A buoyant Hillary Clinton promised Monday to give Americans "something to vote for, not just something to vote against," but made clear that Democrats see new opportunity to press the case against Republican Donald Trump in the final four weeks of the election contest.
Riding high as Republicans sank into a historic internal crisis over Trump's behaviour, Clinton strode into the nation's Rust Belt, pledging to push a "renaissance" of advanced manufacturing and sharply criticising Trump's commitment to blue-collar workers.
In her first campaign event since Sunday's second debate, Clinton acknowledged the ugliness of the face-off with Trump, telling an enthusiastic crowd of 3500 here: "Bet you haven't seen anything like that before."
Campaigning in Michigan, where Trump's once-promising position had already become a long shot before the revelation of lewd comments the Republican nominee had made about women, Clinton urged voters not to let disgust at ugly politics turn them off from participating.
"That's what the other side wants you to feel, that 'I'm not going to vote because it's so nasty,' " she told her audience at Wayne State University.
"That's the main reason to vote, to make it clear that we're not going to put up with that kind of attitude.
She did not mention the divide among Republicans, best encapsulated in House Speaker Paul Ryan's announcement Monday that he would no longer campaign with or defend his party's presidential nominee. That was read as an offer of amnesty for other elected Republicans who decide to renounce Trump or keep their distance.
Several dozen national or state-level Republicans have denounced Trump or rescinded support since the comments, in which Trump described forcing himself on women sexually, were first reported by The Washington Post on Friday.
"Donald Trump spent his time attacking when he should have been apologising," Clinton said of a debate in which Trump brought up allegations of sexual conduct by President Bill Clinton, called Hillary Clinton the "devil" and suggested he'd jail her if elected president.
Trump signalled Monday that he will continue with the combative posture he showed at Sunday's debate. He attacked Ryan on Twitter, writing that speaker from Wisconsin should "spend more time on balancing the budget, jobs and illegal immigration and not waste his time on fighting Republican nominee." Ryan told House Republicans on Monday that he will not campaign with Trump or defend him.
At an afternoon rally in Ambridge, Pennsylvania, Trump continued to attack Clinton over her husband's marital indiscretions, citing allegations of sexual improprieties against the former president while dismissing intense criticism over his own treatment of women.
"As I outlined last night, Bill Clinton was the worst abuser of women ever to sit in the Oval Office. He was a sexual predator," Trump said. "For decades Hillary Clinton has been familiar with her husband's predatory behaviour and, instead of trying to stop him, she made it possible for him to take advantage of even more women."
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