Hillary’s Disastrous Decisions as First Lady

July 8, 2015

NCRenegade: H/T Joseph Botts

Mrs. Clinton

Many people who may vote in the democratic primary election, if there is one and the general election in 2016 have no real knowledge of Mrs. Clinton or her accomplishments. As a public service, I thought I would provide some input regarding her triumphs for consideration.

When Bill Clinton was president, he allowed Hillary to assume authority over a health care reform. Even after threats and intimidation, she couldn’t even get a vote in a democratic controlled congress. This fiasco cost the American taxpayers about $13 million in cost for studies, promotion, and other efforts.

First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton’s PSA on Health Care

Then President Clinton gave Hillary authority over selecting a female attorney general. Her first two selections were Zoe Baird and Kimba Wood – both were forced to withdraw their names from consideration. Next she chose Janet Reno – husband Bill described her selection as “my worst mistake.” Some may not remember that Reno made the decision to gas David Koresh and the Branch Davidian religious sect in Waco, Texas resulting in dozens of deaths of women and children.

Husband Bill allowed Hillary to make recommendations for the head of the Civil Rights Commission. Lani Guanier was her selection. When a little probing led to the discovered of Ms. Guanier’s radical views, her name had to be withdrawn from consideration.

Apparently a slow learner, husband Bill allowed Hillary to make some more recommendations. She chose former law partners Web Hubbel for the Justice Department, Vince Foster for the White House staff, and William Kennedy for the Treasury Department. Her selections went well: Hubbel went to prison, Foster (presumably) committed suicide, and Kennedy was forced to resign.

Many younger votes will have no knowledge of “Travelgate.” Hillary wanted to award unfettered travel contracts to Clinton friend Harry Thompson – and the White House Travel Office refused to comply. She managed to have them reported to the FBI and fired. This ruined their reputations, cost them their jobs, and caused a thirty-six month investigation. Only one employee, Billy Dale was charged with a crime, and that of the enormous crime of mixing personal and White House funds. A jury acquitted him of any crime in less than two hours

Still not convinced of her ineptness, Hillary was allowed to recommend a close Clinton friend, Craig Livingstone, for the position of Director of White House security. When Livingstone was investigated for the improper access of about 900 FBI files of Clinton enemies (Filegate) and the widespread use of drugs by White House staff, suddenly Hillary and the president denied even knowing Livingstone, and of course, denied knowledge of drug use in the White House. Following this debacle, the FBI closed its White House Liaison Office after more than thirty years of service to seven presidents.

Next, when women started coming forward with allegations of sexual harassment and rape by Bill Clinton, Hillary was put in charge of the “bimbo eruption” and scandal defense. Some of her more notable decisions in the debacle was:

• She urged her husband not to settle the Paula Jones lawsuit. After the Starr investigation they settled with Ms. Jones.

• She refused to release the Whitewater documents, which led to the
appointment of Ken Starr as Special Prosecutor. After $80 million
dollars of taxpayer money was spent, Starr’s investigation led to
Monica Lewinsky, which led to Bill lying about and later admitting his
affairs.

• Hillary’s devious game plan resulted in Bill losing his license to practice law for lying under oath to a grand jury and then his subsequent impeachment by the House of Representatives.

• Hillary avoided indictment for perjury and obstruction of justice during the Starr investigation by repeating, “I do not recall,” “I have no recollection,” and “I don’t know” a total of 56 times while under oath.

• After leaving the White House, Hillary was forced to return an estimated $200,000 in White House furniture, china, and artwork that she had stolen.

What a swell party – ready for another four or eight year of this type low-life mess?

Now we are exposed to: the destruction of possibly incriminating emails while Hillary was Secretary of State and the “pay to play” schemes of the Clinton Foundation – we have no idea what shoe will fall next. But to her loyal fans – “what difference does it make?”

Electing Hillary Clinton president would be like granting Satan absolution and giving him the keys to heaven!

More at NCRenegade

Disclaimer: This article was not written by Lorra B.

17 Traffic Violations! — Senator Rubio And His Wife Sure Are In A Hurry…

June 5, 2015

By Lorra B.

Senator Marco Rubio sure is in a hurry to get places, not only politically, but on the road as well. Rubio and his wife Jeanette have received an astounding 17 traffic violations!

I understand Rubio’s need for speed. After all, having attained United States senator from state legislator in the span of ten years is pretty impressive. Now Rubio has his sights set on the 2016 Presidency. Breaking the law, however, may not be the best idea when citizens are watching your every move. If a State Legislature can’t even obey the law of the road… Surly Senator Rubio has every intention in following the law to the letter should he win the 2016 election.

