U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton' recent attacks against her Republican rival Donald Trump's supporters could hurt her campaign as the two are headed for the presidential debates.
Clinton sparked an uproar in a speech last Friday, in which she called half of Trump supporters "a basket of deplorables," because they are racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, or Islamaphobic.
The comments, which came at a time when Trump is slowly catching up in the polls, marked the first time in recent memory that a U.S. presidential candidate has attacked the opponent's supporters rather than the opponent himself.
Experts said that such comments may hurt Clinton, especially in the upcoming presidential debates that will start later September, when Trump will have a chance to paint her as an elitist who is way out of touch with the country' s working class - the bulk of Trump' s supporters.
"Clinton's remarks can be seen as elitist and classist, and that is the result of the hyperbole she used in her comments," Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua.
Darrell West, vice president and director of governance studies of the Brookings Institution, said it never is a good idea to criticize voters, since they make the ultimate decision.
"It is better to focus on the candidate and complain about his deficiencies. Being negative in voters risks sounding elitist," West told Xinhua.
He added that there is nothing for Clinton to gain from this exchange, noting Trump has already put out an ad focusing on her comments.
Trump will make this an issue in the campaign and Clinton needs to explain why her policies will do more than Trump's to help white, working class voters, West said.
Mahaffee said while Clinton correctly pointed out that Trump's base has included some racist elements far beyond the conservative mainstream, Clinton's comments backfired when she called out a larger portion of the Trump base as being part of that movement.
Had Clinton focused her comments more directly to target the leaders of these far right groups that have been energized by the prospect of a Trump presidency, she may have been able to put the Trump campaign on the defensive, rather than providing a comment that would further antagonize a broader group of working-class voters, Mahaffee said.
Still, Clinton's harsh comments could satisfy many on the left who feel that she hasn't been as assertive against a lot of the more radical elements of the Trump base, Mahaffee said.
"For the Democratic base, it feels good to be on the offensive on this topic. Furthermore, given that these comments create media attention, it is likely to bring about more stories about the radical supporters of Trump, and thus give moderates another reason to be concerned about Trump," Mahaffee said.
While Clinton is expected to clinch most votes of blacks, Hispanics and single women, Trump has galvanized white blue collar workers like perhaps no other Republican candidate in recent memory. Clinton is not expected to get much support at all from this voting bloc, according to the polls.
"By and large, I think the Democrats have looked at the voting numbers, the demographic trends, and polls, and from that information, they have largely written off that demographic to focus on women of all economic and racial backgrounds, more educated white voters, and minority voters," Mahaffee said.
