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You are here: Home / Past Elections / Election 2008 / Tone Deaf Until The End

Tone Deaf Until The End

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TPM has excerpts of this Robert Johnson interview in which he states that as long as a month ago she authorized him to lead her quest to become Vice-President:

Johnson said he began discussing the vice presidency with Clinton last month and that they talked about it at a dinner in Puerto Rico last Saturday and again by phone and e-mail on Tuesday. “Let me be clear,” Johnson said in a telephone interview Wednesday morning. “She said if asked to do this, she must accept because she believes that it is in the best interest of the party that the party come together and win in November.”

Putting aside the fact that she has been leading her increasingly bitter die-hards astray for at least a month, knowing full well she could not win but still telling them she could and milking them for donations, it is important to remember who Robert Johnson is:

Robert L. Johnson, the billionaire founder of Black Entertainment Television, injected himself into the middle of a flaring campaign controversy on Sunday. During an appearance with Sen. Hillary Clinton, he seemingly raised the specter of Sen. Barack Obama’s youthful drug use.

Speaking to a crowd in Columbia, South Carolina, the African-American business tycoon chastised Obama for a memo his campaign put together documenting instances in which Clinton or her surrogates made allegedly racially-insensitive statements.

“I am frankly insulted,” Johnson declared, “that the Obama campaign would imply that we are so stupid that we would think Hillary and Bill Clinton, who have been deeply and emotionally involved in black issues since Barack Obama was doing something in the neighborhood -­ and I won’t say what he was doing, but he said it in the book -­ when they have been involved.”

The comment was greeted with ire by the Obama campaign. In the past, Clinton surrogates have raised the drug issue. Hours later, Johnson claimed he was simply referring to Obama’s work as a community organizer.

THIS is who she thinks is her best chance at negotiating a spot on the ticket? This guy? Seriously?

Please let this guy just be making it all up, because the thought that Hillary could have been the nominee, with this kind of judgement if this story is true, is just terrifying.

*** Update ***

Damnit to hell. As soon as I hit publish I remembered my vow to ignore her. At least I made it a few hours. I guess I will have to start over.

Reader Interactions

61Comments

  3. 3.

    Catfish N. Cod

    Staying on the wagon is an iterative process. The important thing is to get back on every time you fall off.

  4. 4.

    srv

    So Aaron McGruder, of Boondocks fame, made two episodes last year that went after BET. BET called Cartoon Netorks and Sony and threatened them. Episodes pulled.

    2nd episode:

    Chairman and Chief Executive Debra L. Lee, who succeeded the network’s founder, Robert Johnson, is shown as Debra Leevil, patterned after “Dr. Evil” in the “Austin Powers” films. Leevil declares in a staff meeting: “Our leader Bob Johnson had a dream, a dream that would accomplish what hundreds of years of slavery, Jim Crow and malt liquor could not accomplish — the destruction of black people.”

    Apparently being release on DVD now.

  5. 5.

    MBunge

    This is the sort of thing that makes all those pundit pronouncements about what a great candidate Hillary is so bizarre. Sure, she’s smart and very hard working, but she has very little personal charisma and has absolutely atrocious political instincts and judgment.

    Mike

  6. 6.

    jibeaux

    Really, when I want to see the embodiment of everything modern feminism is striving for, I turn on Booties Every Time.

    Let’s not forget that Robert Johnson was a major playa in the push to get the estate tax repealed. His pitch? It hurts black people. I’ll just let you mull over that for a while.

  7. 7.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    “Let me be clear,” Johnson said in a telephone interview Wednesday morning. “She said if asked to do this, she must accept because she believes that it is in the best interest of the party that the party come together and win in November.”

    It’s very serendipitous how the good of the party dovetails so nicely with Clinton’s blind ambition.

  8. 8.

    Sasha

    Since Hillary’s campaign is essentially dead , shouldn’t your tag now read “I Can No Longer Rationally Discuss The Clintons”?

