HILLARY CLINTON: Trump 'must step up & speak out' on 'hate crimes'

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Hillary Clinton

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton took to Twitter Monday to ask President Donald Trump to speak out on a recent killing in Kansas City that is being investigated by law enforcement as a hate crime.

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"With threats & hate crimes on rise, we shouldn't have to tell @POTUS to do his part," the former Democratic presidential nominee tweeted. "He must step up & speak out."

Clinton attached a link to a story in the Kansas City Star, which detailed the story of an Indian woman - who's husband was shot and killed at an area bar by a 51-year-old man last week - asking for answers from the government on how it will stop hate crimes.

The 51-year-old man who is charged with first-degree murder in the incident, Adam Purinton, reportedly told a bartender he just killed a pair of Middle Eastern men following the shooting.

Srinivas Kuchibhotla was killed while his friend, Alok Madasani, was injured. A third man, Ian Grillot, was also injured.

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During a press gaggle on Friday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said it was "a bit absurd" to connect the Kansas City killing to Trump's rhetoric.

"I mean, obviously, any loss of life is tragic," Spicer said. "To suggest that there's any correlation I think is a bid absurd. So I'm not going to go any further than that."

Additionally, Clinton shared an Associated Press story on the Department of Homeland Security report that disputed the perceived threats from seven majority-Muslim nations that led Trump temporarily bar travel into the US from those countries.

"Trump's own @DHSgov confirmed this weekend that the ban doesn't enhance security," she tweeted. "But it foments fear & resentment."

Trump has not been asked about the Kansas City incident, but he has been asked about the rise in anti-Semitic threats in recent weeks. After being asked about the threats multiple times without providing a clear answer, Trump denounced the threats during an appearance at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.

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During Monday's briefing, Spicer reiterated that the president condemns both anti-Semitism and acts such as the one that took place in Kansas City.