Story highlights Trump latched onto voters' concerns about Clinton's trustworthiness and honesty

Trump's assault on Clinton's character also came as he himself faced stinging criticism from top US officials

(CNN) Donald Trump escalated his attacks Friday on Hillary Clinton's character, just as top former government officials are questioning his own.

The Republican nominee, speaking in Des Moines, Iowa, accused Clinton of being "unbalanced" and "unstable," called her a "dangerous" and "pathological" liar and warned voters in this swing state that a Clinton presidency would lead to "the destruction of this country from within."

After knocking himself off message repeatedly in recent weeks, stoking one controversy after the next, Trump, reading at times from prepared remarks on his podium, latched onto voters' concerns about Clinton's trustworthiness and honesty, and sought to amplify the controversies that have beset the Democrat's campaign.

"Unstable Hillary Clinton, lacks the judgment, temperament and moral character to lead this country -- and I believe that so strongly," Trump told supporters as he accused Clinton of supporting policies that he said could damage US national security. "She's really pretty close to unhinged, and you've seen, you've seen it a couple times. The people in the background know it, the people who know her know it and she's like an unbalanced person."

Repeatedly during his rally in Des Moines, Trump returned to the topic of Clinton's character, intertwining those attacks with others on her policy positions and record as secretary of state.

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