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At a event in New Hampshire, Bill Clinton rants on Barack Obama’s (supposed) free pass from the press. The former president somehow managed to turn a question from a student about Mark Penn’s (Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager) judgment– or lack thereof– into a complaint that Obama hasn’t been held to the same standard as Hillary Clinton on the war:
“Second, it is wrong that Senator Obama got to go through 15 debates trumpeting his superior judgment and how he had been against the war in every year, numerating the years, and never got asked one time, not once, ‘Well, how could you say, that when you said in 2004 you didn’t know how you would have voted on the resolution? You said in 2004 there was no difference between you and George Bush on the war and you took that speech you’re now running on off your website in 2004 and there’s no difference in your voting record and Hillary’s ever since?’ Give me a break. “This whole thing is the biggest fairy tale I’ve ever seen…So you can talk about Mark Penn all you want.
Filed Under: Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Clintons, Hillary Clinton, Media Criticism
Tags: Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Mark Penn
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It’s the truth.
If he doesn’t get scrutinized now, the Republicans will later.
Obama has a paper thin resume. He’s getting a free ride and it’s like a fairy tale.
Wait until the media’s love fest is over.
And the right-wing machine attacks him with all guns fully loaded.
this is bullshit.
Obama said this back on when Kerry/Edwards were campaigning, saying he didnt know how he would vote because he didnt have the same information the senators have, but that based on what he saw, the administration didnt make the case
the only reason he pretty much didnt give an outright answer was to protect Kerry/Edwards who were being criticized for their votes. So now of course he gets criticizes for fighting for his team.
I normally fawn over Bill, but this is a pretty desperate and weak last second attempt to save a lousy campaign.
Sorry Kyle, it’s not the truth. Anyone who’s been following any of this knows that Obama never supported the war and that quote was clearly taken out of context. He was speaking about how to manage the troops once the war had begun.
If the Clintons have to resort to such brazen falsehoods, they’re in more trouble than previously thought.
While the cheap shot from the husband is a little low-brow, he is kinda right. Obama talks about change, but doesn’t really have anything to back it up other than promises. All these campaigns remind me of my elementary school class elections where each candidate promises to give longer recesses and shorter classes, knowing that they can do neither. Promises during a campaign sound good, but how many of them are accomplished?
Obama’s response was pretty effective, claiming that he had always been against the war but at that time he was answering a question regarding Kerry and Edwards’ votes in comparsion to his own position. He didnt want to rock the boat of the candidates so made it seem as if he couldnt second guess them as he wasnt in office.
However, I don’t really believe he would have voted against authorizing the use of force. I just see any evidence from his voting history that he would have stood up to the democratic establishment and gone his own way on that vote. He’s just benefitting here from not being around then in my opinion.
Clinton is right that there is a fairy tale being spun but isnt that politics? I mean, we don’t *really* believe that we know these people right? I would hope we arent that stupid.
And I don’t care what anyone votes, Ill vote Clinton when it’s my turn.
basically, the more the Clintons fight against a guy who isn’t playing the same game back, the more people notice that the Clintons are the status quo. Dirty politics reminds exactly of what we’re trying to get past, and people will therefore look past any statement of ‘change’ Hillary makes.
Wow. Talk about transparent desperation.
So now the other Clinton is crying in front of an audience?
Is it just me or does Bill seemed pissed that some upstart is derailing is his chance at a third term? Kind of reminds me of Bush the First’s reaction to Bill’s ‘92 run for the White House. My how times have changed…
The Clintons are scared. Their dreams of another stay in the White House are slipping away!
The thing with Obama is that he is all around just a great guy, and there really isn’t anything mind blowingly wrong with him. Sorry Hillary, but you’re being beat fair and square…
If the Clintons go down, they will go down kicking and screaming. Classy
Poor poor Hillary. Does she have any card to play other than “the press is not fair to me” card. (Oh, I forgot, the misogyny card)
Nice Tantrum Bill ;Now go take a nap!
Power is intoxicating. When you’ve done everything you think to attain power only to have it stripped away so quickly as in Iowa and perhaps tonight in New Hampshire, it’s only natural to get a tad grumpy, emotional, desperate, even irrational. No one is immune, not even the big dog himself. It’s over Bill.
