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Clinton Hits Trump for 'Strongman Approach'

Clinton took subtle jabs at Donald Trump during a speech about national service here Friday.
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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks during a campaign stop in Fort Pierce, Fla., Friday, Sept. 30, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)Matt Rourke / AP

FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Hillary Clinton took subtle jabs at Donald Trump during a speech about national service here Friday, knocking his “I alone can fix it” approach while purposefully not mentioning the Republican nominee by name.

This strategy has become the baseline for most of Clinton’s “Stronger Together” speeches.

"My opponent believes in what I call a strongman approach. He stood on stage at his convention and described a hopeless, broken nation,” she said. "I’m sorry, I’m looking at you. I don’t see that. That in no way resembles the strong, vibrant America I know.”

Clinton then went on to link this attitude to Trump’s relationship with the Russian president, saying: “We have learned that’s his way — one person getting supreme power and exercising it ruthlessly. That’s why he admires dictators like Vladimir Putin so much.”

She then detailed her new plan for a “National Service Reserve” and called for the expansion of existing programs like AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps.

Clinton speculated that Trump would never talk about national service during this campaign. "And I think that’s a shame, because national service has always been a bipartisan goal,” she added.

Campaign officials said she would hit Trump for his comments on former Miss Universe Alicia Machado later Friday at a stop in Coral Springs, Florida.

"I am well aware that candidates don’t usually focus on national service in the final stretch of a hotly-fought presidential election. Some might say, 'Well hey, my gosh, you've only got 39 days to go. Why aren't you just out there beating up on your opponent, doing everything to get the vote out and all the rest of it?' Well, I'll do that, but—I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, and I did not want this campaign to end without talking about it because it means a lot to me," Clinton said.