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You are here: Home / Elections / Election 2008 / “Rich People – God Bless(ed?) Us!”

“Rich People – God Bless(ed?) Us!”

by Michael D.|  May 2, 20089:40 am| 92 Comments

This post is in: Election 2008, Assholes

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Hillary Clinton – Liar.

On today’s “state of the race” conference call, a reporter asked about an exchange between Hillary Clinton and Bill O’Reilly on yesterday’s show in which Clinton uttered the words, “Rich people—God bless us.”

Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson denied that’s what she said: “She said ‘God blessed us.’ B-L-E-S-S-E-D.”

Go ahead and watch the video for yourself.

She will say anything to get elected – anything. And for the record, I didn’t think the quote, in context, was any big deal. In fact, I think she could have defended it. But she’s sending our her surrogates with bald-faced lies. It’s a wonder that anyone wants to work on such an embarrassment of a campaign.

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Reader Interactions

92Comments

  1. 1.

    wasabi gasp

    May 2, 2008 at 9:47 am

    Sucks for the god damned poor people.

  2. 2.

    Crust

    May 2, 2008 at 9:48 am

    Chill out. If you want to bash Hillary there’s plenty of good stuff to bash her on, but this is just dumb. Put up another post on the gas tax or whatever.

  3. 3.

    Justin

    May 2, 2008 at 9:51 am

    I voted for Obama and I’ve given him a fair amount of money, and yet, I still didn’t find this moment all that offensive. I mean who really caress about this.

    I actually kind of like Hilary, and I bet she’d be a fine President. She just didn’t get enough delegates and votes.

    Basically, I’m coming around to the idea of her as Vice President. It’s not ideal, but not the end of the world either.

  4. 4.

    dougie smooth

    May 2, 2008 at 9:53 am

    Yeah, she said “God bless us”. But she was clearly mocking O’Reilly’s insistence on fighting for rich people. Hillary can suck my white ass, but she was mocking him here. Her campaign spun it with a bald-faced lie, but her campaign can hardly dress itself in the morning. Yawn.

  5. 5.

    cleek

    May 2, 2008 at 9:56 am

    no, the quote itself, and the difference between “bless” and “blessed”, is not a big deal. lying about it for absolutely no reason, though? it just reinforces people’s (considerable) distrust of her and her campaign.

  6. 6.

    Frank Jacobs

    May 2, 2008 at 9:57 am

    Sounds like Wolfson’s the liar here; but then, when’s the last time anyone who had a brain in their head believed a word the guy said, anyway? He’s a hack without regard for the truth – it’s what he’s paid for.

  7. 7.

    mrmobi

    May 2, 2008 at 10:03 am

    You know, I really don’t like the Clinton campaign. I actually admire Hillary quite a lot, but she has put herself in the hands of some real fuckups.

    There is no reason on god’s green earth that she should be behind now. Her campaign planned badly, if at all, and just asssumed that this would be a walk in the park.

    This thing itself is nothing at all, even if her campaign lied about it. Who the fuck cares?

  8. 8.

    jrg

    May 2, 2008 at 10:06 am

    This miffs me a great deal more.

    I believe Hillary should not be president simply on the basis of her gender. Therefore, I’m a misogynist, so WTF do I know?

    When are the superdelegates going to pony up some courage and throw this gutless, pandering loser out of the race? HRC is as bad as Lieberman – she will buy into any right-wing narrative if she thinks it will help her win in either ’08 or ’12.

    Her personal ambitions come ahead of the Democratic party, and the country. Anyone voting “for Hillary” is doing just that, because the country will not benefit from her being in charge (but she’ll probably rake in another $100 million before it’s all over with).

    May God have mercy on her poor excuse for a soul.

  9. 9.

    Barbara

    May 2, 2008 at 10:06 am

    I don’t understand what she intended to say, because I doubt if she intended what she actually said, and I am assuming that she was trying to use satire — Can I say that I really hate that campaigns have become almost entirely about trying to twist impromptu words out of all proportion to the importance of how they were intended? Sometimes those words tell a truth, but in this case, I really doubt it. Now as to John “100 years in Iraq” McCain, I would feel more sympathy for the use of that unfortunate slip of the tongue if he would give us his “real” view instead of continuously stating that the “100 years” view was false without elaborating.

  10. 10.

    merrinc

    May 2, 2008 at 10:08 am

    Wolfson gets paid to twist words and define alternate realities. This isn’t as wtf-worthy as his claim yesterday that Joe Andrew isn’t really from Indiana.

  11. 11.

    Ed in NJ

    May 2, 2008 at 10:08 am

    The base instinct of anyone associated with the Clintons is to lie. Even when they don’t have to. It’s why they find themselves on the losing end of this race.

  12. 12.

    norbizness

    May 2, 2008 at 10:09 am

    I couldn’t give less of a shit if I tried, and anyone on the interwebs knows me, I’ll sit on my hands and sew my meager wallet shut if she’s nominated.

    More interesting are current Clinton advisors’ views on upcoming primary state residents.

  13. 13.

    bernarda

    May 2, 2008 at 10:09 am

    I am still waiting for Oblablabama to say something serious. At least he saves me on air conditioning.

  14. 14.

    Shinobi

    May 2, 2008 at 10:15 am

    She definitely said Bless. Do people think we are Deaf?

  15. 15.

