Mike Bloomberg enters US Presidential race for 2020. Watch video to know more.

Mike Bloomberg enters US Presidential race for 2020

Hillary Clinton on Sunday sharply criticised Donald Trump over his &quot;absolute allegiance&quot; to Russian policy aims, saying it raised both &quot;national security issues&quot; and new doubts about his temperament. 
 
Trump, her Republican rival in the race for the White House, responded defiantly, saying he had &quot;no relationship&quot; with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and had never met nor spoken to him by phone, but that &quot;if our country got along with Russia, that would be a great thing&quot;. 
 
He said in an American Broadcasting Company (ABC)&nbsp;interview that he was not about to disavow it if Putin praised him as a &quot;genius&quot; (some Russian speakers say &quot;colourful&quot; was a better translation of the word). 
 
But further fanning controversy, Trump added that as President he would at least consider acknowledging Russian sovereignty over Crimea, the Ukrainian territory that Russia annexed in 2014 in the face of widespread international condemnation. 
 
&quot;The people of Crimea, from what I&#39;ve heard, would rather be with Russia,&quot; Trump said. 
 
The territory was the subject of a head-scratching exchange between Trump and ABC &quot;This Week&quot; host George Stephanopoulos. 
 
&quot;(Putin&#39;s) not going into Ukraine, okay, just so you understand,&quot; Trump said. &quot;He&#39;s not gonna go into Ukraine, all right? You can mark it down. You can put it down.&quot; 
 
Stephanopoulos responded: &quot;Well, he&#39;s already there, isn&#39;t he?&quot; 
 
Trump replied, &quot;Okay - well, he&#39;s there in a certain way. But I&#39;m not there.&quot; 
 
Clinton senior policy advisor Jake Sullivan called Trump&#39;s statement &quot;scary stuff&quot;. 
 
&quot;What is he talking about? ... What else doesn&#39;t he know?&quot; Sullivan said in a statement. &quot;While Trump hasn&#39;t mastered basic facts about the world, he has mastered Putin&#39;s talking points on Crimea.&quot; 
 
Trump said he was not involved in Republicans&#39; softening of their platform language to remove a call to provide Ukraine with lethal weaponry.&nbsp;The dispute over Russia is part of a broader disagreement over US engagement abroad, as Trump argues that a weakened America must retrench and demand greater contributions from its allies, while Clinton asserts that decades-old US commitments to foreign partners must be maintained. 
 
Backlash over emails&nbsp; 
 
Clinton, in her comments, was responding on Fox News Sunday to allegations of Russian involvement in leaks of Democratic Party emails that embarrassed her on the eve of the just-ended Democratic national convention. 
 
As that convention was under way, Trump urged Russia to find and release several thousand emails that disappeared from Clinton&#39;s private server while she was secretary of state. 
 
&quot;Russia, if you&#39;re listening,&quot; Trump said at the time, &quot;I hope you&#39;re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will be mightily rewarded by our press&quot;. 
 
That call, of a sort nearly unprecedented in US presidential politics, drew sharp rebukes from Democrats and some Republicans.&nbsp;US cybersecurity experts said it raised questions about whether Russia had attempted to influence the American campaign in Trump&#39;s favour. 
 
Leaked emails published by WikiLeaks revealed the distrust of some key Democratic leaders of Bernie Sanders, Clinton&#39;s former rival for the Democratic nod. 
 
Trump&#39;s seeming encouragement of Russian hacking, Clinton told Fox, &quot;raises issues about Russian influence in our election&quot;. 
 
&quot;And for Trump to both encourage that and to praise Putin despite what appears to be a deliberate effort to try to affect the election, I think, raises national security issues.&quot; 
 
&#39;Not temperamentally fit&#39;&nbsp; 
 
When an interviewer noted that Trump had claimed he was being sarcastic, Clinton replied: &quot;If you take the encouragement that Russians hack into email accounts, if you take his quite excessive praise for Putin, his absolute allegiance to a lot of Russian wish-list foreign policy issues,&quot; it suggests that &quot;he is not temperamentally fit to be president and commander-in-chief&quot;. 
 
Trump had earlier unnerved NATO member nations by questioning the long absolute US commitment to defend any member of the Atlantic alliance should it be attacked by Russia. 
 
In an interview with The New York Times just before the Republican convention, Trump said that if Russia attacked NATO member nations he would decide whether to come to their assistance only if he decided that they had &quot;fulfilled their obligations to us&quot;. 
 