The Big Dog hoisted his leg and took a royal crap on Obama.
Like this is going to sit well in South Carolina. Hillary will be seen hyperventalating as all those supposedly loyal voters start catching the Obama train in mass droves.
The Clinton’s aren’t used to losing. You think when he was defeated as Governor in 1980, he’d learned his lesson. Well, he did, but it was how to play dirty…
Arrow @ 10:
So… You vote for the guy you’d like to have a beer with? Again?
What about the guy that asked the question? I was a shallow question in the 1st place as far as I’m concerned. Who cares about a bounce? We want to see the candidates present us with issues that have to be resolved and how they plan to resolve them.
Pulling out the big guns.
Clinton is right.
First comment: “It’s the truth.” Second: “this is bullshit.”
That made me chuckle.
What genuinely bothers me, on the other hand, is the wording of the post itself, designed to make Bill Clinton look like something of a jerk. Good reporting, guys!
Frankly, for all of the fearmongering about the troubles Barack Obama will face in the American news media, he’s had exceptionally few hurdles to jump. If anything, Obama has been their darling. Furthermore, he’s become this blank slate onto which people seem to be projecting their hopes and dreams. Obama isn’t seen as a person, but an abstract ideal. His followers talk of him as though he were the Second Coming. I know that I am far from the only person worried about this.
There is no contest when you contrast the endless lambasting of Hillary Clinton with Barack Obama, because the former is criticized for everything but what she has actually done. Instead, people won’t vote for her because they’ve been told over and over again that Clinton is a warmongering, evil, corporate whore-hawk-bitch. They also feel that she can’t be President due to the fact that she’s a woman with a ’shrill’ voice and a ‘cackle.’ Make your own call regarding the intelligence of this political discourse and the quality of debate amongst the voting public, I guess.
In the interim, Bill Clinton continues to tell it like it is. Sure, he has vested interest, but even those who don’t are beginning to appreciate the enormous, unfair mountain of sludge Hillary has been buried under while Obama sneaks by relatively unscathed. If he’s not pressed now, it’ll be too late. I want to see more from Barack Obama than feel-good speeches.
And here I thought only Larry Craig was into big fairy tales.
Monica must be steamed.
wow, the ‘clinton-influence’ is loosing its clout by the second… it is just startling…
clinton is quickly destroying his reputation. of course, i am biased, clinton was a neoliberal, bent on weakening the liberal side of the democratic party, and who signed legislation that reagan would have salivated over.
KyleXY @ 1:
And after what they did to Kerry I can only imagine what they got in store for Obama.
tails.
god, this is increasingly infuriating. Hillary throughout the campaign had benefited from her sense of inevitability, name recognition, being able to cite some of Bill’s accomplishments as her own, showing her ‘battle tested’ fights against those that hate her, that she can kick a republicans teeth in. all she had to do was close the deal. she didnt.
Dragging Bill along has been a huge mistake, it turns out. Every time he defends her, especially after this ‘crying’ debacle (regardless of what you think of that clip), this image of angry Bill out there defending his wife…
it really doesnt look good. I thought Hillary was the perfect example of how the first women president should behave politically, and yet she’s making mistake after mistake. she cant stand up for herself without getting on peoples nerves, using counterproductive language, or attacking people on issues she’s no angel on. I think I flipped her the bird when attacking Obama on health care - she’s been bought by that lobby and has the gall to confront others.
Ugh. I’m frankly glad to see the door slammed on her campaign. if this is how she behaves when behind against a fellow Democrat, imagine her ‘unlikeable’ image vs a Huckabee or McCain who like it or not, carry a much lighter demeanor even under duress.
