The Sanders campaign has been engaging in an artful smear of Hillary Clinton, using Elizabeth Warren to do their dirty work.
Hillary Corrects the Record on the Bankruptcy Vote:
CLINTON: When I got to the Senate in 2001, one of the first big votes there was on a version of the bankruptcy bill and I was deluged by women’s groups and children’s advocates groups to do everything I could to make sure that child support and women’s precarious financial situation in case of divorce or not being able to get the kind of funding they needed from a partner or a spouse in bankruptcy would not be endangered. And it was. The current — that bill was making it a very low priority. So I did go to work on behalf of all these women’s groups and children’s groups because they needed a champion. And I got that bill changed. And in return, it had nothing to do with any money whatsoever — and I resent deeply any effort by the Sanders campaign to so imply. It had to do with trying to get a deal that would protect women.
And so then three years later, part of Senator Warren said, you played. You didn’t play the whole thing, because we’ve been allies. I faced a tough decision and I stood up for women and children.
I went to the Senate floor, said that was exactly what I was doing. Then the bill did not pass. It never became law. And then when the next bill came up, 2005, women’s issues were taken care of because I had made that a point back in 2001. And so then I was against that bill. I didn’t get a chance to actually vote against it because Bill was in the hospital having a heart procedure. But I put a statement out. I was against it. So I’m happy to set this record straight. And I really want to, once again, call out the Sanders campaign, which claims they like to run a positive campaign. But they have been quite artful in raising questions and trying to cast doubts about my record.
And I really am not going to sit and take it anymore.
I have a public record. I have never, ever been influenced in a view or a vote by anyone who has given me any kind of money. So I’m just going to keep setting the record straight.
Hillary voted for a version of the bankruptcy bill after working with Congress to include amendments directly addressing Elizabeth Warren’s concerns, specifically those regarding women and children. The bill then went to the Republican-controlled Congress, which subsequently removed the amendments protecting women and children. When the bill was sent back to the Senate, the Democrats (including Hillary) filibustered the bill. Later, another version of the bill passed that Hillary opposed. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are misrepresenting Hillary’s bankruptcy vote.
"My experience has been that whenever you closely examine the attacks on Hillary, whether they come from the left or the right, they break apart under scrutiny."
~Zachary Leven
Hillary’s bankruptcy vote is a great example of how the system works. A system Clinton clearly has a better grasp at navigating and thriving in.
Why is Bernie Sanders misrepresenting Hillary’s bankruptcy vote?
Why won’t Bernie man-up and stop using Elizabeth Warren to do his dirty work?
The Clintons paid a 35.7% tax rate: $40 million total taxes over the last 7 years. They aren’t hiding their money overseas in Swiss Bank Accounts like Mitt Romney, a man who paid a 14.1% tax-rate.
We tend to forget both Clintons came from humble beginnings and used their natural talent and determination to achieve success, building the Clinton name side-by-side since their days together at Yale Law School. That’s the American Dream. I don’t begrudge them for it, especially considering how much they give to charity, pay in taxes, and have done for our country. The Clintons pay their fair share and give back to a country that has given them so much.
Why wouldn’t the Clintons hold Wall Street to the same standard they hold themselves to?
Bernie’s Wall Street Record:
Crime:
Guns:
June 17, 2015: 9 people were killed by Dylann Roof at the historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina.
Senator Sanders voted for the Charleston loophole:
“You know, there was a loophole, my opponent voted for it, Senator Sanders, that at the end of three days, business days, you get that gun whether they have finished the background check or not. The killer in Charleston who brought that gun, if they had just spent a little more time, it would’ve been discovered, he should not have been able to buy the gun, because he had a federal record.” ~Hillary Rodham Clinton
Clinton’s statement was giving the elusive Geppetto Checkmark for being 100% accurate:
While Sanders did not specifically vote for a three-day period, he did vote for an even shorter one-day window. As a result of the amendment he supported in the House, the seven-day window was erased by the instant background system and the time allowed for extensive background checks that emerged from House-Senate negotiations was just three days.
Then Sanders ended up voting against requiring any background checks at all.
