Cardinal Timothy Dolan on Friday said that Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump had several “touching moments” despite a sharp exchange during the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner on Thursday evening.
{mosads}“After the little prayer, Mr. Trump turned to Secretary Clinton and said, ‘You are one tough and talented woman,’” Dolan said in an interview with NBC News. “[Trump] said, ‘This has been a good experience, this whole campaign, as tough as it’s been.'”
Dolan, who sat between the two candidates during the dinner, said that Clinton returned the compliment and said, “Donald, whatever happens, we need to work together afterward.”
Although Dolan described some of the humor as “awkward,” he said that he was moved by both candidates being polite toward one another in private.
“I will tell you what wasn’t awkward — although we teased about it — is being close to the two of them,” he said.
“I was very moved by the obvious attempt on behalf of both Sec. Clinton and Mr. Trump … to be courteous, get along, to say nice things privately to one another. I was very moved by that, that was pleasant.”
Trump and Clinton traded some sharp jokes during the Thursday dinner, with the Republican nominee receiving boos for political attacks on his Democratic rival during the second part of his speech.