    Stooleo

    May 2, 2008 at 10:24 am

    Booman lays out the 2012 conspiracy theory. Possible reasons why she’ll say and do anything, with no regard to the blow back.

  16. 16.

    t jasper parnell

    May 2, 2008 at 10:25 am

    She clarifies what she means in the next sentence, which I understand as meaning we should pay more in taxes so the next generations continue to enjoy the structures and opportunities we enjoy.

  17. 17.

    DougJ

    May 2, 2008 at 10:29 am

    Who cares? I’m totally down with trashing the Tuzla Tigress when I have a legitimate grievance, but this is just dumb.

  18. 18.

    bernarda

    May 2, 2008 at 10:31 am

    Goddamn, I can’t believe you use this clip to criticize Clinton. She shut Bill 0’the wimp up on the economy issue.

    I better understand why this is called “Ballon Juice” and that you support Ballon Juice Obama.

  19. 19.

    dickweathers

    May 2, 2008 at 10:31 am

    Nice norbizness

    What the hell, did James Carville stop by the office on his way to a Kid n’ Play concert?

  20. 20.

    Dreggas

    May 2, 2008 at 10:33 am

    quite frankly, given the rest of the quote, I doubt she was really mocking him. She speaks of continuing “our” country and “our” prosperity or whatever right after saying “Rich people, god bless us”. This goes right along with her ties to that religious group “The Family” that preaches a political form of prosperity gospel where they are the leaders because they are meant to be the leaders by god yadda, yadda.

    The fact the Wolfshit is out trying to change what she said makes it even clearer that he’s a dipshit and her campaign is hacktacular.

  21. 21.

    cleek

    May 2, 2008 at 10:34 am

    troll a little bit harder bernarda; you’re almost there, but not quite.

  22. 22.

    Garrigus Carraig

    May 2, 2008 at 10:37 am

    “Poor people – God’s gettin’ to y’all.”

  23. 23.

    mark

    May 2, 2008 at 10:38 am

    Yup, I gotta say I’m with Hillary on this one. It actually showed remarkable spontaneity and humor for her. I heard it as “gimme a break, Bill, of course we’re rich.” The panicked spin on this was just silly.

  24. 24.

    mrmobi

    May 2, 2008 at 10:39 am

    Okay, I think I’m going to take back what I said above (about admiring Hillary). Both of the excerpted items are from the Carpetbagger.

    It appears Hillary’s campaign really will do anything, including using the very people who attacked her husband, to defeat or destroy Obama. Fuck this shit. Fuck it real good.

    First, concerning Sid Blumenthal:

    Former journalist Sidney Blumenthal has been widely credited with coining the term “vast right-wing conspiracy” used by Hillary Clinton in 1998 to describe the alliance of conservative media, think tanks, and political operatives that sought to destroy the Clinton White House where he worked as a high-level aide. A decade later, and now acting as a senior campaign advisor to Senator Clinton, Blumenthal is exploiting that same right-wing network to attack and discredit Barack Obama. And he’s not hesitating to use the same sort of guilt-by-association tactics that have been the hallmark of the political right dating back to the McCarthy era.

    Almost every day over the past six months, I have been the recipient of an email that attacks Obama’s character, political views, electability, and real or manufactured associations. The original source of many of these hit pieces are virulent and sometimes extreme right-wing websites, bloggers, and publications. But they aren’t being emailed out from some fringe right-wing group that somehow managed to get my email address. Instead, it is Sidney Blumenthal who, on a regular basis, methodically dispatches these email mudballs to an influential list of opinion shapers — including journalists, former Clinton administration officials, academics, policy entrepreneurs, and think tankers — in what is an obvious attempt to create an echo chamber that reverberates among talk shows, columnists, and Democratic Party funders and activists.

    Second: regarding the gas tax holiday:

    “I believe it would be important to get every member of Congress on record,” Clinton told supporters at a rally in southern Indiana. “Do they stand with the hard-pressed Americans who are trying to pay their gas bills at the gas station or do they once again stand with the oil companies?

    “I want to know where people stand and I want them to tell us, are they with us or against us when it comes to taking on the oil companies?” she added.

    Wait, with us or against us? Isn’t that Bush’s line?

    Making matters slightly worse, the Clinton campaign acknowledged yesterday that every policy expert of every ideological stripe has described the McCain-Clinton idea as nonsense, but they don’t care.

    “There are times that a president will take a position that a broad support of quote-unquote experts agree with,” spokesperson Howard Wolfson said. “And there are times they will take a position that quote-unquote experts do not agree with.”

    Now policy experts aren’t to be taken seriously? What on earth has gotten into the Clinton campaign this week?

    Not content to use the same strategies as Rove, her campaign now is making her even use the same exact language. Does her campaign think people like Bush? I think what this telegraphs is that when she is “panderer-in-chief,” she won’t have to pay attention to polls or “experts.”

    So any Democrat who thinks she would easily give up the consolidation of executive power that has occurred over the past seven years should just forget about that shit. I can’t wait to see what her signing statements will look like.

    I’m beginning to see the Clinton campaign as more of a disease than a political campaign for the Democratic nomination for President. Any democrat should be outraged at this kind of behavior.

    I know I am.

  25. 25.

    cleek

    May 2, 2008 at 10:42 am

    i’m glad she’s trying to force all those supers into picking sides on this gas thing. it seems like the kind of thing that will get a bunch of them to step forward and announce their support, for Obama.

