Showing posts with label Hillary Clinton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hillary Clinton. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Comey Was "Mildly Nauseous"? That's it??

James Comey, the head of the FBI, was questioned today by California Senator Dianne Feinstein at a  Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing. 

The topic was his decision to tell the world that new emails might have been found on former Representative Anthony Weiner's laptop computer...  just ten days before the crucial 2016 Presidential election.  



As the New York Times describes it:
(Comey)  sharply defended his rationale for notifying Congress about new emails related to the Hillary Clinton investigation less than two weeks before Election Day, saying Wednesday that any suggestion he affected the vote’s outcome made him “mildly nauseous.”

"Mildly" nauseous?  Just "mildly"?  Is this a joke? 





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The image isn't very pretty, but then what is happening to our country under Trump and the Republicans is not very pretty either.



More articles on Comey's testimony today:

This last one is interesting.  Do people really not know what "nauseous" means?   Does the image of Comey with his head over a toilet for the next four years clear things up, people?
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CNN's Collinson Doesn't Get It: Hillary Was Not "Vanquished!"

"Clinton, Trump can't stop airing their 2016 grievances"

The above-headlined article by CNN's Stephen Collinson was published yesterday afternoon, Tuesday, May 2nd.





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That headline was annoying enough.


But it's the kind of article in which you can pick apart ALMOST every last line.  I'm not going to pick apart EVERY last line, but MANY of Collinson's lines invite retort, and that is what he is going to get.

The Victorious and the Vanquished?



Collinson started:
America has two ex-candidates, the victorious Donald Trump and the vanquished Hillary Clinton who just can't let it lie.


I felt my blood pressure rise.  Come on, Collinson, "vanquished"?  She beat Trump by three million votes, for heaven's sake!  She lost the anachronistic and gerrymandered Electoral College!
(Let's remember that the Electoral College is automatically gerrymandered.  Each Electoral College vote in California represented 260,000 Presidential voters in 2016.  Meanwhile, in Wyoming, each Electoral College vote represented a mere 85,000 Presidential voters in 2016.  That means that, if you live in Wyoming, you have three times the clout of the average California voter.  Doesn't seem that fair to me.)

"Bitter":  Wow, what a loaded, sexist word.

Collinson talks about Clinton's "bitterness".  Women are often depicted as "bitter" when they are (rightfully) really angry!  "Bitter" is not an adjective used as commonly to describe men's anger as it is used to describe women's anger.  And older women are more often described as "bitter" than younger women.  Hillary Clinton SHOULD be angry!  Isn't Collinson angry looking at what Trump is doing to this country?  If not, he should be, even if that makes him "bitter".

The Russians!  The Comey letter!

A phrase:  Collingon talks about Clinton "pointing to Russia and FBI Chief James Comey as the key drivers of her loss."  Well, YES!  While many people out there are still dissecting the election, many are completely overlooking the point that Clinton would have WON the Electoral College as well as the popular vote had the election been held two or three weeks earlier.  Clinton knows this.  

Did Collinson ever think that Hillary might just be as concerned as the rest of us about what is happening under Trump's Presidency?  That it is scary, repulsive, disturbing, and that Trump's ignorance is just plain dangerous.. not just to "bitter" Clinton but to any of us who have an ounce of sense?  Perhaps Collinson is one of those without that "ounce of sense"?

Is she "bitter" or just plain angry and scared about the future of this country that she loves.. that she obviously loves more than Trump does?  Collinson, have you spent any of the last 102 days looking at what is going on in this country?  The kinds of people that Trump has appointed; the kinds of policies that he has pushed?  Thank heavens that he is not getting his way in most court cases and with the Congress.  He is an ignorant, despicable fool who has no business in the White House.  Clinton bitter?  She knows how incompetent Trump is, just as the rest of us should, including you, Stephen Collinson. 

Deep in his Soul...

Collinson continues:
Trump, for his part, rarely lets more than a few days go by without boasting about his outsider win.  
Perhaps because Trump actually DOES realize that he didn't win the popular vote.. and it bothers the hell out of him.  

Come on, Collinson:
The President is extraordinarily touchy about the merest suggestion that his victory is not totally authentic.   
Perhaps Trump KNOWS that his victory is not authentic and we should know that as well.. even you, Collinson.  What's going to happen when the connections to the Russians actually start to come out, when we find a few smoking guns?  You don't think that Trump fears that?  