While I’d take Obama over Hillary any day, Bill is right. The media is not scrutinizing the candidates equally and frankly, it is frightening that they are able to influence the results so much. John Edwards is almost never mentioned in the coverage and he’s having trouble getting support for that reason alone. Obama is enjoying a pass from the media, but we should ask ourselves how long that will last. If they have this much control over who becomes popular, then they can just as easily take it all away when they want some free marketeer republican to win the general election. So, while I’m glad that Obama is the beneficiary of the media edge, I would much prefer that there be no favoritism in the media. It feels pretty good right now, but it could very easily bite us in the ass if we don’t call them on it–especially while it benefits our favorite candidate. Actually, only Obama really has the credibility to criticize it right now. If he supports fair and open democracy, then he should probably do that.
Is it just me or does Bill seemed pissed that some upstart is derailing is his chance at a third term?
No, Michael, it’s not you. The Big Dog is pissed that his chance for a de facto third term is on the derail track.
Like Hillary was going to allow him to run anything as First Husband… :rolls eyes::
This simple truth is this;
Obama is playing on our emotions by talking about hope, courage, change. He’s hitting all the right buttons for progressives, just like GW did for the conservatives. We’re falling in love with someone because of rhetoric.
Does this country need someone who’s playing on our emotions again, or do we need someone who is cold, calculated, and reasonable who has stood up to the neo-cons again and again.
The Clintons have been through the right-wing wringer and come out the other side just fine. They have been investigated by Ken Starr and there’s nothing there, and the right wing knows it.
We don’t know what’s in Obama’s closet the neo-cons can use against him. But, we’re in love with him, so who cares. Let’s vote with our gut and hire an “outsider.” Look how well the Carter administration did. /sarcasm off.
i’ve said this before and i’ll say it again. for years, i’ve heard all the bad things about the clintons and i’ve pooh-pooh’ed the criticisms as excrement from the right wing smear machine. one thing i’m finding out though is they may have been on to something in describing them as amorally ambitious. obama’s my guy and one thing i’m learning with my guy being on the other side of the firing line is that the only thing the clintons care about is winning. that’s it. winning. they don’t care whether they do it clean or dirty as long as they do it. i hope people see that we need them out of there ASAP.
People resented Clinton for being the front runner, resent them for losing, resent them for fighting back… Lemme guess, youll resent them for bowing out as well? No doubt sending them on their way with pithy insults. If Obama loses the general election it will somehow be Hillary’s fault I’m sure. I can hear it now.
The screaming Howard Dean escaped with less vitriol.
Whatever one thinks about Senator Clinton,
Bill Clinton is absolutely right about this.
Obama’s posture as an anti-war icon is full of holes.
Not only did he admit that he didn’t know how he would have voted on the Iraq resolution,
he went ahead and campaigned for Lieberman’s reelection. Yeah. I would really want Obama in my corner…
until my back was turned.
He’s voted for every damn funding bill - as uses as an excuse crap like, “well - the troops are there now and they need the money”. This is 100 % pure Bush talk.
He is as full of shit as anyone when it comes to the war in Iraq - and he should be held accountable by anyone who cares about ending the damn thing.
Arrow @ 10:
Oh, finally someone who knows Barack Obama personally. And I bet you know for a fact that Hillary Clinton is an evil witch, right?
Ninety-nine percent of what is used to defend Obama is utter conjecture. Why? Because the man can offer nothing but promises due to his lack of experience and his lackluster voting record thus far. Someone above nailed it while referencing schoolyard politics; he might as well promise to lower taxes, since the public will vote for anyone who says they’ll do that.
I think Obama is going to start taking some heat and all those people who are raving about him might want to start asking questions. I like the guy, but most people voting for him are stupid Americans who only know that he’s a great speaker, and he stands for change. That’s not really enough to make him President. I’m not saying that Obama doesn’t have what it takes, but most voters have NO IDEA about the specifics of his ideas. HOW is he going to fix global warming? WHEN are the troops coming home? WHERE is the healthcare?
At least Edwards has been actually giving some specifics on taking on corporate greed.
Whoever the Dem is, I’ll vote for them. I think they are all solid people, but they have to get us healthcare and bring transparency back to government - and that they need to make this clear to the voters that it’s more important than a border fence or prayer in schools.
CNN just debunked everything that Bill said. Not only that but they showed this has all been debunked by the press before.
I think Obama got it right when he was asked about this rant Bill had. Obama said they are just frustrated and he believes they will re-coop and eventually get back on point.
