Clinton – 2016 rivals leave her ‘in state of disbelief’

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- On the day of the first Republican presidential debate, Hillary Rodham Clinton said Thursday she's often left in a "state of disbelief" from what she hears from some of her 2016 rivals.

Speaking in Los Angeles, where she met with home-care aides who often struggle with lower wages and difficult working conditions, Clinton expressed dismay with those who would oppose improvements for those workers, including better training and bigger paychecks.

"When people in the political world ... oppose these programs, I would like them to just walk in your shoes for a week," she told a group of workers seated around her, who provide in-home care for the elderly, sick and disabled.

"We've got people, well let's just say we've got people running for president, who I don't know what world they live in. I don't understand it. It's truly amazing to me," the front-runner for the Democratic nomination said.

"I'm constantly in a state of disbelief," she added. "They said what?"

Clinton never mentioned any rivals by name but has been sharpening her criticism of some of the candidates in the GOP field.

She added, "This is serious. Because it really is about people's lives. And we make it just about as hard as we can imagine for women, in general and women with families in particular, to be able to work and take care of their families. We make it so hard."

Clinton's stop was intended to highlight the plight of tens of thousands of home-care workers in the country, who devote their lives to the care of others but frequently receive lower wages and, sometimes, few if any benefits.

"We need to make it possible for more people to get the higher wages and all the other benefits," Clinton said.

With a graying population and longer lifespans, Clinton warned, "we are going to face a care crisis."

(Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)