Trump has also said he might withdraw US troops from European and Asian countries if they failed to pay more for American protection. 
 
&quot;We are going to take care of this country first,&quot; he told The Times, &quot;before we worry about everyone else in the world&quot;. 
 
(AFP) 
 
&nbsp;

Comment comes after Trump encourages Putin to compromise US cyber security & denies Russia will enter Ukraine -- which it already has

Hillary Clinton on Sunday sharply criticised Donald Trump over his "absolute allegiance" to Russian policy aims, saying it raised both "national security issues" and new doubts about his temperament. Trump, her Republican rival in the race for the White House, responded defiantly, saying he had "no relationship" with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and had never met nor spoken to him by phone, but that "if our country got along with Russia, that would be a great thing". He said in an American Broadcasting Company (ABC) interview that he was not about to disavow it if Putin praised him as a "genius" (some Russian speakers say "colourful" was a better translation of the word). But further fanning controversy, Trump added that as President he would at least consider acknowledging Russian sovereignty over Crimea, the Ukrainian territory that Russia annexed in 2014 in the face of widespread international condemnation. "The people of Crimea, from what I've heard, would rather be with Russia," Trump said. The territory was the subject of a head-scratching exchange between Trump and ABC "This Week" host George Stephanopoulos. "(Putin's) not going into Ukraine, okay, just so you understand," Trump said. "He's not gonna go into Ukraine, all right? You can mark it down. You can put it down." Stephanopoulos responded: "Well, he's already there, isn't he?" Trump replied, "Okay - well, he's there in a certain way. But I'm not there." Clinton senior policy advisor Jake Sullivan called Trump's statement "scary stuff". "What is he talking about? ... What else doesn't he know?" Sullivan said in a statement. "While Trump hasn't mastered basic facts about the world, he has mastered Putin's talking points on Crimea." Trump said he was not involved in Republicans' softening of their platform language to remove a call to provide Ukraine with lethal weaponry. The dispute over Russia is part of a broader disagreement over US engagement abroad, as Trump argues that a weakened America must retrench and demand greater contributions from its allies, while Clinton asserts that decades-old US commitments to foreign partners must be maintained. Backlash over emails Clinton, in her comments, was responding on Fox News Sunday to allegations of Russian involvement in leaks of Democratic Party emails that embarrassed her on the eve of the just-ended Democratic national convention. As that convention was under way, Trump urged Russia to find and release several thousand emails that disappeared from Clinton's private server while she was secretary of state. "Russia, if you're listening," Trump said at the time, "I hope you're able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. I think you will be mightily rewarded by our press". That call, of a sort nearly unprecedented in US presidential politics, drew sharp rebukes from Democrats and some Republicans. US cybersecurity experts said it raised questions about whether Russia had attempted to influence the American campaign in Trump's favour. Leaked emails published by WikiLeaks revealed the distrust of some key Democratic leaders of Bernie Sanders, Clinton's former rival for the Democratic nod. Trump's seeming encouragement of Russian hacking, Clinton told Fox, "raises issues about Russian influence in our election". "And for Trump to both encourage that and to praise Putin despite what appears to be a deliberate effort to try to affect the election, I think, raises national security issues." 'Not temperamentally fit' When an interviewer noted that Trump had claimed he was being sarcastic, Clinton replied: "If you take the encouragement that Russians hack into email accounts, if you take his quite excessive praise for Putin, his absolute allegiance to a lot of Russian wish-list foreign policy issues," it suggests that "he is not temperamentally fit to be president and commander-in-chief". Trump had earlier unnerved NATO member nations by questioning the long absolute US commitment to defend any member of the Atlantic alliance should it be attacked by Russia. In an interview with The New York Times just before the Republican convention, Trump said that if Russia attacked NATO member nations he would decide whether to come to their assistance only if he decided that they had "fulfilled their obligations to us". Trump has also said he might withdraw US troops from European and Asian countries if they failed to pay more for American protection. "We are going to take care of this country first," he told The Times, "before we worry about everyone else in the world". (AFP)

Trump's 'absolute allegiance' to Russian policy aims raises national security issues: Hillary

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump promised to expand US military and outline a plan to beat Islamic State within a month of assuming office. 
 
