Hillary Clinton criticized Carly Fiorina in a new interview, saying female candidates shouldn’t get a pass just because they are women.
“I’m always in favor of women running,” she told TIME magazine when asked whether Fiorina has been treated differently in the Republican primary. “But people need to hold women’s policies up to light and determine what their answers to problems would be before deciding to support them. I’m willing to subject myself to that process and try to earn every vote; I assume any woman running would do the same.”
It’s largely what Fiorina says about Clinton, though it's always followed by a scathing attack of the former Secretary of State’s record. But Clinton has largely stayed quiet on Fiorina as she’s risen in the Republican primary polls, spurred by breakout debate performances and direct attacks on the Democratic front-runner.
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Clinton went on to slam Fiorina particularly for her stance on Planned Parenthood, which Fiorina has vocally condemned and pushed back against Democrats factchecking her claims that the organization is harvesting the organs from live children.
“Obviously, I disagree fundamentally with a number of positions that she’s put forward. I think that her full-throated, inaccurate attack on Planned Parenthood was really ill-advised and inflammatory,” Clinton said. In last month’s Republican debate, Fiorina exaggerated the footage in highly-edited videos designed to smear Planned Parenthood, and challenged Clinton watch them and stand by her pro-choice views.
Pressed on whether Fiorina is being treated differently by the other candidates, Clinton deferred to Fiorina. “She will have to speak for herself,” Clinton said.
“We as women, especially in presidential politics, need to play by the same rules as the men. If we want to play this game as equals, we need to play by the same rules, and that means our track record is relevant," Fiorina said last month. “And so I never make a personal comment about Hillary Clinton — my criticism of her is fact-based, based on her actions and track record. And that is fair game.”