Following the United Kingdom’s vote to withdraw from the European Union, Hillary Clinton said it was important the result not hurt working class Americans.
“We respect the choice the people of the United Kingdom have made,” Clinton said in a statement on Friday morning.
“Our first task has to be to make sure that the economic uncertainty created by these events does not hurt working families here in America,” she added. “We also have to make clear America’s steadfast commitment to the special relationship with Britain and the transatlantic alliance with Europe.”
The former secretary of state never weighed in on the Brexit debate before Thursday’s vote, but she often stressed the importance of both the political and economic alliance between Britain and the United States.
American stocks have fallen drastically in the wake of the vote, with the Dow Jones Industrial average down 454 points, the NASDAQ Composite falling 140 points and the S&P 500 Index losing 51 points.
On the campaign trail, Clinton repeatedly criticized her general election opponent Donald Trump for “alienating our allies,” and not continually standing in solidarity with Great Britain. As the business mogul flew to Scotland yesterday to visit his golf courses, the Clinton campaign released a video of British lawmakers bashing both Trump’s rhetoric and policies.
“This time of uncertainty only underscores the need for calm, steady, experienced leadership in the White House to protect Americans’ pocketbooks and livelihoods, to support our friends and allies, to stand up to our adversaries, and to defend our interests,” Clinton said. “It also underscores the need for us to pull together to solve our challenges as a country, not tear each other down.”
