Ayotte's Game Ends As She Declares Trump A Role Model

Kelly Ayotte’s game of not endorsing Donald Trump but not repudiating him either probably came to an end last night. During a debate, she once again refused to endorse Trump, saying she “has disagreements” with him and that this somehow shows she is willing to fight for the people of New Hampshire. A subsequent question was then whether she considered Trump a good role model for children and this was her answer, “I think that certainly there are many role models that we have. I believe he can serve as president, so absolutely, I would”. It is pretty easy to see the next ad her opponent Maggie Hassan would be running, showing clips of Trump’s outrageous statements and behavior followed by Ayotte’s statement that Trump sets a good example for children. So it only took an hour or so before Ayotte’s campaign pulled a complete 180 and put out the following statement, “I misspoke tonight. While I would hope all of our children would aspire to be president, neither Donald Trump nor Hillary Clinton have set a good example and I wouldn’t hold up either of them as role models for my kids.” It’s never good to have to retract what you have said during a live debate almost immediately afterward and she should still be pressed to explain her original statement.

This type of questioning needs to be hammered home with all the vulnerable Senate Republicans who maintain the same position of not endorsing Trump but not repudiating him either. Is he good role model? Does he have the qualities and temperament to be President? The elections in all the tight Senate races will probably hinge on how many suburban Republican women who will probably not vote for Trump will still pull the Republican lever for Senate. Democrats need to do everything they can to peel those voters away.