  9. 9.

    Ninerdave

    “She said if asked to do this, she must accept because she believes that it is in the best interest of the party that the party come together and win in November.”

    In other words:

    What Hillary demands = Best interest of the party.

    Gotcha.

  10. 10.

    Fwiffo

    Well, you know how it goes with Clinton and strange bedfellows. Like how some pro-Clinton blogs are quoting Roger Stone to pimp the mythical “whitey” video. The same Roger Stone that founded Citizens United Not Timid.

  11. 11.

    Otto Man

    Hillarty’s reminding me of Cleavon Little’s first scene as the sheriff in “Blazing Saddles.”

    “One move, and the party gets it!”

  12. 12.

    Jess

    Wow.

    Every time I muster up the goodwill to consider HRC as VP in a positive light, she or someone in her circle stamp it right back down again. I think she might have won this campaign, or at least ensured a central role in Obama’s administration, if she hadn’t been so determined to alienate everyone but the die-hards. Sad.

    You were right before, John. Time to start ignoring her. Besides lowering our collective blood pressure, it’ll disempower all those prima donnas looking for an audience for their little remake of 300.

  13. 13.

    Incertus

    srv,
    You can watch them on Youtube. They are delicious.

    i was just thinking, this is the kind of thing that really makes me wish Aaron Magruder was still doing comics.

  14. 14.

    Dreggas

    Honestly I won’t ignore her until she has publicly conceded and gone to work to help elect Obama. You never turn your back on an opponent when they are down unless they’re unconscious/dead.

  15. 15.

    AkaDad

    Why would she want to be Vice President for a guy whose sole accomplishment is a speech?

  18. 18.

    Zifnab

    Just two episodes? I can’t think of an episode where Boondocks didn’t take a passing swipe at the channel. Was Robert Johnson in any way affiliated with the creation, production, funding, or distribution of the movie Soul Plane?

  19. 19.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    Obama needs to figure out how to put her 18 million voters on the ticket with him just to make the point.

  20. 20.

    srv

    Hillarty’s reminding me of Cleavon Little’s first scene as the sheriff in “Blazing Saddles.”

    Here

    Townsfolk = Hillaryis44 crowd.

  21. 21.

    b. hussein canuckistani

    I recall a Boondocks episode where MLK awakes from a decades-long coma and, if I recall correctly, proclaims BET to be the worst thing he has ever seen in his life.

    It made me laugh. Or it would have, if it weren’t so true.

  24. 24.

    Genine

    No worries, John! You went a whole 5 1/2 hours with no mention. That’s very good. Then you can practice. Try going 12 hours next time, then 24, then 36. And, before you know it, you would have gone a whole week without mentioning the Clintons or their campaign and you’ll forget they existed.

    So go to your happy place. It’s all good. Be proud.

  25. 25.

    Rick Taylor

    Damnit to hell. As soon as I hit publish I remembered my vow to ignore her. At least I made it a few hours. I guess I will have to start over.

    Give it up John. Every time you post one of these vows, somewhere she’s out there looking at a terminal, laughing evilly and saying “Mwhahaha! Ignore me, will you? Let’s see how you ignore me when I do this!”

  26. 26.

    Studly Pantload

    Heh. Cole reminds me of Kramer (Seinfeld’s Cosmo, not Mad Money’s Jim – although I’ll entertain arguments that the two are the same person) in the “Master of My Domain” episode, slamming down his $50 almost as soon as the bet is made, declaring, “I’m out!”

  27. 27.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    Let’s see how you ignore me when I do this!”

    “Lisa! Bring Mama Hills her stupid pills.”

  28. 28.

    A Different JC

    Dreggas Says: Honestly I won’t ignore her until she has publicly conceded and gone to work to help elect Obama. You never turn your back on an opponent when they are down unless they’re unconscious/dead.

