Clinton Glossed Over Reality On 'The View'

Compared to the GOP race, the Democratic race has been way more civil. Still, it's hardly been all rainbows and sunshine. However, when Hillary Clinton appeared on ABC's The View on Tuesday, she tried to paint it as so. "I'm very proud of the campaign that Sen. Sanders and I have run, because we've run it on issues compared to insults," the former Secretary of State humble-bragged.

Unfortunately, that's patently untrue. There have been several underhanded moments in the Democratic race, and Clinton's comment on The View showed deliberate or genuine ignorance about the uglier moments of her race with Sanders.

Clinton played down any tension between her and Bernie Sanders and said, "We've really tried to stay on issues and where we stand and what we would do," though she also acknowledged that "we do have contrasts." She went on to say their campaigns have been good for the Democratic party and the country. Now, the Republican race is a giant engine made of Donald Trump and Ted Cruz's insults to each other — I can't imagine Clinton and Sanders attacking each others' spouses the way Trump and Cruz fought over their wives. Relative to Trump and Cruz, Clinton and Sanders have played nice with one another.

But they've had their petty moments. Notable is the #ToneDownForWhat drama, in which Clinton's campaign asked Sanders to change his "tone" before she would agree to an additional debate with him. Sanders supporters started that hashtag in response and called for Clinton to apologize, and in response to that, Clinton supporters started #ApologizeForWhat. It was mess, though much of the fallout from the initial comment was egged on by each candidates' supporters.

More recently last Thursday, Clinton tore into Sanders' campaign when a Greenpeace activist asked her if she would reject donations from fossil fuel companies. Clinton jabbed her finger Sanders-style, and said, "I am so sick, I am so sick of the Sanders campaign lying about that, I'm sick of it!" According to FactCheck.org, the donations in question were, in fact, not from fossil fuel companies. While Clinton's response may have been justified, it was definitely not the Kumbaya picture she described of her and Sanders' relationship on The View.

Her comments on The View shows an attempt, conscious or not, to sweep any campaign dirt under the rug. As a presidential hopeful, that makes sense — why draw attention to the ugly stuff? But acting as if tensions don't exist at all is a misleading ideal. Presenting her race with Sanders as this pure and wholesome thing — when it's not — results in missing the chance to confront the uglier side of politics and, potentially, rectify them. Even if the race is friendly relatively to the GOP's, both parties can certainly be aiming higher.