We're Not Clinton Fanbots

Collinson writes:  
Clinton has now given her supporters, many of whom believe she was cheated out of breaking the highest, hardest glass ceiling in politics, even more reasons to view Trump as illegitimate.
Clinton voters are not stupid.  The more educated the voter, the more likely the person voted for Clinton.  We're not little fanbots; we don't need Clinton to tell us what is glaringly obvious:  Trump IS illegitimate  and she WAS cheated and it is going to become more obvious as time goes by.
And the President is unlikely to take a pass at Clinton's unflattering description of his performance, including her renewal of her claim that he was unprepared for office.

Clinton's unflattering description?  We don't need Hillary Clinton to tell us that Trump was unprepared for office; that should be clear to anyone who breathes these days.

Clinton is right.

Then Collinson quotes Clinton in yesterday's interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour:
I was on the way to winning until a combination of (FBI Director) Jim Comey's letter on October 28 and Russian WikiLeaks raised doubts in the minds of people who were inclined to vote for me and got scared off. 

The evidence for that intervening event is, I think, compelling, persuasive, and so we overcame a lot in the campaign...
Clinton also added that believed misogyny played a role in her defeat.

OKay, Collinson, what's wrong with that?  She's exactly right.  And I've been saying that for months now; I didn't need Clinton to tell me that, in fact, I'm glad it is becoming apparent to Clinton and a big chunk of the 65 million Americans who voted for her.

Is Clinton "goading" Trump? 



In fact, she seemed positively to be goading the President:
"If he wants to tweet about me, then I am happy to be the diversion because we have a lot of things to worry about," Clinton told Amanpour.
He should worry less about the election and my winning the popular vote than doing some other things that would be important for the country.

What else can I say to this but "Good for her!"  Go Hillary! She's completely right.  Hillary, refuse to let yourself be pigeonholed as "bitter" or a "sore loser".  

A feud with Clinton could help Trump?
Collinson continues:

A knock-down, drag-out feud with Clinton -- a political figure as polarizing as himself -- could cheer his base and rally Republicans who are still cool to him who also deplore the former secretary of state.

Deplore the former Secretary of State?  The most popular woman in the world for years?  The woman who led all of the polls for President in 2015.. before the Russians, the uber-lefties started to pile on along with the misogynists and the alt-right?  If people "deplore" her, it is in part due to the decades of propaganda and brainwashing that have been thrown against her... and then the Russians and the uber-lefties piling on.  Collinson's been writing about the White House and American politics for a few years now; he should know that.  
But blaming Comey for the loss appears to absolve Clinton of her campaign's failure to effectively counter Trump's electorally appealing message in industrialized Midwestern states that went red instead of their usual blue.
Stop with the crap about the "industrialized Midwest"

Collinson, this is bullshit, and I personally am tired of it.  She would have won if the election had been held 2-3 weeks earlier, "industrialized Midwest" or not.  She was leading in all of those states 2-3-4 weeks earlier.  The crap that she lost due to these poor, disaffected old white men is just that... crap.  Why were these people going to vote for her 2-3 weeks earlier?  She lost 3-4% in polling in the last three weeks before the election.  

If you want to talk about "character and honesty", Collinson, let's talk about Trump... 
But on the other hand, Comey's comments were related to the investigation into the private email server that Clinton set up as secretary of state, in apparent infringement of government guidelines. It was that issue and her handling of it throughout the campaign that helped revive questions about the character and honesty of the Clintons that had remained largely dormant since former President Bill Clinton left office in 2001.
Gimme a break, Collinson.  Comey talked about the private email server and never bothered to mention the ongoing investigation into Russian meddling on behalf of the Trump people.  

And "character and honesty":  What about the character and honesty of Trump?  Did you bother to look at Politifact and their Truth-o-meter, Collinson?  Hillary may have made "mistakes", but Trump was the least honest candidate in modern history.  68% of his statements have been rated as mostly false, false, or Pant-a-fire.  And, as the weeks go on, we also have seen that he is the least prepared, least knowledgeable, most corrupt President to take the oath of office.

And let's remember that a majority of the American people knew it.  They did NOT vote for him.  He did NOT win the popular vote, and that is still important as he tries to get some kind of "agenda" enacted.