Trump said he would increase military spending, number of soldiers, aircraft and warships to revive the&nbsp;&quot;depleted&quot; US forces.&nbsp; 
 
Speaking in Philadelphia, the billionaire gave a detailed plan of increasing the US military. The US army would have 540,000 troops, the air force would have at least 1.200 fighter aircraft&nbsp;and the navy would have 350 surface ships and submarines, the AFP reported. 
 
About his plans to tackle the IS, Trump said, &quot;Immediately after taking office, I will ask my generals to present to me a plan within 30 days to defeat and destroy IS.&quot; 
 
Trump&#39;s 30-day timeframe to beat the IS was, however, assailed by a retired army general.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;I had to ask myself, what the hell does he think we&#39;ve been trying to do for the last 14 years in terms of al Qaeda?&quot;&nbsp;Retired Army Lt. Gen.&nbsp;<a href="http://www.cnn.com/profiles/mark-hertling-profile" target="_blank">Mark Hertling&nbsp;</a>told CNN.&nbsp; 
 
Trump, meanwhile, also took a swipe at his opponent Hillary Clinton, calling her &quot;trigger happy&quot; because of her &quot;legacy in Iraq, Libya and Syria&quot; that has &quot;produced only turmoil and suffering and death&quot;. 
 
With the election campaign having entered&nbsp;the homestretch, Trump also urged NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) to spend 2 per cent of its national income on defence.&nbsp; 
 
(WION)

Republican presidential candidate also vowed to increase military spending to revive the ''depleted" US forces if he assumed office

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump promised to expand US military and outline a plan to beat Islamic State within a month of assuming office. Trump said he would increase military spending, number of soldiers, aircraft and warships to revive the "depleted" US forces. Speaking in Philadelphia, the billionaire gave a detailed plan of increasing the US military. The US army would have 540,000 troops, the air force would have at least 1.200 fighter aircraft and the navy would have 350 surface ships and submarines, the AFP reported. About his plans to tackle the IS, Trump said, "Immediately after taking office, I will ask my generals to present to me a plan within 30 days to defeat and destroy IS." Trump's 30-day timeframe to beat the IS was, however, assailed by a retired army general. "I had to ask myself, what the hell does he think we've been trying to do for the last 14 years in terms of al Qaeda?" Retired Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling told CNN. Trump, meanwhile, also took a swipe at his opponent Hillary Clinton, calling her "trigger happy" because of her "legacy in Iraq, Libya and Syria" that has "produced only turmoil and suffering and death". With the election campaign having entered the homestretch, Trump also urged NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) to spend 2 per cent of its national income on defence. (WION)

Donald Trump vows to forge plan in 30 days to 'destroy' IS

Fifty prominent Republican national security officials, including a former CIA director, on Monday called party nominee Donald Trump unqualified to lead the country and said he would be &quot;the most reckless president in American history&quot;. 
 
The statement was the latest repudiation of Trump&#39;s candidacy by veteran Republican nationalsecurity specialists, and was remarkable for the harshness of its language. 
 
&quot;Mr&nbsp;Trump lacks the character, values, and experience to be president. He weakens US&nbsp;moral authority as the leader of the free world. He appears to lack basic knowledge about and belief in the US&nbsp;Constitution, US&nbsp;laws and US&nbsp;institutions, including religious tolerance, freedom of the press, and an independent judiciary,&quot; the statement said. 
 
&quot;None of us will vote for Donald Trump,&quot; said the statement, which noted that some signatories also have doubts about Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. 
 
&quot;From a foreign policy perspective, Donald Trump is not qualified to be president and commander in chief,&quot; said the statement, which was first reported in the New York Times. &quot;Indeed, we are convinced that he would be a dangerous president and would put at risk our country&#39;s national security and well-being.&quot; 
 
The signatories, some of whom worked for more than one Republican president, included former Central Intelligence Agency Director Michael Hayden, who also headed the NationalSecurity Agency; former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff; former Director ofNational Intelligence John Negroponte; and two former US&nbsp;trade representatives, Carla Hills and Robert Zoelick. 
 
Other signatories included former senior State Department, Pentagon and National SecurityCouncil officials who helped plan and oversee the 2003 US&nbsp;invasion of Iraq. 
 
Trump has harshly criticized the Iraq operation, although when radio host Howard Stern asked him in 2002 if he favoured invading Iraq, Trump said he guessed he did. 
 
The statement was organised by Philip Zelikow, who served as a top adviser to former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. 
 
