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Clinton zings Trump over LGBT support

by Jesse Byrnes - 06/16/16 10:34 PM ET

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump on Thursday night sparred over their respective support for members of the LGBT community days after a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando.

“LGBT is starting to like Donald Trump very much lately, I will tell you, starting to like Donald Trump very, very much lately,” Trump said during a rally in Dallas.

Trump went after donations to the Clinton Foundation from countries with poor human rights records, mentioning Saudi Arabia.

“They kill gays in these countries,” Trump said, touching on a theme he’s used this week. “So you tell me who’s better for the gay community and who’s better for women than Donald Trump?”

Clinton, who has made support for LGBT people a component of her campaign since announcing her candidacy in a video last year, interjected on Twitter to respond to a CNN reporter who quoted Trump.

Hi. https://t.co/11Fyyf5IQm

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) June 17, 2016

Trump has touted his proposed ban on Muslims immigrating to the U.S., some from countries that criminalize homosexuality, contrasting it with Clinton’s push to accept Syrian refugees in an attempt to appeal to LGBT advocates.

Trump also weighed in on LGBT issues in April, several weeks before the end of the GOP primary, when he said North Carolina unnecessarily mandated that transgender people use public restrooms correlating to their biological sex assigned at birth.

Clinton and Trump have mostly sparred on the issue of gun control and terrorism this week after a man claiming allegiance to Islamic militants gunned down 49 people at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando.

Tags 2016 presidential election Donald Trump Hillary Clinton LGBT Orlando nightclub shooting