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Scott Walker: Hillary Clinton's actions either "illegal or incompetent"

MANCHESTER, New Hampshire -- On a two-day swing through New Hampshire, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has sharpened his attacks on Hillary Clinton over the use of her private email server while she was secretary of state.

"She's either violated the law or she didn't know what that information was, which makes her incompetent," Walker said at a Politics and Eggs breakfast hosted by Saint Anselm College in Manchester. "Either of which disqualifies her from being President of the United States," he added.

Hillary Clinton remains surrounded by email controversy 02:23

"One of our highest officials in this cabinet, with one of the highest levels of responsibility when it comes to the sensitivity of America's national security interests, and she's letting it be freely flowed over an unsecured server?" Walker asked.

The Republican presidential hopeful avoided the controversy that has consumed his Republican opponents in recent days -- a debate over the derogatory term "anchor babies" that has Donald Trump and Jeb Bush locked in a war of words over illegal immigration. Walker evaded questions about the controversy, saying only that he'd leave it to the other candidates to discuss the term, which is used by some Republican conservatives to describe children of illegal immigrants born in the United States. Instead, he focused on the Democratic frontrunner, Clinton, who has been battling an onslaught of stories about the private server she used and whether she and her aides exchanged classified information over email.

Walker's language was even tougher the night before during a town hall in Ashland, New Hampshire, when he addressed a crowd peppered with veterans and NRA members. "She's either illegal or incompetent -- probably both!" he exclaimed.

"The Chinese and Russian governments probably know more about Hillary Clinton's email server than do the members of the United States Congress," Walker added, echoing the same language used by rival Jeb Bush earlier in the week about Clinton.

The Harley-riding governor said his next trip to New Hampshire will be on Labor Day, when he'll ride his motorcycle through all 10 counties of the Granite State.

Phyllis Woods, Walker's New Hampshire co-chair, told CBS News that she's happy with the governor's standing in the primary polls here. "I was worried earlier that he would peak too early but he took some time away," Woods said. "He went to Iowa. And he's had a great week."

But the RealClearPolitics poll average shows that Walker, once a frontrunner, has slipped to fourth place in New Hampshire, after being eclipsed by Trump, Bush and recently, Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

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