  26. 26.

    Zifnab

    May 2, 2008 at 10:43 am

    At least she didn’t say “God Damn America”. Because then I’d have to leave her church if she ever ran for President.

    Seriously, the problem isn’t some vague distortion of what she said or some lame-ass excuse bandied out by her worthless campaign staff. The problem is that she was ON FOX NEWS TO BEGIN WITH! Why is she giving Bill O’Reily ratings? Why is she giving Rupert Murdoch ad revenue? The Democratic Party should be wholesale boycotting this sham of a media institution. Instead, we’ve got candidates rivaling each other to pander to the 28%ers of America.

    Wtf?

  27. 27.

    Scrutinizer

    May 2, 2008 at 10:43 am

    I don’t get it. That was a decent interview with BillO. She shut him down, or at least held her own. I still think that the “rich people gotta take take of the peons” smacks of elitism the way she states it—but so what? She did a good job in that interview. When she’s not throwing sinks around, I could almost justify voting for her in November.

    Why Wolfson felt the need to turn this into “Bless” versus “Blessed” is beyond me. But it’s a sign of how vapid our political discourse has become, when he feels like he has to lie about that. Talk about an unforced error!

    Maybe we can have a blessedgate this weekend, to go along with all the other fucking “-gates” we seem to be accumulating.

    Wouldn’t it be nice to see pols and their surrogates craft a “you’ve got to be fuckin’ kidding me response to these kinds of questions.

  28. 28.

    Quackers

    May 2, 2008 at 10:44 am

    This is just coming out. I wonder how they’ll spin Mickey Kantor telling Carville and Stephanopoulis in ’92 that Indiana is “worthless sh*t” AND “white N*ggers”? Good grief, it makes Obama’s bitter comment collapse into insignificance on the offensive scale of things. If this get’s picked up it will bury her.

    Sorry, I can’t get the stupid link to work. Go to Drudge, it’s there front and center.

  29. 29.

    KCinDC

    May 2, 2008 at 10:46 am

    Michael is right. What she said was not offensive. What’s offensive is Wolfson’s blatant lie about it.

    It reminds me of Cheney’s ridiculous lie in the 2004 VP debate about never having met Edwards. Clearly he had to know that there was evidence out there proving it was a lie, but he didn’t care and just went with his natural instinct — when in doubt, lie (hell, lie even when not in doubt). And of course he was correct in expecting that the media would ignore the lie, including having idiot Tim Russert talk about what a great zinger that was despite knowing that the two had met on his show.

  30. 30.

    Dreggas

    May 2, 2008 at 10:51 am

    Scrutinizer Says:

    I don’t get it. That was a decent interview with BillO. She shut him down, or at least held her own. I still think that the “rich people gotta take take of the peons” smacks of elitism the way she states it—-but so what? She did a good job in that interview. When she’s not throwing sinks around, I could almost justify voting for her in November.

    This is what I detest about the Clinton’s the entire “Let them eat cake” mentality and that they are there to save us from ourselves like enlightened despots who are better than the rest of us. Bill wasn’t nearly as bad as Hillary and she reminds me of a straight up blue-blood.

  31. 31.

    KCinDC

    May 2, 2008 at 10:52 am

    Why is she giving Bill O’Reily ratings?

    Because she can team up with him to smear Obama and keep up the endless media coverage of the fascinating Jeremiah Wright, the most important man in America, whose opinions are clearly vital to the future of our country.

    I really am amazed that even O’Reilly’s moronic audience are willing to sit there listening to him whine about exactly how many extra percentage points he might have to pay in taxes on his millions of dollars in salary. At least Clinton handled that part well.

  32. 32.

    Fulcanelli

    May 2, 2008 at 10:56 am

    I wonder how many of Bill O’Reilly’s dittoheads are in the 39% tax bracket?

    D’ya think a light bulb went on with any of them, watching him brag about the obscene amount of money he makes? Even a little 10 watt bulb?

    Nah, I didn’t think so either.

  33. 33.

    Martin

    May 2, 2008 at 10:57 am

    Meh. So what. Her statement was fine. Yeah, Obama would be defending elistist charges for the next week if he said it, but so what. And Wolfson isn’t a surrogate – he’s a formal part of the campaign. Surrogates are the people that are working for you without working for you.

    And so what that Kantor is a scumbag.

    Her ‘with us or against us’ deal with Congress is what is unconscionable. She’s pitting herself and McCain against Reid/Pelosi and trying to use Congress to justify her nutty plan.

    And I’m annoyed at Obama for half-assing his response to her plan by focusing on how little it would save rather than the fact that it would save virtually nothing at all. He’s almost conceding that people would in fact save $.18. If that were the case, it wouldn’t be too bad of a plan. But that won’t happen and everyone knows it – so why not say that? People aren’t dumb.

  34. 34.

    Doug H. (Fausto no more)

    May 2, 2008 at 11:01 am

    i’m glad she’s trying to force all those supers into picking sides on this gas thing. it seems like the kind of thing that will get a bunch of them to step forward and announce their support, for Obama.

    That’s the biggest story of the day, far more than sixteen-year old rumblings by Mickey Kantor or WVWV’s Keystone Kops antics. Hillary dropped the ‘with us or against us’ bomb on her own party. That’s really going to go over well with the super delegates.

