Hillary Clinton Friday said she does not understand why her former GOP Senate colleagues have not spoken out against President Donald Trump and said that their choice to stay silent about him means they are "complicit."
“When Russians are interfering in our election, when they’re putting bounties on American soldiers, to stay silent is to be complicit,” she said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."
“That’s what I don’t understand — why do they want their place in history to be tarred by this apology for Trump at every turn or the silence that marks them when they’re asked a tough question.”
Clinton said she is looking for someone like Sen. Margaret Chase Smith, the Republican who stood up to Sen. Joe McCarthy with her famous "Declaration of Conscience" speech in the 1950s.
"I don't understand what has happened to them," said Clinton of her former colleagues.
Clinton, who lost to Trump in the 2016 election, said that the new Senate Intelligence Committee report on Russian interference that year paints a "very clear and damning picture" of the president's campaign representatives and their connection with representatives of the Russian government.
She said she also finds it troubling that Trump administration intelligence officials are reporting that meddling is continuing during this election cycle.
Clinton also said she doesn't think there is any doubt that Trump is making a "direct effort to sabotage" the election by Trump, and she's concerned about interference through the U.S. Postal Service.
She added that she's been advising Joe Biden in his campaign about running against Trump, telling him not to be dragged into the president's "reality show," and to always be prepared on the debate stage. She also said he shouldn't let attacks go unanswered and should challenge any lies from the president.