In 10th Congressional District race, both Schneider and Bennett criticize Trump's tweets and comments

Both candidates for Illinois' 10th Congressional District seat disapprove of many comments and Twitter posts President Donald Trump has made in the White House and during his 2016 campaign.

That incumbent U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider isn't a Trump fan shouldn't surprise anyone. The Deerfield Democrat strongly supported his party's presidential nominee, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in 2016, and Schneider has been outspokenly critical of Trump's remarks and policies.

But the Republican challenging Schneider in the Nov. 6 election, Deerfield computer consultant Doug Bennett, also has found some of Trump's public statements derogatory and unnecessarily hostile.

"He's a brawler," Bennett said this week during a joint candidate interview with Schneider and representatives of the Daily Herald editorial board. "And sometimes he's not a very nice guy."

The 10th District includes parts of Cook and Lake counties. It stretches from the North Shore into the Northwest suburbs.

Bennett, 55, is making his second bid for public office. He unsuccessfully ran for the Lake County Board in 2012.

Bennett spoke about Trump's tweets and other public remarks while answering a question about the Republican-controlled Congress' independence from the White House.

During the GOP primary for the 10th District seat, Bennett - the vice chairman of the West Deerfield Township Republican organization - said he doesn't think Trump "gets many style points for the way he expresses himself." Bennett went further this week, saying some of the things Trump has said "have been offensive."

When asked in a subsequent interview to elaborate, Bennett cited some of Trump's characterizations of Mexican-Americans as being particularly "over the top."

"He does say some cringeworthy things," Bennett said.

Bennett also objected to Trump's characterization of the news media as "the enemy of the American people," calling those remarks "combative."

Despite his concerns, Bennett doesn't regret voting for Trump because he wanted a president who would name conservatives to the U.S. Supreme Court.

"I think that's the most important thing," Bennett said. "We had a choice between two people (in 2016), and we made the best choice."

Schneider, 57, is seeking his third term in Congress. He won the post in 2012 by defeating Republican Bob Dold, but Dold reclaimed the job in 2014. Schneider won a rematch with Dold in 2016 to take the job back.

Schneider takes pride in collaborating with Republicans in Congress on legislation. But when it comes to Trump, Schneider isn't so diplomatic.

"Trump's behavior is shameful and an insult to the office he occupies," the congressman said.

A year ago, after Trump blamed "many sides" for the deadly clashes between white supremacists and protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, Schneider slammed the president for not forcefully denouncing "the hate, white nationalism and anti-Semitism behind the violence."

In January, after Trump used a vulgar term to describe Haiti and African nations during a meeting on immigration, Schneider called the president's comment racist and said Trump is "clueless about what it means to be an American."

And this summer, Schneider was outraged after Trump accepted Russian President Vladimir Putin's denials of interference in the 2016 election.

"Our enemies too many times seem to be getting the praise of this president," Schneider told the Daily Herald. "He has praised dictators ... and he has created unnecessary conflict with allies like France and the United Kingdom and Canada."

Despite those grave objections and their many policy differences, Schneider said he will still try to work with Trump "when we can find common ground."