Maybe Hillary Clinton, who has not driven a vehicle since 1996, may have had public opinion in mind when she decided to be chaperoned everywhere, though I believe that has backfired a bit. Though she has Secret Service protection for life as a former First Lady, it is on the citizens purse strings she travels all over the world, both politically and privately…more so than previous First Lady’s to be sure.

“The last time I actually drove a car myself was 1996,” Clinton tells the National Automotive Dealers Association in New Orleans. “I remember it very well,” she joked. “Unfortunately, so does the Secret Service, which is why I haven’t driven since then.”

Well, according to Time, she may not have driven in the U.S. since 1996 but she sure seems to have still gotten a moving violation in 2013 while in London. 

“While at a ceremony in the British capital to collect an award for her diplomatic service last weekend [Oct. 16, 2013], former First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was slapped with a ticket after her security detail parked her limo near the event but failed to pay the required fee for the spot. The transgression resulted in a fine that roughly equaled $125 dollars. Clinton’s Secret Service agents reportedly argued with the traffic official, but seemingly to no avail.”

The Rubio’s however, not yet in the position to be chauffeured everywhere, have been “cited for numerous infractions over the years for incidents that include speeding, driving through red lights and careless driving,” according to The New York Times. Tisk, Tisk Mr. Rubio. What kind of example are you setting? 

Bill Clinton who admittedly misses driving and said in 2012 that driving was the one thing he missed most about everyday life. He is, however, grateful that Hillary is off the road. “One of the regrets I have…is that I can’t drive anymore,” say’s Hillary. “My husband thinks that’s a blessing…” Perhaps it would be a blessing if the Rubio’s took public transit so American’s might be a bit safer on the road?

Maybe I am being too hard on Rubio. After all, he only has 4 citations compared to his wife’s 13! They both agreed on four different occasions to go to remedial driving classes. I wonder what they are teaching at these schools? Maybe they either just don’t care or perhaps the Rubio’s, like many others, just can’t control themselves?

Rubio may not have as many violations as his wife but when he drove through a red light in 2011 he paid a $16 dollar fee to delay a suspension to his license. But why, then, was his traffic violation dismissed?

“Senator Rubio’s license has always been in good standing,” according to Mr. Rubio’s campaign. “This matter was resolved by the court system and at no point was the license suspended by the D.M.V.” Should it have been?

In 2012, Senator Rubio was caught running through a stop sign and ticketed.

Although Mrs. Rubio’s traffic record is clearly worse than Mr. Rubio’s, with 13 tickets and four driving classes—that were clearly of no use to her—Mr Rubio should know better. You can not expect everyone else to obey the laws yet turn your nose up at them like they do not apply to you. And don’t tell me everyone gets a ticket because I have never had one in my life. Well, not yet anyway….Hmmmmm.

By Lorra B.

CLINTON FOUNDATION DONORS A WHO’S WHO OF THE WORLD’S MOST EVIL CORPORATIONS

May 11, 2015

Christian Patriots:

(NaturalNews) If you’re “Ready for Hillary” in 2016, you might as well just admit that you’re ready for more evil because nearly every top donor to Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea’s Clinton Foundation, which is driving Hillary Clinton’s bid for the presidency, is a multinational corporation or other organization pushing for more centralized control over food, medicine, energy and/or finance.

A brief look at the top donors to the Clinton Foundation reveals that a Hillary Clinton presidency will focus on spreading more genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) and crop chemicals into places like Africa; pushing more junk food on the masses; perpetuating the privately-owned Federal Reserve’s fiat currency Ponzi scheme; and signing more people up for a lifetime of sick care with pharmaceuticals and vaccines.

In other words, it’ll be a whole lot more of the same under Hillary, just like it’s been under Obama and just like it was under Bush Junior, Bush Senior, and many other former presidents. Take a look at the donor list and see for yourself which industries will presumably be given priority treatment from a Hillary presidency based on the large cash sums they’re contributing to see Hillary Clinton occupy the White House.

The number one donor to the Clinton Foundation, as you’ll notice, is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, an organization whose stated goal it is to see every child in the world vaccinated with live viruses and heavy metals. The Gates Foundation is also driving to push native agriculture out of Africa with its “Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa,” a corporate ploy to force biotechnology on the people of Africa.

A couple spots down on the list is Goldman Sachs, the infamous central banking group that holds even more power over the corrupt financial system than the private Federal Reserve. Dave Hodges from The Common Sense Show describes Goldman Sachs as “the epitome of the word ‘evil,’” noting that this evil organization is actively working to implode the global economy in order to reorganize it under a centralized world system.

Other top Clinton Foundation donors include junk food purveyor Coca-Cola, mom-and-pop shop killer Walmart, chemical giant Dow, Big Pharma kingpin Pfizer, and the world’s most evil corporation, Monsanto.