If he doesn’t get scrutinized now, the Republicans will later.
Obama has a paper thin resume. He’s getting a free ride and it’s like a fairy tale.
I have three words for you:
George Walker Bush
It’s paypack time. We’re putting in a weak guy to make-up for their weak guy.
Let’s choose a dark emperor who can be VP and run things.
I know…..Bill Belichick.
bubba @ 30:
Oh please don’t tell me we’re arriving to where the Dems are going to be saying “It’s Clintons Fault” for another 8 years.
Obama should take heat, that’s the process. We don’t want it all sewn up and find out he can’t take the heat. He needs his tires kicked and win or lose, the clintons will kick his mofo tires.
Bill Clinton thought bubble: “Dang it. I want to get back that Playboy that I stashed behind the radiator in the West Wing when Hilary came in. I’m sure it’s still there, ’cause no way would a beer can fit behind the radiator, so why would George find it? It was signed by Heather Carolin and everything… Dang it this Obama kid is gonna screw that up… Hmm… I wonder if he’s picked a V.P. yet. I used to leave Al alone in the Oval Office once in a while, I’m sure I’d get a chance at that radiator…”
Look, if we want a chief executive who is truly qualified and can be comfortable in the Oval Office, we have two choices. Hillary is running. Al is not.
Though it has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with who actually would be a better President, without a doubt Hillary has not been treated fairly by the media, and the focus on Mark Penn is evidence of that.
Kyle - you act like the attacks will WORK. if they’re not working for Hillary, and they’re not working for Romney vs his contenders, what makes you think they’ll keep winning this year?
Are there faults with Obama? sure. Are people projecting their dreams on him? Yup.
But here’s the thing: HE’S ELECTABLE. Am I justifying the ‘have a beer with him’ crowd? Not really, I’m just stating the facts: the Clintons are not running the campaign that people want. So whats been their strategy?
Instead of just being who they are and playing to their strengths, they are now doing a transparently poor imitation of Obama’s campaign message. Why? Because they want to win no matter the cost. It is truly desperate and it only snowballs the problem. Its pretty hard to run on establishment experience and change at the same time. The people have spoken, for better or worse. Deal with it.
Well if one wants to cave to the establishment Dems, then Bill has a point. At least vote for an establishment Dem with some experience.
LOL. We’re screwed either way. The “changes” they want to make are not going to halt or even slow the downward spiral of the US economy and our foreign policies. They will only benefit a few at the top.
Bill needs to go away. His pathetic attempts to recapture the spotlight are embarrassing. He’s like an old, broken down athlete who retires…yet just can’t stay away from the game.
I’m sure in his head, he was already back in the White House…then someone dared to derail that plan.
Bubba, I don’t resent them for running, but this is a bit too much. Really, give me a brake Bill. His claiming the moral high ground here is a bit much. Granted, the whole impeachment thing was a total waste of time and taxpayers’ money. That being said, Bill is NO ANGEL and his attempt to portray himself and Hillary as such is laughable. This all being said, I like Bill when he was the president and I appreciate all of the work that he has done in his post-Presidential years. However, in my opinion, this whole speech just smacks of desparation.
With respect to Obama, if he is the nominine and if, GOD FORBID, he loses in November then I would blame him. Not Hillary, not Kerry, not Dean, HIM.
I’m still suspicious of Obama, not because he reminds me of Saddam Hussein (the middle-name thing) but with his unity talk he reminds me of boosh running in 2000.
Bill is right, Obama has no experience is going to get chewed up and spit out by the GOP, he’s already made mis-steps, does this guy really know how complicated and tough the world really is?? Everyone is so happy because he speak of change, hello, how is he going to do it??
I’m wondering if Bill’s ego is getting in the way here. Does he think Hillary is keeping him from winning the race? Is he running vicariously through her? Maybe he doesn’t realize it but it sort of looks that way to me.
I like Bill but when he made that statement about him not being able to make her taller, younger, or a male. He seemed to be saying this was his product and maybe it wasn’t what it should be, but it was his product. Who asked Bill to make Hillary into anything but who she is? When did he become the maker of candidates?