    I totally agree. John, you can’t yet ignore her because she will still try to extort the party – hostage style – to get what she wants. If she can’t get VP then she’ll just whip her followers every day til November in order to proclaim that Obama won’t get the women vote, or white racist vote, or Ferraro weirdo vote, if Obama doesn’t respect Hillary’s authori-tie.

    If Obama gives the VP to someone else (which he will), she’s likely to pull a Lieberman and proclaim that she hasn’t left the party, the party left her, yadda yadda yadda. What does she have left? Without being president, is being a senator of a state she has no connection to really matter?

    So, John, we really can’t not keep an eye out for her. Just as we keep an eye out for Carter, or anyone else damaging and damaged from the party’s past who seeks the limelight.

  29. 29.

    jj

    Bob Johnson’s affiliation with the Clinton campaign is yet more evidence of how tone deaf Hillary and her people are.

    I mean Bob fucking Johnson?!?

    If Hillary had any idea AT ALL how much that man is reviled in the politically active segments of the black community (the segment that is aware of the issues, votes reliable and almost to a man or woman, ABSOLUTELY LOATHES B.E.T., Bob Johnson and everything they stand for) she would have avoided Johnson like the plague.

    Her feeble attempt to ingratiate herself with the African-American electorate couldn’t have more poorly judged or had a worse outcome if she’d had 50 Cent speaking on her behalf.

    What a stupid, stupid campaign she’s run.

    It’s almost sad until you remember that collectively, Johnson and Clinton are worth over 1 Billion dollars, and that Johnson made all of his money selling the most debased imagery of African-Americans to exist since the days of Al Jolson.

    Then it just becomes insulting.

  31. 31.

    Delia

    Hillary should have sent Alan Keyes to Obama to negotiate her demands. He’s much closer to the edge of sanity.

  32. 32.

    JGabriel

    John Cole:

    Damnit to hell. As soon as I hit publish I remembered my vow to ignore her. At least I made it a few hours. I guess I will have to start over.

    It’s OK, John. Many people take multiple efforts to quit smoking, heroin, cocaine, alcohol, marijuana, er, Clinton rage, and many are ultimately successful.

    At least they are with smoking, heroin, etc.

    On further reflection, I can’t think of anyone who’s successfully quit Clinton rage.

    But don’t let that stop you, just keep your eye on the prize. Somebody’s gotta be first.

    .

  33. 33.

    jrg

    WhalersFan at C&L has a good point:

    In the transcripts of last nights speeches, lets count the number of times the canidates said “me”

    Obama – 2
    Clinton – 19

    The DNC needs to stop Clinton now, otherwise she’s going to sabotage the presidential election to get what she wants.
    It’s astounding that her supporters don’t recognize this, but even if they did, they would not care. It’s all about the Chromosome Cowgirl and her super-awesome, lilly-white presidential Vajayjay.

  34. 34.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    It’s pretty funny watching the sane Hillary backers try to figure out exactly what they should be saying and doing now that they are caught between Hillary’s loss and her failure to concede.

  35. 35.

    Jess

    John, you can’t yet ignore her because she will still try to extort the party – hostage style – to get what she wants. If she can’t get VP then she’ll just whip her followers every day til November in order to proclaim that Obama won’t get the women vote, or white racist vote, or Ferraro weirdo vote, if Obama doesn’t respect Hillary’s authori-tie.

    If Obama gives the VP to someone else (which he will), she’s likely to pull a Lieberman and proclaim that she hasn’t left the party, the party left her, yadda yadda yadda. What does she have left? Without being president, is being a senator of a state she has no connection to really matter?

    This doesn’t make sense–the tactics you’re describing only work if you have an audience and an evil villain to play martyr to. If you ignore them, with the right balance of frosty courtesy and disdain, then they become increasingly marginalized and irrelevant. You don’t reward bad behavior with attention. Let the screaming brats have their time out while the grownups get on with their business.

  36. 36.

    John S.