Impressing her critics?
Her performance did not impress some critics:  
So Collinson quotes that conservative chick S.E. Cupp. Well, duh, no, her performance will NOT impress conservatives, but then nothing any "liberal" or "Democrat" will do will impress conservatives.

About 2020?
"Yet its familiar faces -- Barack Obama, Sanders and now Clinton -- who appear to be attracting the most attention so far -- underlining its weak bench of up-and-comers ready for the big time."
Weak bench?  Was Bill Clinton on that "weak bench" in 1989?  Was Barack Obama on the "weak bench" in 2005?  And look at who the "weak bench" is up against:  Trump, the most idiotic, the most unpopular President in a long, long time.  So let's just wait and see.  

And Collinson, maybe it is time for you to pack your bags and go back to Britain.  
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Monday, April 25, 2016

Who Are the CongressCritters Who Follow the Koch Brothers 100% of the Time?

The 100% Club

Americans for Prosperity:  You've heard of them, right?


Americans for Prosperity and the Americans for Prosperity Foundation were both founded by and largely funded by the conservative libertarian Koch Brothers, David and Charles.  It is unclear how much input the Kochs have on the day-to-day work of AFP, which is now headed by a conservative named Tim Phillips, but HERE's a good overview from Factcheck org.  Americans for Prosperity is considered to be a major vehicle for the Kochs and their lobbying efforts on behalf of conservative libertarian causes and government policies.

100% Koch Congress People
This photo taken from the homepage of the Americans for Prosperity scorecard found HERE

But this article is about how members of Congress fare according to the ranking and rating systems of Americans for Prosperity.  AFP puts out a rating and ranking system for members of the US Congress, both the House and the Senate.  In these ratings, if you favor more liberal and progressive postions, LOW scores are good and HIGH scores are bad.  Members of Congress get ratings by the session and over their lifetimes.  The AFP ratings go back to 2007-2008 Congressional session.     

In summary:

To summarize these ratings, there is very little cross over between the Democrats and the Republicans in the Americans For Prosperity ratings.  Almost all Democrats get very low scores (Remember, low is good!).. .and almost all Republicans get very high scores (High scores = bad!)

Bernie Sanders?  Hillary Clinton?

In terms of lifetime averages from the Americans for Prosperity people, Independent Senator Bernie Sanders has a measly 5% lifetime score.  (Remember, low = good.)  Nope, he is certainly not a Koch puppet.  

Hillary Clinton?  Her lifetime score from her years in the Senate was even lower than Senator Sanders:  She had a 4% lifetime score....  which makes Charles Koch's tepid statement about Hillary Clinton perhaps being "better" than a Republican Presidential candidate very, very strange indeed.

So.. Who does well according to Americans for Prosperity?

Which CongressPeople are busy doing the bidding of the Koch Brothers and Americans for Prosperity?  Thirty-one (31) Senators, including current and former Presidential candidates Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Rand Paul have voted the AFP/Koch way 100% of the time.  Seventy-eight (78) Representatives have voted with the Kochs 100% of the time.   

Below, in order by "current score", meaning the current legislative session, are the current Senators and Representatives who have received 100% ratings from Americans for Prosperity in the current Congressional (2015-2016) session.  (We'll be looking at the CongressPeople who have very low scores later today.)

Notice that these 100% Koch CongressCritters are all Republicans?