Trump responded with a statement deriding the signatories as members of &quot;the failed Washington elite&quot; who &quot;deserve the blame for making the world such a dangerous place.&quot; 
 
&ldquo;These insiders &ndash; along with Hillary Clinton &ndash; are the owners of the disastrous decisions to invade Iraq, allow Americans to die in Benghazi, and they are the ones who allowed the rise of ISIS,&quot; he continued, using an acronym for the Islamic State militant group. 
 
Response to Trump&#39;s remarks 
 
The statement did not cite specific comments by Trump, but it clearly was a response to a series of remarks he has made questioning the need for NATO, expressing admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling for a temporary ban on immigration by Muslims, and inviting Russia to hack Clinton&#39;s private email server, which he later said was a joke. 
 
Many of the signatories had declined to sign an open letter disputing Trump&#39;s national security qualifications that was published in March. 
The statement said many Americans are frustrated with the federal government&#39;s failure to solve domestic and international problems. 
 
&quot;But Donald Trump is not the answer to America&rsquo;s daunting challenges and to this crucial election,&quot; the statement said. &quot;We are convinced that in the Oval Office, he would be the most reckless President in American history. 
 
Some Democratic foreign policy experts called the statement a reminder of the divisions the New York real estate developer&#39;s nomination has sown within the Republican Party. 
 
&ldquo;This letter is signed by those who remain in the internationalist wing of the party &ndash; many were former advisors to candidates who lost the primary fight to Trump,&quot; said Brian Katulis, a fellow at the Center for American Progress and a Clinton campaign adviser. 
 
&ldquo;Calling Trump unqualified to be commander in chief is tough, but also asserting that he&rsquo;s lacking in character and understanding of our basic values is really pretty amazing,&quot; said Tommy Vietor, a former National Security Council spokesman in Democratic President Barack Obama&#39;s administration. 
 
&quot;That said, I think it&rsquo;s unlikely to influence many voters, but it could give cover to Republican members of Congress and donors who want to cut the cord and move on from Trump.&rdquo; 
 
(Reuters) 
 
 
&nbsp;

The officials, including a former CIA director, said the Presidential nominee would be 'the most reckless president in American history'

Fifty prominent Republican national security officials, including a former CIA director, on Monday called party nominee Donald Trump unqualified to lead the country and said he would be "the most reckless president in American history". The statement was the latest repudiation of Trump's candidacy by veteran Republican nationalsecurity specialists, and was remarkable for the harshness of its language. "Mr Trump lacks the character, values, and experience to be president. He weakens US moral authority as the leader of the free world. He appears to lack basic knowledge about and belief in the US Constitution, US laws and US institutions, including religious tolerance, freedom of the press, and an independent judiciary," the statement said. "None of us will vote for Donald Trump," said the statement, which noted that some signatories also have doubts about Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. "From a foreign policy perspective, Donald Trump is not qualified to be president and commander in chief," said the statement, which was first reported in the New York Times. "Indeed, we are convinced that he would be a dangerous president and would put at risk our country's national security and well-being." The signatories, some of whom worked for more than one Republican president, included former Central Intelligence Agency Director Michael Hayden, who also headed the NationalSecurity Agency; former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff; former Director ofNational Intelligence John Negroponte; and two former US trade representatives, Carla Hills and Robert Zoelick. Other signatories included former senior State Department, Pentagon and National SecurityCouncil officials who helped plan and oversee the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. Trump has harshly criticized the Iraq operation, although when radio host Howard Stern asked him in 2002 if he favoured invading Iraq, Trump said he guessed he did. The statement was organised by Philip Zelikow, who served as a top adviser to former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Trump responded with a statement deriding the signatories as members of "the failed Washington elite" who "deserve the blame for making the world such a dangerous place." “These insiders – along with Hillary Clinton – are the owners of the disastrous decisions to invade Iraq, allow Americans to die in Benghazi, and they are the ones who allowed the rise of ISIS," he continued, using an acronym for the Islamic State militant group. Response to Trump's remarks The statement did not cite specific comments by Trump, but it clearly was a response to a series of remarks he has made questioning the need for NATO, expressing admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling for a temporary ban on immigration by Muslims, and inviting Russia to hack Clinton's private email server, which he later said was a joke. Many of the signatories had declined to sign an open letter disputing Trump's national security qualifications that was published in March. The statement said many Americans are frustrated with the federal government's failure to solve domestic and international problems. "But Donald Trump is not the answer to America’s daunting challenges and to this crucial election," the statement said. "We are convinced that in the Oval Office, he would be the most reckless President in American history. Some Democratic foreign policy experts called the statement a reminder of the divisions the New York real estate developer's nomination has sown within the Republican Party. “This letter is signed by those who remain in the internationalist wing of the party – many were former advisors to candidates who lost the primary fight to Trump," said Brian Katulis, a fellow at the Center for American Progress and a Clinton campaign adviser. “Calling Trump unqualified to be commander in chief is tough, but also asserting that he’s lacking in character and understanding of our basic values is really pretty amazing," said Tommy Vietor, a former National Security Council spokesman in Democratic President Barack Obama's administration. "That said, I think it’s unlikely to influence many voters, but it could give cover to Republican members of Congress and donors who want to cut the cord and move on from Trump.” (Reuters)

