Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/649869
ByStevePeoples and Jill Colvin The Associated Press WARREN, MICHIGAN With an eye on the general election, Donald Trump punched past his Republi- can rivals on Friday after embracing "flexibility" on illegal immigration, aban- doning — at least momen- tarily — the hardline rheto- ric that has fueled his pres- idential campaign as his critics cried foul. "Believe it or not, I'm a unifier," Trump offered dur- ing a raucous rally Friday in suburban Detroit. "We are going to unify our country." Republican adversary Ted Cruz wasn't having it: "Donald is telling us he will betray us on everything he's campaigned on," he said as he campaigned in Maine Friday, accusing his rival of shifting positions on temporary H-1B worker visas and on conservatism in general. Trump's apparent moder- ation amid a war of insults between the Republican candidates marked a fren- zied day on the campaign trail as the New York real estate mogul's grip on his party's presidential nomi- nation appears to be tight- ening. His confidence surging, Trump has followed a dom- inant Super Tuesday perfor- mance by embracing mod- erate tones, if not policies, on Planned Parenthood and race relations, while down- playing his temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States. Trump's critics instead seized an opening during Thursday's debate as the businessman signaled his willingness to compromise on immigration, among other key issues. He said he was retreating from the anti-visa position advocated in a position pa- per he posted on his web- site — one of the few spe- cific policies his team has released over the course of the campaign. "I'm changing. I'm changing. We need highly skilled people in this coun- try, and if we can't do it, we'll get them in," he said in the debate. Just hours later, Trump's campaign released a statement again reversing his position. And more broadly, Trump insisted that com- promise would be part of any immigration reform. "In terms of immigra- tion — and almost anything else — there always has to be some, you know, tug and pull and deal," Trump added. "You have to be able to have some flexibility, some negotiation." Cruz, and others, lashed out at Trump's sudden em- braceofflexibilityonthecen- tral issue of his campaign. "Flexible is Washington code word that he's going to stick it to the people," Cruz said. He did so even as his growing list of high-profile Republican rivals denounce the billionaire businessman as dangerous, a "phony" and a "con man" unfit for office. Mitt Romney, the GOP's presidential nominee four years ago, declared Friday that he would not vote for Trump if he were the nom- inee. He joined a growing list of Republican lead- ers aggressively working to stop the former reality television star, who they claim is not a true Repub- lican and lacks the experi- ence and knowledge to lead the world's most powerful nation. Romney told NBC's "To- day" that he would "do ev- erything within the nor- mal political bounds to make sure we don't nomi- nate Donald Trump." Joining Romney's re- buke of the GOP front-run- ner were several leaders of the Republican foreign pol- icy and national security committee who wrote an open letter pledging to op- pose Trump's candidacy, in part, because of his "em- brace of the expansive use of torture," and other con- troversial views. In a statement Friday, Trump responded briefly to concerns, saying that he understands that the U.S. is "bound by laws and trea- ties" and he will not order U.S. military officials to vio- late or disobey those laws if elected president, attenuat- ing comments he has made that he will bring back the use of waterboarding and "a hell of a lot worse," and that he would target the wives and children of suspected extremists if elected pres- ident. "I will use every legal power that I have to stop these terrorist enemies," Trump said. "I do, however, understand that the United States is bound by laws and treaties and I will not order our military or other offi- cials to violate those laws and will seek their advice on such matters." PRESIDENTIAL RACE Trump'sGOPrivalsattackhis'flexibility'onpolicies PAULSANCYA—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Republican presidential candidates, businessman Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, argue a point during a Republican presidential primary debate at Fox Theatre on Thursday in Detroit. By David Eggert The Associated Press FLINT,MICH. Nakiya Wakes raised her hand in a church to ask Bernie Sanders what he would do to help the peo- ple of Flint if he is elected president. Thecity'slead-taintedwa- ter, Wakes said, is to blame for her miscarriage and her son's repeated suspensions from the first grade. About 2½ weeks earlier, she and another mother met privately with Hillary Clinton during her stop in city to discuss solutions, not politics. "It's really not political with me," Wakes, 40, said af- ter Sanders' forum. "When are you going to get some- thing done for the families and these children?" This majority-black im- poverished community in central Michigan is dealing with a months-long state of emergency over its contam- inated drinking water. The crisis has become a hot-but- ton issue for Democratic presidential candidates. The issue has become so dominant for these White House hopefuls that they scheduled a prime-time de- bate in the city on Sunday ahead of the state's primary Tuesday. Sanders has called for Michigan's Republican Gov. Rick Snyder to resign, saying an apology is not enough. Clinton dispatched aides to the city of nearly 100,000 in January, raised the issue during a nationally tele- vised debate and won the mayor's endorsement. A campaign ad with scenes from Clinton's Feb. 7 visit to an African-American church in the city touts her resolve to "fight for you in Flint no matter how long it takes." She has called the crisis "immoral" and says it never would have taken so long to resolve such a prob- lem in a wealthy, predomi- nantly white city. Sanders vowed "never again" would a disaster like this occur if he is elected president. In a break from his large rallies, he lis- tened to angry residents voice their frustrations and he pointed to Flint's aging underground pipes while pushing his $1 trillion in- frastructure spending plan. Political experts say Clin- ton's focus on Flint both be- fore and since her loss in New Hampshire — includ- ing her assertion that rac- ism is a factor — has helped shore up her standing with black voters. "You can tell that from their perspective, it's a very important signal of affilia- tion with the African-Amer- ican community nationally and in Michigan," said Matt Grossmann, director of the Institute for Public Pol- icy and Social Research at Michigan State University. "The fact that she consoli- dated that support despite a pretty aggressive outreach from the Sanders campaign and a change in focus by the Sanders campaign, too, sug- gests that the overall mes- sage — 'I care about Flint' — is working." GOP candidates, mean- while, are mostly avoiding talk of Flint along with men- tionofSnyder,whoseadmin- istration has come under heavy criticism for the di- saster.Elevatedleadlevelsin children can cause adverse health effects, developmen- tal delays, and emotional and behavioral problems. In the U.S. Senate, Re- publican Mike Lee of Utah said Friday that he was blocking a bipartisan bill to provide federal aid to Flint because Michigan had a budget surplus and doesn't need the money. Republicans accuse Dem- ocrats of politicizing Flint for their own gains and oversimplifying how the fi- asco happened. Clinton said on Super Tuesday that kids "were poisoned by toxic water because the gover- nor wanted to save a little money" when the city was under state emergency fi- nancial management. Sny- der, who has apologized for his mistakes and a lagging initial response, says there also were failures by local and federal officials. 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