesday night after the interview aired.
Really Senator Sanders? How can you say that groups like @PPact and @HRC are part of the “establishment” you’re taking on? -H
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) January 20, 2016
The former secretary of state’s remarks came just hours after a new CNN/WMUR poll showed Sanders dominating Clinton in New Hampshire by 27 points (60 percent-33 percent). Although Sanders’ campaign has gained significant momentum in New Hampshire this week, the Clinton campaign has secured endorsements from both Planned Parenthood and the Human RIghts Campaign in the past week.
Although Clinton was once assumed front-runner and led Sanders by over 50 points when their respective campaigns began in April, nationally now Clinton leads by low double digits as Sanders creeps closer in the early primary states. Both Clinton and Sanders will hit the road in both Iowa and New Hampshire this week leading up to the early February nomination contests.
