Former CIA Director Leon Panetta Wednesday slammed Donald Trump's call for Russia to find Hillary Clinton's missing emails, saying that it was "beyond the pale."
"I find those kinds of statements to be totally outrageous, because you've got now a presidential candidate who is, in fact, asking the Russians to engage in American politics," Panetta, who later served as Defense Secretary under President Barack Obama, told Christiane Amanpour on CNN. "I just think that that's beyond the pale."
Trump made the remark after dismissing accusations that he was involved in the hacking and release of thousands of Democratic National Committee emails at a news conference at his resort in Doral, Fla.
"I wish I had that power," Trump told reporters. "Russia has no respect for our country, if it is Russia. No one knows.
"It is probably China. Or somebody sitting in his bed.
"It shows how weak we are," he added. "It shows how disrespected we are."
After the session, Trump posted this tweet:
Panetta, who headed the CIA for two years, said that Trump's comments proved that he was unfit to be president.
"A lot of concerns I have with his qualities of leadership, or lack thereof," he told Amanpour. "I think that kind of statement only reflects the fact that he truly is not qualified to be president of the United States."