Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina appeared Sunday on Fox News' "Fox News Sunday," where she dismissed critics who say she enjoys attacking Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton and criticized the United States' Common Core education system.
"The questions I raise about Hillary Clinton, I take no delight in them. I'm concerned," the former Hewlett-Packard CEO told host Chris Wallace.
"It is entirely legitimate when someone is running for the presidency of the United States to ask whether they are being transparent, whether they are trustworthy, whether they have a track record of leadership," Fiorina said.
"Hillary Clinton has demonstrated over and over again that she is not transparent. Her leadership as secretary of state has placed us in grave danger around the world. These are entirely legitimate questions and they are questions that I would ask of her on the general debate stage -- questions that must be asked of her because the American people need to hear her answers."
Fiorina said she believes Clinton is a hard working, intelligent woman who has devoted her life to public service, however, "I also think that she and Bill Clinton are the personification of what 82 percent now consider the professional political class that is more concerned about preserving its power and privilege than it is about doing the people's business," Fiorina said.
"It's why 82 percent of the American people now think that we need people from outside of the professional political class to serve in public office. Ours was intended to be a citizen government -- by, of and for the people. She will clearly be the [Democratic] nominee, and somebody must take the fight to her."
The discussion then shifted to Common Core, the set of federally mandated academic guidelines for K-12 students dictating what a student should know and be able to do at the end of each grade.
"Our education system is a big problem," she told Wallace. "When a Washington bureaucracy gets involved in a program, it becomes heavy-handed and standardized. It's how Washington bureaucracy works."
Fiorina cited China as an example of how federal intervention in education is detrimental to a nation's knowledge base.
"China has put in place an education system that standardizes behavior," she said. "It is part of their regime's oppression."
Common Core has a similar effect on U.S. families, she said. "Common Core, unfortunately, limits parents' choices. It will, over time, limit our children's options."
Fiorina launched her presidential campaign on May 4, and is currently the only other female in the race aside from Clinton.
She has touted the benefits that would come with having another female match up against Clinton in the presidential contest, telling reporters in April, "I think that if Hillary Clinton were to face a female nominee, there are a whole set of things that she won't be able to talk about," according to CNN.
Clinton would be forced to run on "her track record, her accomplishments, her candor and trustworthiness and her policies," she said. "She won't be able to talk about being the first woman president. She won't be able to talk about a war on women without being challenged. She won't be able to play the gender card. And I think that's what elections should be run on - not identity politics, not what you look like, but who you are, and what you believe, and what' you've done, and what you will do."
While Fiorina has ramped up her campaign stops and media appearances as of late, she still trails far behind much of the GOP pack in the polls. According to a RealClearPolitics average of polls, Fiorina places thirteenth, with 1.5 points.