- Senator Sanders voted AGAINST President Clinton’s Brady Bill 5 times
- Senator Sanders voted to give the gun industry immunity in 2005
- Senator Sanders voted for the Charleston Loophole, which led to 9 African American deaths in Charleston, South Carolina
Bernie has consistently used Vermont as an excuse for giving immunity to the gun lobby. Unfortunately, fellow Vermont Senator Leahy voted with Clinton and Obama AGAINST making the gun industry the only industry in America with immunity. Given the way Vermont Senator Leahy voted, using Vermont is nothing more than an excuse for standing in lockstep with the America’s most powerful special interest group — the NRA:
However, now that Bernie needs minority votes in South Carolina, he has ever so slightly shifted his position on guns. But frankly, his record on guns is indefensible. He has consistently stood with the NRA, America’s most powerful and deadly special interest group.
It appears Bernie Sanders has suffered from a dose of white privilege being from Vermont, not recognizing gun violence has been plaguing minority communities on a daily basis for decades. 30,000+ die a year and 90+ die a day from gun violence.
On the contrary, Hillary has consistently called for hunters to form a counter organization to the NRA, which was the driving force behind her criticism of Obama in 2008. Hillary’s Father was a gun-owner. But if anyone doubts her steadfast commitment to ending gun violence in America, The Brady Campaign endorsed her for President. The Brady Campaign remembers all the great work the Clintons did on behalf of gun violence in the 1990s, signing The Brady Bill while Bernie voted for the Charleston Loophole.
Gay Marriage:
Hillary Clinton worked closely with the Human Rights Campaign over the years on a variety of issues. Hillary correctly noted she was the first First Lady to march in a gay pride parade.
Here is Hillary marching in a few gay pride parades as Senator of New York:
Hillary fought for stronger hate crime and anti-discrimination laws as New York Senator:
In the U.S. Senate, Hillary championed hate crime legislation, fought for federal non-discrimination legislation to protect LGBT Americans in the workplace, and advocated for an end to restrictions that blocked LGBT Americans from adopting children.
As New York Senator Hillary has worked closely with the Human Rights Campaign, which is why she [and not Bernie] was invited to speak before them:
The applause is deafening.
Hillary enacted lifesaving policies as Secretary of State to save LGBTQ lives around the globe:
As secretary of state, Hillary advanced LGBT rights abroad and enforced stronger anti-discrimination regulations within the State Department, declaring on the global stage that “gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights.”
She led the effort to pass the first-ever U.N. Resolution on LGBT Human Rights, launched the Global Equality Fund, ended State Department regulations that denied same-sex couples and their families equal rights, helped implement LGBT-friendly workplace policies, and updated the State Department’s policy so that transgender individuals’ passports reflect their true gender.
Hillary’s Global Equality Fund is revolutionary.
Hillary’s actions speak for themselves.
Why do Bernie and his supporters paint Hillary and the Clintons as anti-gay?
War:
Hillary gave Bush the authorization to go to war as a *last* resort. Bush went to war as a *first* resort. Bush also didn’t let the UN inspectors finish their job, something he said he would let them do.
Hillary already said she regrets giving Bush the authorization for the war. But as New York Senator, she trusted him in the aftermath of 9/11, something most Americans regrettably did. Patriotism and trust was at an all-time high after 9/11/2001, and no one thought Bush would go into Iraq before the inspectors were finished.
Bernie supported funding the war, so he gets to claim he voted against the Iraq war, yet didn’t do anything to actually stop it.
Hillary Clinton on the Iraq War:
“Well, I have said repeatedly that if I had known then what I know now, I never would have voted to give the president authority.
It was a mistake to trust George Bush that he would do what he told all of us he would do. … Now, I do not think that that is a necessarily wrong judgment at the time.
What was wrong is the way this president misused the authority that some of us here gave him. And that has been a tragedy.”
It is important to look at Hillary’s *FULL* record, which includes being one of the few to advocate for the successful raid against Osama Bin Laden. It also includes imposing the toughest sanctions on Iran by convincing the Chinese and Russians to agree to them. Both are things the Bush Administration couldn’t get done.
Furthermore, Hillary’s START treaty with Russia still exists and she improved U.S. favorability worldwide by over 20 points. Without Hillary, the Iran nuclear deal would not be in existence today, something that is *PREVENTING* war.