    John,

    You can’t start ignoring HRH Hillary until she decides it’s okay for you to do so. Just ask Jeralyn:

    Obama is the presumptive nominee but there’s a lot of loose ends floating around. Every time I hear “he’s won” I think, “slow down.” He’s won when she decides he has won. Until and unless that happens, he has to wait until votes are cast at the convention and he has the necessary majority then.

    I know you like Jeralyn and all, but that is just about one of the batshittiest things I have ever read – even for Talk Left. I wonder if Bill Clinton waited on declaring victory until Paul Tsongas and Jerry Brown decided it was okay for him to do so…

  37. 37.

    vivelame

    Heh. Seems to me that HRC and her supporters may be aptly described as “the Black Knight“.

    – Look, you stupid Bastard. You’ve got no arms left.
    – Yes, I have. Look! It’s just a flesh wound.

  38. 38.

    Otto Man

    srv Johnson is right about Otto Man Johnson being right.

    Dennis Johnson is right about srv Johnson being right about Otto Johnson thinking Bob Johnson of BET is an asshole.

  39. 39.

    jake

    Christ, BET stood out as a clusterfuck in Washington, DC and that ain’t easy. I hated to deal with those assholes and the only people who ever had anything nice to say about BET were also assholes. But, after crowing about how much money and recognition it was bringing to the city he suddenly moved most of it to L.A. under a bit of a cloud.

  40. 40.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    You can’t start ignoring HRH Hillary until she decides it’s okay for you to do so. Just ask Jeralyn:

    You mean we could have avoided the last seven years of hell if Al Gore had simply refused to concede? Alright, now I’m pissed.

  41. 41.

    srv

    Like “I like Pie!”, we need a new vocabulary for “Hillary Sucks”. I just can’t imagine another 3 months of John documenting this.

  42. 42.

    srv

    Dennis Johnson is right about srv Johnson being right about Otto Johnson thinking Bob Johnson of BET is an asshole.

    I think it was an insult. Can’t ever tell with Dennis, he’s from WV.

  43. 43.

    Otto Man

    OT, but I just noticed the Pajamas Media banner at the top of the page.

    The motto is “Sending the Mainstream Media Down the River…” with a picture of an antebellum steamboat.

    So … the mainstream media is what? A bad slave who’s being sent down the river by their Pajama Media masters?

  44. 44.

    Mike

    “Barack Obama was doing something in the neighborhood -­ and I won’t say what he was doing, but he said it in the book”

    Hours later, Johnson claimed he was simply referring to Obama’s work as a community organizer.

    Uh-huh. That’s so fucking plausible.

  45. 45.

    Rick Taylor

    No worries, John! You went a whole 5 1/2 hours with no mention. That’s very good.

    Actually, I’m not clear; he did mention Terry McAuliffe in less than 2 hours. Do crazy Clinton surrogates count?

  46. 46.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    I think it was an insult. Can’t ever tell with Dennis, he’s from WV.

    Nah.. just a typical contest to see who has the biggest Johnson.

  48. 48.

    John D.

    He’s won when she decides he has won.

    While I disagree with the sentiment, strictly speaking, Jeralyn is correct here. Hillary has not withdrawn from the campaign, and the convention has not voted, so he can only be the “presumptive” nominee.

    Barring a meteor strike, I expect he will *be* the nominee, but if Jeralyn wants to split hairs and be marginalized, so be it.

  49. 49.

    Brachiator

    TPM has excerpts of this Robert Johnson interview in which he states that as long as a month ago she authorized him to lead her quest to become Vice-President:

    It’s really quite simple. The first requirement for Senator Clinton to be considered for the VP slot is to concede the election.

    The second requirement for Senator Clinton to be considered for the VP slot is for her and her husband to begin actively supporting Obama’s candidacy, effective immediately.

    The third requirement for Senator Clinton to be considered for the VP slot is for her to immediately and sincerely call upon all of her supporters to come together and to support Obama.

