White House spokesman Josh Earnest was asked during Thursday's press briefing if Hillary Clinton should count the negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) among her accomplishments as secretary of state.
Wednesday afternoon Hillary Clinton had formally come out and said that she was against TPP but during her time as secretary of state she supported the measure. Clinton had once called the measure "the gold standard" of free trade.
Fox News' Kevin Corke asked Earnest if Clinton should keep the formation of TPP as an accomplishment now that she opposes it.
"The expectation that we would all have, I think that this was evident while she was serving as secretary of state that she was involved in helping this administration negotiate the strongest possible deal for U.S. businesses and workers," Earnest said.
Earnest referred Corke to Clinton's campaign for comment on her changing positions from her time serving in the administration to her running as a candidate. Earnest went on to defend TPP calling is a strong piece of legislation and would cut the thousands of taxes that are placed on American goods.
Corke continued to press Earnest on Clinton's flip-flopping on issues that she worked on as an administration official by bringing up her changed stances on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He asked if her flip-flopping was annoying the administration. Earnest dodged the question.
"As the winner of the last two presidential elections that have been held in this country, the president understands that presidential politics are tough," Earnest said. "And he understands that it is the responsibility of candidates to distinguish themselves and give voters a reason to vote for them and to support their vision. That means distinguishing themselves from their competitors and in some cases distinguishing themselves from the current of occupant of the office."