50 Republican national security officials say Trump 'unqualified' to lead America

US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump ratcheted up tensions within his party on Tuesday by denying two leading figures, House of Representatives speaker Paul Ryan and senator John McCain, support in their re-election bids. 
 
Trump told The Washington Post in an interview that he could endorse neither Ryan, the top US elected Republican, nor McCain, senator from Arizona and a former Republican presidential nominee, as they face challenges in their states&#39; primary contests ahead of the November 8 general election. 
 
Both Ryan and McCain had criticised Trump&#39;s feud with the family of army Captain Humayun Khan, who died in the line of duty in Iraq in 2004 and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for bravery after his death. 
 
The discord comes just two weeks after the Republican National Convention in Cleveland that formally nominated Trump in the presidential race. 
 
It is the latest rift in a party already frayed by internal dissent over its standard bearer, seen in stark relief at the convention where McCain was among high-level party members who essentially snubbed Trump by choosing not to attend. Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee, and former presidents George HW Bush and George W Bush also did not attend the convention. 
 
Trump has had a running dispute with Khizr and Ghazala Khan since they took the stage at last week&#39;s Democratic convention to cite their son&#39;s sacrifice and criticise Trump&#39;s proposed ban on Muslims entering the United States. 
 
The uproar has led many Republicans to distance themselves from Trump and voice support for the Khan family. 
 
Trump, mirroring the language Ryan used about supporting the nominee before his eventual endorsement, told the newspaper he was &quot;not quite there yet&quot; on endorsing Ryan in next Tuesday&#39;s Wisconsin primary, and that he had &quot;never been there&quot; with McCain, who will be on the ballot in primary elections in Arizona later this month. 
 
McCain had a &quot;very friendly&quot; meeting with Trump&#39;s vice presidential running mate, Mike Pence, on Tuesday in Arizona, where Pence was visiting, a McCain spokeswoman said.&nbsp; 
 
Trump said Ryan had sought his endorsement, but that as of now he is only &quot;giving it very serious consideration&quot;. 
 
Ryan&#39;s campaign office quickly responded that &quot;neither speaker Ryan nor anyone on his team has ever asked for Donald Trump&#39;s endorsement&quot;. 
 
&quot;And we are confident in a victory next week regardless,&quot; campaign spokesman Zack Roday said in a statement. 
 
Ryan is favored to win against primary challenger Paul Nehlen, who Trump praised as running &quot;a very good campaign&quot;. In a mid-July survey by Harper Polling, Ryan was ahead of Nehlen by nearly 50 points. 
 
Trump has troubled many in the Republican establishment with his off-the-cuff, often insulting style, and controversial policies, including the proposed ban on Muslims and his plan to build a wall along the Mexican border to keep out illegal immigrants. 
 
President Barack Obama on Tuesday blasted Trump as unfit to be a President and questioned why any Republican would support the New York businessman, who is seeking his first public office. 
 
&quot;The question I think that they have to ask themselves is, if you are repeatedly having to say in very strong terms that what he has said is unacceptable: Why are you still endorsing him?&quot; Obama, a Democrat, said at a White House news conference with Singapore&#39;s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong. 
 
Congressman abandons Trump 
 
The chorus of complaints against Trump grew on Tuesday. 
 
Representative Richard Hanna of New York became the first Republican in Congress to endorse Democratic nominee Hillary, although several other Republicans in Congress have said they will not support Trump. 
 
Hanna, who is retiring from the House of Representatives rather than seek re-election, said his decision was prompted by Trump&#39;s attacks on the Khan family. He called Trump &quot;deeply flawed in endless ways,&quot; &quot;unrepentant&quot; and &quot;self-involved.&quot; 
 
Opinion polls put Clinton in the lead 
 
Trump has fallen behind Clinton in opinion polls made public since the parties held their nominating conventions last month. 
 