  35. 35.

    mrmobi

    May 2, 2008 at 11:02 am

    This is just coming out. I wonder how they’ll spin Mickey Kantor telling Carville and Stephanopoulis in ‘92 that Indiana is “worthless sh*t” AND “white N*ggers”? Good grief, it makes Obama’s bitter comment collapse into insignificance on the offensive scale of things. If this get’s picked up it will bury her.

    There are two videos of this (I assume it was from the Bill’s first campaign) over at Booman Tribune.

    Of course, Mickey Kantor is also the guy who’s been saying that Hillary didn’t originally support NAFTA, despite written evidence to the contrary.

    I sure hope this gets wide play, nothing like seeing a long-time Clinton associate calling people shit and “white niggers,” eh? No elitism in that campaign.

    I think I detect the stench of the next news cycle. Smells good!

  36. 36.

    KCinDC

    May 2, 2008 at 11:02 am

    Martin, how about the fact that she hasn’t even introduced legislation to implement her “plan”, and if she did it would have zero chance of passing? So it’s not only a stupid idea, but a stupid idea that’s completely imaginary.

  37. 37.

    4tehlulz

    May 2, 2008 at 11:06 am

    This is interesting. The Kantor video is on Wonkette, and Wonkette’s editor just happens to be appearing on CNN at 1 pm.

  38. 38.

    AkaDad

    May 2, 2008 at 11:07 am

    I am still waiting for Oblablabama to say something serious. At least he saves me on air conditioning.

    Seriously?

  39. 39.

    rawshark

    May 2, 2008 at 11:09 am

    Why Wolfson felt the need to turn this into “Bless” versus “Blessed” is beyond me.

    Anyone read Animal Farm?

  40. 40.

    The Other Steve

    May 2, 2008 at 11:09 am

    She can’t make coffee either.

  41. 41.

    chopper

    May 2, 2008 at 11:10 am

    Why Wolfson felt the need to turn this into “Bless” versus “Blessed” is beyond me.

    that’s the funny thing. i saw it and thought she was being sardonic. makes sense, so why the hell does wolfson have to step in and blatantly lie about it?

  42. 42.

    Fulcanelli

    May 2, 2008 at 11:11 am

    I think I detect the stench of the next news cycle. Smells good!

    With any luck this will shut up “Praying Mantis Head” Carville up for at least a few days. When will people wise up to political parasites like him and “Cross-Eyed Mary” Matalin.

    These two embody everything that is utterly and totally wrong with American politics. They should be waterboarded on pay per view.

    And yeah, the smell of this is gonna spread far and wide. Let’s hope Olbermann gets a hold of it.

  43. 43.

    ThymeZone

    May 2, 2008 at 11:16 am

    sur·ro·gate (sûr-gt, -gt, sr-)
    n.
    1. One that takes the place of another; a substitute.

    “Surrogate” has nothing to do with who works for whom, it has to do with who speaks for whom.

    People are surrogates in a campaign when they speak for the campaign, which is basically the same thing as speaking for the candidate unless there is explicit exclusion of that meaning.

  44. 44.

    Svensker

    May 2, 2008 at 11:19 am

    Kantor is threatening to sue over the “white nigger” thing now, claiming there’s no way he said that. Which is possible — it’s very hard to hear. But he’s not disputing the “these people are shit” part. That should go over nicely in Indiana if it gets any play.

    What is clear from watching the video is that he knows he’s saying something he shouldn’t with the cameras rolling, since he whispers and turns his head, and the reaction from George S. is “I’m not reacting to THIS with the cameras rolling, let’s pretend it never happened.”

    Kantor aside, is Carville the most disgusting person in the Democratic party, or not? (Lieberman’s not in anymore, so he don’t count.)

  45. 45.

    The Other Steve

    May 2, 2008 at 11:20 am

    This is just coming out. I wonder how they’ll spin Mickey Kantor telling Carville and Stephanopoulis in ‘92 that Indiana is “worthless sh*t” AND “white N*ggers”? Good grief, it makes Obama’s bitter comment collapse into insignificance on the offensive scale of things. If this get’s picked up it will bury her.

    Mickey Kantor should stay away from cities with bus service.

  46. 46.

    ThymeZone

    May 2, 2008 at 11:21 am

    And I’m annoyed at Obama for half-assing his response to her plan by focusing on how little it would save rather than the fact that it would save virtually nothing at all.

    You are not doing your best work. Obama has been exhaustive in his description of the silly tax holiday and its shortcomings, and his new ad centered on the thing is quite effective.

    I don’t think that explaining to people that a measure would save them $70 over the course of a summer is treating them as dumb, instead it’s treating them as smart enough to figure out that the measure is a foolish pander.

    It’s Obama, not Clinton, who doesn’t stoop to talking down to voters.

  47. 47.

    ThymeZone

    May 2, 2008 at 11:24 am

    Another Friday with its pundit “weekly wraps” which blather on about Reverend Wright and say NOTHING about the insane, sociopathic monster Hagee whose endorsement is still welcomed by the senile fuckstain John McCain.

  48. 48.

    Wilfred

    May 2, 2008 at 11:25 am

    I was living in Brentwood when Kantor’s son smashed his car into a tree on Sunset Blvd not too far from where I lived and killed himself. Thing was it was a Plymouth with a 454 engine, like the ones that state troopers used, and the kid was 17 or 18 years old, tops. At the time a lot of people questioned his judgment in giving a car like that to his kid. He was an asshole then and still is.