    Even though we know that Team Clinton is not good with math, this still ain’t rocket science.

  50. 50.

    Elvis Elvisberg

    Cocaine dealers have a much more honorable living than Bob Johnson, that’s for goddamn sure.

  51. 51.

    Genine

    Rick Taylor Says:

    No worries, John! You went a whole 5 1/2 hours with no mention. That’s very good.

    Actually, I’m not clear; he did mention Terry McAuliffe in less than 2 hours. Do crazy Clinton surrogates count?

    Let’s grade on a curve and say no, they don’t count.

  52. 52.

    DougJ

    Off topic: damn, Halperin is pushing the Rezko story.

    It’s pretty unreal how openly Republican he is. Drudge is probably more nonpartisan at this point.

  53. 53.

    Dennis - SGMM

    I think it was an insult. Can’t ever tell with Dennis, he’s from WV.

    No insult intended. I was just just riffing off of the “Blazing Saddles” reference.

    -Dennis Johnaon

  54. 54.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    Hillary has not withdrawn from the campaign, and the convention has not voted, so he can only be the “presumptive” nominee.

    I’m all for calling Obama the presumptive nominee if we can reciprocate and call HRC a presumptuous loser.

  55. 55.

    Krusherking

    Considering that Clinton was ruminating on assassination just a couple of weeks ago, Obama would have to be nuts to take her, and I don’t think he’s nuts. He’d have to hire a food taster, for heaven’s sake, and never be alone in a room with her or anybody connected to her.

  56. 56.

    Rome Again

    Well, at least this puts to the bed question of whether she wants the VP slot or not. Thank God we don’t have to put our finger in the wind to figure it out anymore.

    Barack needs to tell her to SDASTFU NOW!!!!!

    Hmmm, Robert L Johnson, sounds strangely like the name of a troll I was arguing with last night, couldn’t possibly be, could it? Hmmmm? Nah!

  59. 59.

    jj

    Robert Johnson is a Sambo Sellout. Period.

    I prefer venal, race-baiting opportunist, but sell-out will do just fine.

    As for Sambos, Bob Johnson isn’t one, he just sold images of them on his cable tv network.

    A childhood friend of mine was legal counsel for BET at one point in her career. She and every other BET employee with half a conscious detested Johnson and viewed the network as a sham.

    For the most part, Johnson’s name is mud with black folks and truth be told, apart from guys like Clarence Thomas, Alan Keyes, Ward Connerly and Larry Elder, I can’t think of one person more actively disliked in my corner of the black community than Robert Johnson.

    The sad thing is neither he or Hillary Clinton seem to recognize this.

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Trackbacks

  1. […] Unless he absolutely needs her to beat McSame, I say no. She — and her prominent shills such as former CIA analyst, TeeVee talking head and blogger, Larry Johnson — has done too much damage to his campaign. And, as John Cole notes, the guy whom it seems she’s anointed to lobby Obama for the slot, Robert Johnson, has been among the nastiest. Quoth Cole from a Johnson interview: Speaking to a crowd in Columbia, South Carolina, the African-American business tycoon chastised Obama for a memo his campaign put together documenting instances in which Clinton or her surrogates made allegedly racially-insensitive statements. […]

  2. […] Remember, this is the candidate whose strongest selling point was supposed to be her judgment and political experience: Putting aside the fact that she has been leading her increasingly bitter die-hards astray for at least a month, knowing full well she could not win but still telling them she could and milking them for donations, it is important to remember who Robert Johnson is: Robert L. Johnson, the billionaire founder of Black Entertainment Television, injected himself into the middle of a flaring campaign controversy on Sunday. During an appearance with Sen. Hillary Clinton, he seemingly raised the specter of Sen. Barack Obama’s youthful drug use.Speaking to a crowd in Columbia, South Carolina, the African-American business tycoon chastised Obama for a memo his campaign put together documenting instances in which Clinton or her surrogates made allegedly racially-insensitive statements. […]