Clinton extended her lead over Trump to 8 percentage points, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday, from 6 points on Friday. About 43 per cent of likely voters favour Clinton, 35 per cent favour Trump, and 9 per cent picked &quot;other.&quot; 
 
Trump also has trailed Clinton in fundraising. Clinton reported raising nearly $90 million in July for her campaign and the Democratic Party, with more than half the donations coming from new donors. 
 
(Reuters)

House of Representatives speaker Paul Ryan and senator John McCain had both criticised Trump's feud with Captain Humayun Khan's family

US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump ratcheted up tensions within his party on Tuesday by denying two leading figures, House of Representatives speaker Paul Ryan and senator John McCain, support in their re-election bids. Trump told The Washington Post in an interview that he could endorse neither Ryan, the top US elected Republican, nor McCain, senator from Arizona and a former Republican presidential nominee, as they face challenges in their states' primary contests ahead of the November 8 general election. Both Ryan and McCain had criticised Trump's feud with the family of army Captain Humayun Khan, who died in the line of duty in Iraq in 2004 and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for bravery after his death. The discord comes just two weeks after the Republican National Convention in Cleveland that formally nominated Trump in the presidential race. It is the latest rift in a party already frayed by internal dissent over its standard bearer, seen in stark relief at the convention where McCain was among high-level party members who essentially snubbed Trump by choosing not to attend. Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee, and former presidents George HW Bush and George W Bush also did not attend the convention. Trump has had a running dispute with Khizr and Ghazala Khan since they took the stage at last week's Democratic convention to cite their son's sacrifice and criticise Trump's proposed ban on Muslims entering the United States. The uproar has led many Republicans to distance themselves from Trump and voice support for the Khan family. Trump, mirroring the language Ryan used about supporting the nominee before his eventual endorsement, told the newspaper he was "not quite there yet" on endorsing Ryan in next Tuesday's Wisconsin primary, and that he had "never been there" with McCain, who will be on the ballot in primary elections in Arizona later this month. McCain had a "very friendly" meeting with Trump's vice presidential running mate, Mike Pence, on Tuesday in Arizona, where Pence was visiting, a McCain spokeswoman said. Trump said Ryan had sought his endorsement, but that as of now he is only "giving it very serious consideration". Ryan's campaign office quickly responded that "neither speaker Ryan nor anyone on his team has ever asked for Donald Trump's endorsement". "And we are confident in a victory next week regardless," campaign spokesman Zack Roday said in a statement. Ryan is favored to win against primary challenger Paul Nehlen, who Trump praised as running "a very good campaign". In a mid-July survey by Harper Polling, Ryan was ahead of Nehlen by nearly 50 points. Trump has troubled many in the Republican establishment with his off-the-cuff, often insulting style, and controversial policies, including the proposed ban on Muslims and his plan to build a wall along the Mexican border to keep out illegal immigrants. President Barack Obama on Tuesday blasted Trump as unfit to be a President and questioned why any Republican would support the New York businessman, who is seeking his first public office. "The question I think that they have to ask themselves is, if you are repeatedly having to say in very strong terms that what he has said is unacceptable: Why are you still endorsing him?" Obama, a Democrat, said at a White House news conference with Singapore's prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong. Congressman abandons Trump The chorus of complaints against Trump grew on Tuesday. Representative Richard Hanna of New York became the first Republican in Congress to endorse Democratic nominee Hillary, although several other Republicans in Congress have said they will not support Trump. Hanna, who is retiring from the House of Representatives rather than seek re-election, said his decision was prompted by Trump's attacks on the Khan family. He called Trump "deeply flawed in endless ways," "unrepentant" and "self-involved." Opinion polls put Clinton in the lead Trump has fallen behind Clinton in opinion polls made public since the parties held their nominating conventions last month. Clinton extended her lead over Trump to 8 percentage points, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday, from 6 points on Friday. About 43 per cent of likely voters favour Clinton, 35 per cent favour Trump, and 9 per cent picked "other." Trump also has trailed Clinton in fundraising. Clinton reported raising nearly $90 million in July for her campaign and the Democratic Party, with more than half the donations coming from new donors. (Reuters)

Trump refuses support to Ryan & McCain, widens rift within Republican party