  49. 49.

    slippy hussein toad

    May 2, 2008 at 11:26 am

    Scrutinizer Says:

    I don’t get it. That was a decent interview with BillO. She shut him down, or at least held her own. I still think that the “rich people gotta take take of the peons” smacks of elitism the way she states it—-but so what? She did a good job in that interview. When she’s not throwing sinks around, I could almost justify voting for her in November.

    Why Wolfson felt the need to turn this into “Bless” versus “Blessed” is beyond me. But it’s a sign of how vapid our political discourse has become, when he feels like he has to lie about that. Talk about an unforced error!

    Maybe we can have a blessedgate this weekend, to go along with all the other fucking “-gates” we seem to be accumulating.

    Wouldn’t it be nice to see pols and their surrogates craft a “you’ve got to be fuckin’ kidding me response to these kinds of questions.

    The problem is, Hillary can’t really get ahead of Obama on substance, so she’s chosen superficialities.

    These same superficialities are now all that anyone wants to talk about with regard to HER. It’s a terrible strategy. Going negative only works if your opponent is afraid of answering the negative attacks, but not afraid to sling mud himself. Instead, the opposite has happened. Obama has refused to sling mud, and Hillary has gotten herself all filthy.

  50. 50.

    John S.

    May 2, 2008 at 11:29 am

    Martin-

    People aren’t dumb.

    Yes, they are.

    If people weren’t dumb then Hillary wouldn’t be playing games with the gas tax. It is precisely because she counts on them being dumb that she is doing what she is doing.

    While I agree with Obama 100% on the policy and the principle, Hillary probably made the wise political calculation. I hope it doesn’t pay the dividends she is expecting it to, but voters really do seem to be that gullible.

  51. 51.

    John S.

    May 2, 2008 at 11:33 am

    makes sense, so why the hell does wolfson have to step in and blatantly lie about it?

    Because reading the quote she comes across as an elitist. You have to watch the clip to see it in a context thst frames her response as being sardonic. Simply reading it makes it impossible to determine that.

    And considering how she demonized Obama for his ‘elitist’ comments, the campaign sought to minimize any potential fallout. Of course, by doing so they only made the situation worse, but that has defined her campaign.

    Cure the disease – kill the patient.

  52. 52.

    ThymeZone

    May 2, 2008 at 11:36 am

    I think Obama just clinched my vote.

    It was hardly shocking when McCain floated his moronic “gas tax holiday”. That’s the kind of goofy gimmick that you’d expect a desperate, doddering conservative to resort to.

    But I was surprised and disappointed when Hillary chimed in with “Me too!”

    No matter that unlike McKook, she’d recoup the highway funds by taxing oil. It was bad enough when Congress voted the tax rebate so that Americans could go out and buy a wide-screen TV this summer. (Shades of W’s response to 9/11 that we all should just go out and shop harder – “Take that, Osama!”) What’s next, free Department of Agriculture vouchers for a Big Mac with any Happy Meal? Hell, let’s cut the pretense and give everyone a ticket for a free loaf of Wonder Bread and a seat at a Barnum & Bailey show – bread and circuses for everyone.

    Obama was the only one with the guts to say how fucking stupid this idea is, and spell out why. Hillary just signaled that like any hackneyed pol, she’ll pander to whatever it takes. I understand the need for pragmatic realpolitik compromises to get things done, but GMAFB.

    She may have gotten thousands of additional votes from her base constituencies, but she just lost mine.

    And old Intertube friend just sent me this mail this morning. A late convert to MUPpetdom. Don’t worry, this gas tax thing is not working for McCain or Hillary. But when Johnny picks her as his running mate, they will be a deadly combination!

  53. 53.

    Dennis - SGMM

    May 2, 2008 at 11:37 am

    I wonder what the response would be if Obama had been sitting in that chair and had given O’Reilly the same answer. My guess is that you could hear the Clinton supporters shrieking “Elitist!” twenty miles out to sea.

  54. 54.

    John Cole

    May 2, 2008 at 11:37 am

    More interesting are current Clinton advisors’ views on upcoming primary state residents.

    That video is bullshit- you can;t tell what he says and that is a clear smear job. Not to mention, I am not gonna hold it againsr Hillary that Mickey Kantor was a jackass 16 years ago while working for her husband’s campaign.

    That is weaker than the Wright stuff.

  55. 55.

    John S.

    May 2, 2008 at 11:42 am

    That is weaker than the Wright stuff.

    Deep thought: The Wright stuff leads to the wrong stuff.

  56. 56.

    The Other Steve

    May 2, 2008 at 11:44 am

    It’s Obama, not Clinton, who doesn’t stoop to talking down to voters.

    Maybe that’s the problem. After 8 years of Bush talking down to voters, the voters are used to being talked down to?

  57. 57.

    KCinDC

    May 2, 2008 at 11:46 am

    John, I think the point of the Kantor clip is that if the media narrative is going to be based on bullshit the rules need to at least be applied to all candidates equally. I’m not happy about it, and I’d prefer that we get rid of the idiocy entirely, but better equally distributed idiocy than idiocy that hurts only one candidate (especially when that candidate is the best one).

  58. 58.

    mrmobi

    May 2, 2008 at 11:47 am

    That video is bullshit- you can;t tell what he says and that is a clear smear job. Not to mention, I am not gonna hold it againsr Hillary that Mickey Kantor was a jackass 16 years ago while working for her husband’s campaign.

