Trump decries Clinton 'collusion' as Democrats take aim at GOP health care bill

Trump targeted Clinton amid lingering concerns of 2016 Russian meddling.

ByABC News
June 25, 2017, 1:21 PM

— -- President Donald Trump, still mired in persistent allegations that his victory in the 2016 presidential election was aided by his campaign colluding with Russia, took to Twitter on Sunday morning to accuse Hillary Clinton of colluding with the Democratic Party to secure her nomination.

"Hillary Clinton colluded with the Democratic Party in order to beat Crazy Bernie Sanders. Is she allowed to so collude? Unfair to Bernie!," Trump tweeted.

Clinton's alleged collusion with her party to defeat the insurgent Sanders campaign in the 2016 primary is an issue that brought division in the Democratic Party's base, and has resulted in a lawsuit that seeks restitution for donations made by supporters to the self-described Democratic Socialist's campaign, citing claims of fraud and deception on the part of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

The allegations -- bolstered in part by a trove of emails leaked from the account of Clinton campaign chair John Podesta and published by the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks -- ultimately played a role in Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Florida, resigning as the DNC chair. They also inspired protests that took place at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in July.

The president's tweet follows others he wrote on Friday and Saturday that took aim at the Obama administration, alleging it failed to curtail the alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

"Obama Administration knew far in advance of November 8th about election meddling by Russia. Did nothing about it. WHY?" Trump wrote.

Clinton and Sanders, meanwhile, have been focused on bolstering the opposition argument against the GOP health care bill, which will be evaluated by the Congressional Budget Office later this week.

Clinton tweeted on Saturday, saying that if the bill is passed, the Republicans are "the death party."

Sen. Bernie Sanders and Pennsylvanians rally to demand that Sen. Pat Toomey vote against Trumpcare during an Emergency Rally with MoveOn.org To Stop Trumpcare held at the Pittsburgh Convention Center, June 24, 2017 in Pittsburgh.
Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Meanwhile, Sanders helped kick off the start of the "Protect Our Care" tour at a rally at the Pittsburgh Convention Center, using the opportunity to blast the Republican health care bill.

"This is a barbaric and immoral piece of legislation," Sanders told the crowd Saturday night.

Trump has backed the proposed health care legislation, which would repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, despite calling a version of the bill that passed in the House “mean.”

So far, five Republicans have come out in opposition to the current version of the bill, creating major obstacles for getting the legislation passed. Trump said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday that objections that exist within his party can be overcome through negotiation.

“I don’t think they’re that far off -- you know, famous last words -- but I think we are going to get there,” he said.

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