De Blasio: Clinton has ‘independence’ from Wall Street

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) defended Hillary Clinton Monday for justifying her past donations from Wall Street by invoking the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

“I say, whomever you take donations from, you can’t let it influence your thinking,” the mayor said of the Democratic presidential front-runner, according to Politico.

{mosads}“I can certainly say there’s a lot of folks on Wall Street who don’t agree with her platform and her agenda, but she has stuck to it.”

“I think there are plenty of powerful folks on Wall Street who fundamentally hope that what she’s trying to achieve won’t happen,” he added. “So I think she has clearly maintained the independence of her positions.”

Clinton defended her history of support from top financial firms during last weekend’s Democratic presidential debate in Des Moines, Iowa.

“I represented New York on 9/11,” Clinton said Saturday. “Where were we attacked? We were attacked in downtown Manhattan, right where Wall Street is.

“I’ve had a lot of folks who give me donations from all types of backgrounds say, ‘I don’t agree with you on everything but I like what you do, I like how you stand up, I’m going to support you.’ ”

Clinton’s remarks drew swift criticism on social media as she faced off in the debate against Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and former Gov. Martin O’Malley (D-Md.).

The Republican National Committee immediately compiled a list of media reactions criticizing Clinton’s remarks Saturday evening.

O’Malley, meanwhile, said Sunday that Clinton was hoping to “mask” her cozy ties with Wall Street’s wealth and power.

Former President Bill Clinton has since countered that his wife’s detractors have little ammunition for such attacks.

“It is a stretch,” he said during the Central Iowa Democrats Fall Barbeque. “Those of who were there know that.”

Both O’Malley and Sanders have repeatedly decried the outsize influence of wealthy special interests on politics.

Clinton leads both men by a significant margin, boasting a 21-point lead over her closest competition, according to the latest RealClearPolitics average of samplings.