    That is weaker than the Wright stuff.

    It appears you’re right about that, John.

    In the original video/film (from “The War Room”) you really can’t tell what the statement that’s being called “worthless white nigger” is, it’s just completely unintelligible. As far as the “these people are shit” comment, Kantor insists he was talking about the pollsters, and has said he is contacting libel attorneys.

    Although I’m sure if the tables were turned, Hillary would find some way to keep this story coming up, that has generally not been the way the Obama campaign has been run.

    So I guess this goes away.

  59. 59.

    DougJ

    May 2, 2008 at 11:47 am

    The voters aren’t dumb, they’re just slow. Over seventy percent of the population has seen the light about Bush, despite the fact that the media’s done nothing but tell what a great guy he is the past seven years. I wish they’d seen the light earlier, but credit where credit is due: Joe Sixpack “gets” it in a way that the punditocracy never will.

  60. 60.

    Cain

    May 2, 2008 at 11:54 am

    I am still waiting for Oblablabama to say something serious. At least he saves me on air conditioning heating.

    Silly troll, usually it’s hot air if there is no substance. What the fuck is this air conditioning comment? Does his breath smell minty good now or what? If so, I need some of that fresh air, baby.

    cain

  61. 61.

    Dave_Violence

    May 2, 2008 at 12:08 pm

    She will say anything to get elected

    Yep, and once she overtakes Obama, all you folks will vote for her.

  62. 62.

    J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford

    May 2, 2008 at 12:11 pm

    John Cole Says:

    More interesting are current Clinton advisors’ views on upcoming primary state residents.

    That video is bullshit- you can;t tell what he says and that is a clear smear job. Not to mention, I am not gonna hold it againsr Hillary that Mickey Kantor was a jackass 16 years ago while working for her husband’s campaign.

    That is weaker than the Wright stuff.

    May 2nd, 2008 at 11:37 am

    At this point, I don’t give a shit. Senator LieberClinton deserves everything she gets.

  63. 63.

    Chris Johnson

    May 2, 2008 at 12:16 pm

    Oh, for Pete’s sake.

    I _liked_ her on this issue. I’m not so sure about her ‘next generation’ talk, people get mad at estate taxes because it offends their sense of greed- seems like a fine idea to me- but in so much of this, I was damn pleased with Hil.

    I mean, she’s getting blasted by O’Reilly and she’s coming back, in exactly the manner he’s using (manipulative and quick to raise useful angles and frame the discourse) and is telling him, hell yes I’m going to raise your taxes, look at you.

    BUT, it’s supposed to be wrong she said ‘God bless us’? I’m not a BIT offended that she said God Bless Us, but I’m definitely offended that she doesn’t trust me with that statement. She’s apparently hedging it. WHY?

    It’s OK to gaffe- or even say stuff some will think is a gaffe but is perfectly true. It’s not OK to have your every word negotiable, to carry on about God bless rich people or obliterate Iran and then not stand by your damn words.

    She’s running for President, not ditch-digger. I KNOW she’s rich already. They all are, by my standards. I’m not interested in how big a shovel (or broom?) she can lift, I’m interested in how good her words are, because that’s what she’d do as President, is use words and ideas and more or less cheerlead the direction the country needs to go.

    If she’s going to say words that are OK with me and then try to hedge on them, that’s way uncool with me. WTF? How can she not realize that I am an intelligent (though not rich) guy and understand who she’s talking to and the rules of the game? HOW can she hedge and try to change the record on such a bizarrely minor point? God Bless Us to God Blessed Us, what the HELL? Seriously, I need help understanding what the point is there.

    Really troubling when the candidate can’t even say something GOOD without trying to take it back. Again I don’t even get who she wants me to think she is with that change. I didn’t see a problem…

  64. 64.

    cleek

    May 2, 2008 at 12:17 pm

    Kantor is threatening to sue over the “white nigger” thing now, claiming there’s no way he said that.

    maybe he was singing Oliver’s Army

  65. 65.

    Chris Johnson

    May 2, 2008 at 12:33 pm

    For that matter, I don’t give a damn that she’s a wealthy blueblood if she can RUN THINGS in a way that isn’t psychotically looting the country. I realise that’s not a high standard but the Bush crowd fail it. Nothing about her being a blueblood prevents her having noblesse oblige and actually, you know, fighting for better conditions for the peasantry.

    She’s SUPPOSED to know better than Joe Sixpack with the opportunities and experience she’s had, the circles she’s moved in.

    At least Obama is sorta like, well yes, I’ve studied a lot and I know better than you. Let me calmly and patiently explain to you WHY you have to thus-and-so…

    I’ll listen, even if his idea seems crazy, because I believe he’s thought it through and means it.

    The thing that’s freaking me out about Clinton today is not that she’s a blueblood richbitch, I’m all for that if she likewise has done the work and knows better. Why wouldn’t she be rich if she really knows how the world ticks? It makes sense.

    No, what freaks me out is that she can say something right which I should agree with- and then try to recant it because she thinks I WON’T LIKE IT. because she thinks it won’t fly with me, it’ll insult me by not agreeing with my opinion.

    THIS IS NOT AMERICAN IDOL, PEOPLE!

    Hillary is SUPPOSED to contradict me and my opinion if my opinion is WRONG. And I don’t see it- it’s like she’s deciding everything based on whether it’s what I would have said in her place. Well, what if I’m a fucking idiot?