No, Both Parties are NOT the Same!   
NAMESTATEDISTRICTPARTYCURRENT GRADELIFETIME GRADE
Rep. Marsha BlackburnTN7R100%88%
Rep. Michael BurgessTX26R100%90%
Rep. Rob BishopUT1R100%90%
Rep. David BratVA7R100%50%
Rep. Brian BabinTX36R100%100%
Rep. Rod BlumIA1R100%100%
Rep. Ken BuckCO4R100%100%
Rep. Steven ChabotOH1R100%94%
Rep. John CulbersonTX7R100%88%
Rep. John CarterTX31R100%85%
Rep. K. ConawayTX11R100%90%
Rep. Jason ChaffetzUT3R100%89%
Rep. Mike CoffmanCO6R100%96%
Rep. Doug CollinsGA9R100%87%
Rep. Jeffrey DuncanSC3R100%97%
Rep. Scott DesJarlaisTN4R100%89%
Rep. Ron DeSantisFL6R100%96%
Rep. Trent FranksAZ8R100%97%
Rep. John FlemingLA4R100%95%
Rep. Blake FarentholdTX27R100%79%
Rep. Bill FloresTX17R100%78%
Rep. Scott GarrettNJ5R100%97%
Rep. Louie GohmertTX1R100%93%
Rep. Tom GravesGA14R100%94%
Rep. Paul GosarAZ4R100%92%
Rep. Trey GowdySC4R100%96%
Rep. Jeb HensarlingTX5R100%93%
Rep. Andy HarrisMD1R100%93%
Rep. Tim HuelskampKS1R100%98%
Rep. Bill HuizengaMI2R100%87%
Rep. Robert HurtVA5R100%85%
Rep. Richard HudsonNC8R100%81%
Rep. Jody HiceGA10R100%100%
Rep. Sam JohnsonTX3R100%86%
Rep. Jim JordanOH4R100%99%
Rep. Steve KingIA4R100%89%
Rep. Doug LambornCO5R100%97%
Rep. Robert LattaOH5R100%86%
Rep. Raul LabradorID1R100%97%
Rep. Barry LoudermilkGA11R100%100%
Rep. Mia LoveUT4R100%100%
Rep. Jeff MillerFL1R100%89%
Rep. Kenny MarchantTX24R100%91%
Rep. Kevin McCarthyCA23R100%86%
Rep. Tom McClintockCA4R100%100%
Rep. Mick MulvaneySC5R100%97%
Rep. Alex MooneyWV2R100%100%
Rep. Randy NeugebauerTX19R100%94%
Rep. Richard NugentFL11R100%88%
Rep. Pete OlsonTX22R100%88%
Rep. Tom PriceGA6R100%93%
Rep. Bill PoseyFL8R100%97%
Rep. Mike PompeoKS4R100%98%
Rep. Scott PerryPA4R100%85%
Rep. Robert PittengerNC9R100%85%
Rep. Gary PalmerAL6R100%100%
Rep. Dana RohrabacherCA48R100%89%
Rep. Ed RoyceCA39R100%89%
Rep. Paul RyanWI1R100%84%
Rep. Todd RokitaIN4R100%83%
Rep. Dennis RossFL15R100%87%
Rep. Keith RothfusPA12R100%89%
Rep. John RatcliffeTX4R100%100%
Rep. F. SensenbrennerWI5R100%93%
Rep. Lamar SmithTX21R100%83%
Rep. Adrian SmithNE3R100%88%
Rep. Steve ScaliseLA1R100%96%
Rep. Aaron SchockIL18R100%82%
Rep. David SchweikertAZ6R100%97%
Rep. Marlin StutzmanIN3R100%93%
Rep. Austin ScottGA8R100%87%
Rep. Chris StewartUT2R100%77%
Rep. Scott TiptonCO3R100%84%
Rep. Tim WalbergMI7R100%87%
Rep. Brad WenstrupOH2R100%96%
Rep. Roger WilliamsTX25R100%89%
Rep. Mark WalkerNC6R100%100%
Rep. Ted YohoFL3R100%77%
Sen. Roy BluntMOR100%86%
Sen. John BoozmanARR100%88%
Sen. John BarrassoWYR100%93%
Sen. Michael CrapoIDR100%91%
Sen. Shelley CapitoWVR100%67%
Sen. John CornynTXR100%95%
Sen. Bob CorkerTNR100%87%
Sen. Bill CassidyLAR100%80%
Sen. Tom CottonARR100%100%
Sen. Ted CruzTXR100%98%
Sen. Steve DainesMTR100%89%
Sen. Jeff FlakeAZR100%98%
Sen. Deb FischerNER100%88%
Sen. Cory GardnerCOR100%88%
Sen. Orrin HatchUTR100%85%
Sen. James InhofeOKR100%96%
Sen. James LankfordOKR100%90%
Sen. Mike LeeUTR100%99%
Sen. Mitch McConnellKYR100%92%
Sen. Rand PaulKYR100%93%
Sen. David PerdueGAR100%100%
Sen. Jim RischIDR100%92%
Sen. Marco RubioFLR100%98%
Sen. Richard ShelbyALR100%84%
Sen. Jeff SessionsALR100%90%
Sen. Ben SasseNER100%100%
Sen. Dan SullivanAKR100%100%
Sen. John ThuneSDR100%87%
Sen. Patrick ToomeyPAR100%96%
Sen. Thom TillisNCR100%100%
Sen. David VitterLAR100%100%
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