(Scott Audette/REUTERS)
Donald Trump.
Fresh off strong across-the-board performances on the 2016 presidential primary's biggest night, both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are pivoting to focus on a general-election matchup that is beginning to look more and more likely.
Both candidates won several primary and caucus contests Tuesday. Clinton has long been the presumed Democratic nominee for president, and Trump is the clear Republican frontrunner.
A little after midnight EST on Wednesday, both candidates had won seven states.
Clinton won Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Trump won Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Vermont, and Virginia, with Alaska yet to be called on the GOP side.
In their victory speeches, the two sounded as if they were already preparing for the potential faceoff in the months ahead.
"Instead of building walls, we're going to break down barriers and build ladders of opportunity and empowerment so every American can live up to his or her potential," Clinton said, in an implicit attack on Trump's calls to build a wall on the southern border of the US to combat illegal immigration.
She also took a shot at Trump's campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again."
"We know we've got work to do. It's not to make America great again," Clinton said. "America never stopped being great. We have to make America whole ... and fill in what's been hollowed out."
Trump responded with a direct attack. He charged that Clinton wasn't capable of fixing America's problems.
"I watched Hillary's speech and she's talking about, 'Wages have been poor, and everything's poor, and everything's doing badly, but we're going to make it.' She's been there for so long," Trump said, referring to Clinton's long career in government.
"I mean, if she hasn't straightened it out by now, she's not going to straighten it out in the next four years," he added. "It's just going to become worse and worse."
(REUTERS/Scott Audette (L), Javier Galeano (R))
Trump and Hillary Clinton.
Trump then responded directly to Clinton's attack on his campaign slogan.
"She wants to make America whole again, and I'm trying to figure out what is that all about," Trump said. "'Make America Great Again' is going to be much better than making America whole again."
Trump dinged his Republican opponents, but he took particular aim at Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida. He boasted about his chances against Clinton, suggesting that if he and Clinton were the presidential nominees for their respective parties, it would be an "easy race."