  66. 66.

    The Populist

    May 2, 2008 at 12:42 pm

    If the media doesn’t run with the Mickey Cantor nonsense then they are biased.

    If Americans can’t get past dumb comments by a pretty harmless and foolish Reverend (Wright) then Americans deserve elitist attitudes from their politicians.

    If Obama is an elitist for being involved with Rev. Wright, then what is Hillary if she keeps Mickey Cantor on board? If you ask me, calling folks BITTER and having a fool for a Reverend is nothing compared to the judgment Hillary exercises with regards to Mickey Cantor and his attitude to fly over states.

  67. 67.

    chopper

    May 2, 2008 at 12:46 pm

    Hillary is SUPPOSED to contradict me and my opinion if my opinion is WRONG. And I don’t see it- it’s like she’s deciding everything based on whether it’s what I would have said in her place. Well, what if I’m a fucking idiot?

    that’s the problem with trying to please everyone. you have to tell everyone that their opinion matters and is correct.

    truth is, half the people in this country can’t find their own ass with two hands, a map, a sherpa guide and a homosexual dwarf.

    shit dogg we voted for bush. twice. we need people to tell us that we’re fucked up and our shit’s all retarded.

  68. 68.

    The Populist

    May 2, 2008 at 12:48 pm

    Sorry John, I will hold it against her because she keeps doing it to Obama. One can’t shovel the shit without expecting to get some on you. She wants to point out the supposed hypocrisy of Rev. Wright YET she fails to mention that she and Bill went to Wright for guidance when their marriage was on the rocks.

    I also disagree because Cantor may have said it and if he did, I will use the argument that Hillary supporters use…he said it with a disdain for these folks. Like the Republicans, these folks are pawns to get elected. Obama calls people BITTER because politicians do exactly what Cantor supposedly says in the video. They say one thing and do nothing for these folks when it counts. So Obama is an “elitist” for speaking the truth YET Hillary is squeaky clean when her political wranglers allegedly say these things? I’ve listened to Ed Schultz all morning and he seems convinced Cantor said this. I’ve seen the video and you may be right, BUT it bears some investigation.

    After all, if it was Obama’s manager who said that? Well, we all know Hillary would go after him guns blazing.

  69. 69.

    John S.

    May 2, 2008 at 12:51 pm

    shit dogg we voted for bush. twice. we need people to tell us that we’re fucked up and our shit’s all retarded.

    The Idiocracy has landed.

  70. 70.

    gypsy howell

    May 2, 2008 at 1:02 pm

    OMG. I don’t think I can stand another month of this idiotic campaigning. “God Bless?” Kantor? Wright? Flag Pins? Bowling scores? Beer’n’shots? This shit is going to destroy what’s left of our minds.

    Please, oh great and powerful FSM, make it stop.

  71. 71.

    rawshark

    May 2, 2008 at 1:07 pm

    I have a request for info. I’ll be in the company of a handful of wingnuts tonight and Im sure the subject of the gas tax will come up. What are good points to make when the topic comes up? I won’t be able to fit a supply and demand argument in before they change to a subject they can win so what are some quick, easy to digest reasons for opposing the gas tax holiday?

  72. 72.

    Doug H. (Fausto no more)

    May 2, 2008 at 1:08 pm

    Yep, and once she overtakes Obama, all you folks will vote for her.

    Not me. I may be going down like Major Kong, but if she’s this eager to challenge economists and her own damn party over National Lampoon’s Gas Tax Holiday*, then who knows where else she’ll pander next. Tax cuts? Iran? Sorry, no dice, SCOTUS or no SCOTUS. I’ll write-in Jim Tressel first.

    * – courtesy of El Cid

  73. 73.

    cleek

    May 2, 2008 at 1:10 pm

    here’s the original video of Kantor.

    hoax.

  74. 74.

    Krista

    May 2, 2008 at 1:20 pm

    truth is, half the people in this country can’t find their own ass with two hands, a map, a sherpa guide and a homosexual dwarf.

    I wasn’t aware that the latter category of individuals were renowned for their navigational skills.

    I guess you learn something new every day.

  75. 75.

    ThymeZone

    May 2, 2008 at 1:24 pm

    Well, what if I’m a fucking idiot?

    Too existential.

    I prefer, “What if I am full of beans?”

    Has more of a dietary, lifestyle quality to it.

  76. 76.

    Jamey

    May 2, 2008 at 1:25 pm

    I happen to think Hillary’s right, and honest. I wish she would correct Bill and say that the income redistribution occurred when Bush cut the highest rate from 39% to 33%.

    She did say “God bless us.” And she has no compunction about identifying herself as rich. So what’s so goddamn wrong about what she said?

    What Wolfson said, that’s another story.

    But this is an example where Hillary did well in a nominally hostile forum.

    Defending Hillary? I feel so dirty.

  77. 77.

    Calouste

    May 2, 2008 at 1:26 pm

    God blessed the rich people?

    I wonder which God that is. It can’t be the one whose only son said that it was easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to go to heaven.

  78. 78.

    rawshark

    May 2, 2008 at 1:29 pm

    Yep, and once she overtakes Obama, all you folks will vote for her.

    Not me. But McCain is winning my state anyway so it doesn’t matter who I (don’t ) vote for.

  79. 79.