At the end of the day, Hillary didn’t vote for the Iraq war. She gave Bush the authorization to go to war as a *LAST* resort and only after the U.N. inspectors finished their job. The authorization vote was simply meant to be used as leverage against Iraq.
Bush lied. People died. Period. Stop placing Bush’s war on Hillary for political gain.
A vote in 2002 is not a plan to defeat ISIS.
Healthcare:
Hillary spearheaded the effort for universal healthcare in 1993. Though not successful, Hillary was ultimately able to help create and pass the Children’s Health Insurance Program, giving 8 million children health insurance.
What has changed since Hillary first advocated for single-payer healthcare? The Affordable Care Act. Given the new circumstances, I'm glad Hillary will defend Obama's legacy instead of going back to square one. In the current political landscape, the last thing we need to be doing is going backwards instead of forwards.
Hillary is working with Democratic President Barack Obama to develop a strategy and platform for success in 21st Century America. Obama’s signature achievement is the Affordable Care Act, something the Democratic Party has been fighting for since Harry Truman. As evidenced by the Bernie campaign posting a vintage photo of Hillary fighting for universal healthcare in 1993, Hillary has the scars to show for this battle. Hillary Clinton knows firsthand that the Democratic nominee should be defending the Affordable Care Act, not going back to square one.
Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders is advocating for a single-payer system with no specific details. Remember: the Affordable Care Act was hard to achieve despite having majorities in both chambers of Congress. The Affordable Care Act supports 11-million Americans, particularly low-income women. We can still achieve universal healthcare by defending, not dismantling, Obamacare.
Just last week Republicans tried to rip away our progress by voting to (yet again) defund the Affordable Care Act. Given this toxic political environment, we should be defending and building on our progress rather than playing right into the hands of the Republicans. If Bernie can’t defend his plan against Hillary, how will he be able to defend his plan against Republicans?
Though Bernie hasn’t released the specifics of his single-payer proposal, he has, however, introduced a single-payer plan to Congress 9 times. All 9 times Bernie’s plan has failed. Under this plan, states would have to come up with 14% of the funds. How will that work with the 37-states that are GOP controlled? Taxes would also have to increase on Americans across the board. Is this a good strategy to build on Obama’s progress?
In a country where 900 Democratic seats have been lost under Obama and 37-states have a GOP dominated legislature, the path forward is not to relitigate a single-payer healthcare system. Hillary will defend and build on Obama’s progress rather than employ an already failed strategy. This is important to many African American voters.
Money:
One of Obama’s struggles during his Presidency has been the loss of control on a state-level. His unpopularity in southern states has resulted in 37-states being controlled by the GOP on a local-level, resulting in the defunding of Planned Parenthood and attacks being made on gay rights.
Hillary has raised $20-million dollars for down-ticket Democrats. The only way we have a fighting chance in these states is if we reverse GOP control, building the coalitions we need to enact lasting change within our current system. We need the pragmatic Clintons.
Bernie advocated for a primary challenge against Barack Obama in 2012, endorsing a book titled “How Obama Let Progressives Down.” Bernie doesn’t realize how difficult it is to work within the system as President, something Obama has since discovered. Obama now endorses exactly what Hillary warned him about during the 2008 election.
During Obama’s final State of the Union, he expressed regret that Washington has become more, not less, polarized under his Presidency. The Clintons, being firsthand survivors of the GOP onslaught during the 1990s, knew Obama was being naive in 2008. But I guess he had to learn the hard way. In 2016, however, I don’t want someone who requires on-the-job training. I want someone who can take the baton from Obama and hit the ground running.
Unfortunately, they say Democrats want to “fall in love” while Republicans want to “fall in line.” Well, we opted for an idealistic message in 2008. Now in 2016, Washington is more polarized than ever before. I’m ready for the pragmatic Clintons to go in there and fight. I’m ready for the Clintons to build on and defend Obama’s progress against relentless GOP attacks.
Karl Rove is running ads comparing Hillary to Wall Street for a reason.
The GOP fears Hillary Rodham Clinton for a reason:
~Hillary Rodham Clinton