Hillary Clinton

Democratic presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, speaks at the Univision, Washington Post Democratic presidential debate at Miami-Dade College, Wednesday, March 9, 2016, in Miami. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

(Wilfredo Lee)

By Charlie Gerow

The exit polls from the "FBI Primary" are in and they don't look good for Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Republican strategist Charlie Gerow (PennLive file)

There's only one word to describe the Report of the State Department's Inspector General: devastating.

Her own Department found that she systematically used her private e-mail to evade their record-keeping requirements.

Hillary couldn't blame this on the vast right wing conspiracy. This was a report from the Obama Administration of which she was a pivotal part.

It put into full view a growing scandal that Hillary can't escape.

She's out of excuses. The Report contradicts every explanation and excuse she's tried.

It couldn't have come at a worse time for Hillary and her campaign.

Just when she thought things couldn't get worse, they did.

She's been hounded by the e-mail scandal, in addition to many others, and still hasn't managed to outrun Bernie Sanders, whose insurgent campaign has lasted far longer than any imagined.

It's also forced Hillary even further to the left and farther into the public arena, a place she's not naturally comfortable.

Her lack of comfort on the stump makes her audiences uncomfortable.

Her shrill tones are like fingers on a chalkboard to many voters, far worse to others.

It also highlights her lack of authenticity, a key quality voters are yearning for in 2016.

She's not comfortable on the stump because it's not her forum or her language.

Hillary has said that her husband speaks poetry to voters while she deals in prose.

In the face of the Sanders campaign, Hillary has increasingly used the language of the far left, messaging that won't work beyond the Democratic convention in Philly.

Bill would never have painted himself into such a corner.

Hillary is at her best in quiet one-on-one interviews. She grasps the concept that conversation is the key in the modern media age.

The rhetorical flourishes of a century ago would seem as out of place as Alexander Graham Bell on an Iphone. Even the speech style of The Great Communicator, Ronald Reagan, seems slightly stilted forty years later.

Instead of focusing on her strength, Bernie Sanders' resilience has forced Hillary to continue to hold large rallies where her bantam rooster style is on full display. That awkwardness isn't working for her.

Her numbers are plummeting, her policy positions increasingly marginalized and what she thought would be a walkover against Donald Trump is now a horserace--one she's now trailing.

Meanwhile, Trump was having a good week.

The AP reported that Mr. Trump had become the "likely" nominee, having garnered the support of a majority of delegates to the Republican National Convention.

Donald Trump is the polar opposite of Hillary on the stump.

He's a natural showman with a gift for connecting with his audience. He's more than comfortable--he's bold and confident. His charisma is a large part of his appeal.

He's also exceptionally conversational on the stump. He eschews carefully crafted words written by others.

He shoots from the lip. That "authenticity" is wildly sought after in this year of anti-establishment voting.

His stream of conscious style gets him in trouble too. At a time when he pledged not to attack other Republicans any more and needed to focus on uniting his party, Mr. Trump decided to deride popular Republican Gov. Susana Martinez of New Mexico.

Gratuitously picking a verbal fight with a Republican Hispanic, woman doesn't add to the week Mr. Trump had.

It points up his weakness among two key voting groups, women and Latinos. Trump's standing among Latinos is about 23precent. That's less than Mitt Romney got four years ago.

It's perilously close to the all-time low for GOP candidates, the 21% Bob Dole got in 1996. It's nearly half of what George W. Bush was able to earn.

Latinos are the fastest growing demographic group in the country. Many, if not most, have a natural affinity to conservative values and policies, and they'll vote that way if they're properly courted.

Taking on one of their prominent leaders is the kind of unforced error Trump can ill afford to make. He certainly can't continue to pick those types of fights.

Trump has won his party's nomination.

It's time to stop looking inward and "settling scores" with past adversaries or Republicans who aren't yet fully on board. It's now time to take aim at Hillary, an increasingly larger target.

Whether or not Hillary ends up getting indicted or has a recommendation for indictment made against her, the report of her own department this week is another seismic blow to what remains of her credibility.

There's plenty for Trump to go after. Keeping his fire trained on the apparent nominee of the Democrats will prevent more self-inflicted wounds.