    ThymeZone

    May 2, 2008 at 1:31 pm

    It can’t be the one whose only son said that it was easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to go to heaven.

    Yeah, but it turns out that he was talking about the cigarette, not the animal.

  80. 80.

    Rick Taylor

    May 2, 2008 at 2:32 pm

    I couldn’t care less about whether Hillary Clinton said “Bless ” or “Blessed” or what Mickey Kantor said in the 92 elections. But I am getting upset over how Hillary is pandering over the gas task and using it to pressure fellow Democrats to pander.

    After several days of back and forth between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama over whether a summer-long elimination of the gas tax would help or hurt, Clinton took a hard line, asking her colleagues in Congress to take sides.

    “I believe it would be important to get every member of Congress on record,” Clinton told supporters at a rally in southern Indiana. “Do they stand with the hard-pressed Americans who are trying to pay their gas bills at the gas station or do they once again stand with the oil companies?

    “I want to know where people stand and I want them to tell us, are they with us or against us when it comes to taking on the oil companies?” she added.

  81. 81.

    Dreggas

    May 2, 2008 at 2:34 pm

    rawshark Says:

    I have a request for info. I’ll be in the company of a handful of wingnuts tonight and Im sure the subject of the gas tax will come up. What are good points to make when the topic comes up? I won’t be able to fit a supply and demand argument in before they change to a subject they can win so what are some quick, easy to digest reasons for opposing the gas tax holiday?

    real easy, it won’t save them shit. That’s all that needs to be said, keep it simple so wingnuts understand. If they ask for details tell them it won’t save them enough to buy a cup of coffee.

  82. 82.

    Dreggas

    May 2, 2008 at 2:36 pm

    Dave_Violence Says:

    Yep, and once she overtakes Obama, all you folks will vote for her.

    And one day monkey will fly out of my ass. Sorry if she’s the nominee this party deserves to lose.

  83. 83.

    wasabi gasp

    May 2, 2008 at 2:41 pm

    The gas tax bit is worth like 20 trips to the dollar menu. That’s a lot of bonus fat. Mmmm…cheeseburger. Obama lose.

  84. 84.

    firebrand

    May 2, 2008 at 2:59 pm

    “Rich people – God bless us”

    Can we all now stop pretending that she’s a Democrat? That’s she’s really a Republican? Because, you know, she’s been talking, running, and acting like one?

  85. 85.

    Dreggas

    May 2, 2008 at 3:37 pm

    firebrand Says:

    “Rich people – God bless us”

    Can we all now stop pretending that she’s a Democrat? That’s she’s really a Republican? Because, you know, she’s been talking, running, and acting like one?

    A lot of us have stopped pretending. Others are still recovering from their stockholm syndrome.

  86. 86.

    oh really

    May 2, 2008 at 4:38 pm

    I couldn’t tell what she said — I was weeping uncontrollably over the idea of Bill O being sucked dry by IRS.

    Sorry, I can’t type any more, I’m getting all weepy again.

  87. 87.

    PK

    May 2, 2008 at 4:39 pm

    I saw the video and Hillary came across as quite charming, likable, and the smart woman I used to believe she was. There was nothing wrong with what she said.
    Pity that years of taking abuse from the right-wingers turned her into a right winger!

  88. 88.

    oh really

    May 2, 2008 at 4:41 pm

    Sorry if she’s the nominee this party deserves to lose.

    I disagree. If she’s the nominee, this party deserves to disappear.

  89. 89.

    Blue Raven

    May 2, 2008 at 5:03 pm

    This miffs me a great deal more.

    Same here. Oh, how the party has fallen. From championing the rights of minorities to vote to having its own members pull nonsense like that.

  90. 90.

    rawshark

    May 2, 2008 at 5:38 pm

    Dreggas Says:

    rawshark Says:

    I have a request for info. I’ll be in the company of a handful of wingnuts tonight and Im sure the subject of the gas tax will come up. What are good points to make when the topic comes up? I won’t be able to fit a supply and demand argument in before they change to a subject they can win so what are some quick, easy to digest reasons for opposing the gas tax holiday?

    real easy, it won’t save them shit. That’s all that needs to be said, keep it simple so wingnuts understand. If they ask for details tell them it won’t save them enough to buy a cup of coffee.

    That doesn’t really help at all. I don’t want to sound like a right wing radio host, I want to sound like I know what I’m talking about.

  91. 91.

    Zuzu

    May 2, 2008 at 9:45 pm

    I saw the video and Hillary came across as quite charming, likable, and the smart woman I used to believe she was. There was nothing wrong with what she said.
    Pity that years of taking abuse from the right-wingers turned her into a right winger!

    I agree. I remember reading years back that she was generally liked by other Senators on both sides of the aisle. I can see how she can win people over with that wit and charm.

    Too bad she’s running such a hardball campaign.

  92. 92.

    Beej

    May 3, 2008 at 12:50 am

    Okay, rawshark, how about this one? Taking a gas tax holiday will deplete highway construction funds. Since Hillary is planning to spend her windfall profits tax on the oil companies for research and development of alternative sources of energy and McCain doesn’t want a windfall profits tax at all, those highway construction funds will not be replaced. This will bring construction and repair of the nation’s highways to a screeching halt and throw as many as 300,000 construction workers out of their jobs. Oh, yes, and we may have some more bridge collapses. How’s that for a reason?

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