Clinton Foundation so corrupt that even its evil donors are second-guessing campaign contributions

You might be thinking to yourself, “Wait, aren’t these the types of organizations that typically donate to Republicans?” Yes, but they also donate to Democrats because Republicans and Democrats are essentially two sides of the same coin. Regardless of what party the U.S. president belongs to, corporations and central banking cartels are the real winners of every election, and this couldn’t be more true with a possible Hillary presidency.

Interestingly, as evil as many of the Clinton Foundation’s donors are, even they are having second thoughts about supporting Hillary. A recent report by Politico explains how the $2 billion organization is losing some donors who are concerned about how the Clintons are using the foundation’s money.

“One major donor who contributed at least $500,000 to the foundation last year said a 2015 donation is less likely because of revelations about sloppy record-keeping and huge payments for travel and administrative costs,” wrote Kenneth P. Vogel for Politico.

“At least three other major donors also are re-evaluating whether to continue giving large donations to the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation, according to people familiar with its fundraising.”

Sources:

http://www.washingtonpost.com

https://www.clintonfoundation.org 

http://www.naturalnews.com 

http://www.politico.com

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.naturalnews.com 

http://www.thecommonsenseshow.com

Written by Ethan A. Huff
Learn more: Natural News

Disclaimer: This article was not written by Lorra B.

Clinton Announces 2016 White House Bid, Asks To Be ‘Champion’ Of America’s Middle Class

 

(Screenshot Credit, Fox News)

April 13, 2015

Fox News:

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Sunday officially announced her 2016 presidential campaign, ending months of speculation over her political plans and immediately elevating her as a target for the field of Republican contenders.

Clinton made the announcement in a YouTube video in which she says: “Everybody needs a champion. And I want to be that champion.”

The roughly two-minute video begins by showing a cross-section of Americans working to get ahead before Clinton says: “I’m doing something, too. I’m running for president.”

The 2016 White House winner will assuredly need to appeal to middle-class Americans and win their votes. And Clinton wasted little time making her pitch. “Americans have fought back from tough economic times,” she says in the video. “But the deck is still stacked in favor of those at the top.”

Clinton later released a similar, more condensed message on Twitter.

The former first lady is seeking the presidency for a second time, after losing the party nomination to then-Sen. Barack Obama in 2008.

The 67-year-old Clinton has been the clear Democratic front-runner since speculation started last year about her potential candidacy, and her announcement makes her the only Democrat so far to officially start a 2016 White House campaign. A victory next year would make Clinton the United States’ first female president.

Clinton in 2000 won a U.S. Senate seat in New York, and in 2009 was appointed secretary of state, serving four years.

On Saturday, the group We Are Hillary for America circulated a memo to supporters that organizers called “guiding principles.” But the memo also provided some insight into to the underpinnings of a Clinton campaign. “Give every family, every small business and every American a path to lasting prosperity by electing Hillary Clinton the next president of the United States,” the memo in part stated.

Clinton now heads this week to key, early-voting states, starting with Iowa on Tuesday, then onto New Hampshire.

She has signaled that she intends to make a major push in the Iowa caucuses, won by Obama in 2008. Her team has hired a former top aide to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to lead her Iowa campaign.

Her ties to New Hampshire are much stronger. State Democrats remember Bill Clinton’s surprising second-place finish in the 1992 primary that helped him overcome charges of draft dodging and womanizing. Hillary Clinton surprised Obama by winning the 2008 New Hampshire primary.

Clinton has faced sharp criticism in recent weeks, after news reports that as secretary of state she used a private server and emails for official business, then made available only about half of the roughly 60,000 messages, permanently deleting those she considered personal.

Still, a Fox News poll released March 26 shows Clinton with support from 49 percent of early voters, numbers similar to those in other polls for roughly the past five months.

The response to Clinton’s announcement was quick and widespread with Democratic and Republican lawmakers, candidates and political groups eager to get in on the biggest news so far in the early 2016 election cycle.

“Hillary Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state resulted in an America that is less safe and trusted abroad,” said Our American Revival, a political action committee for Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a potential 2016 GOP presidential candidate. “We must stand together and speak out against Hillary Clinton’s dangerous liberal record.”

Carly Fiorina, another potential 2016 GOP candidate and a former Hewlett-Packard chief executive, release her own video.

“Hillary Clinton’s a highly intelligent woman, hard-working, she’s dedicated her life to public service,” Fiorina says the video that she posted on Facebook. “But unfortunately, she does not have a track record of accomplishment or transparency. … She’s not the woman for the White House.”

Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul, who last week officially announced his 2016 bid, became the first candidate to release an attack ad on another official candidate with a video that in part says: “Hillary Clinton represents the worst of the Washington machine.”

Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, a Clinton supporter who is seriously considering a bid for the Democratic nomination, said through a spokeswoman that he will make his decision “regardless of what other people decide.”

“He’s heard from Democrats that they are looking for someone who offers strong progressive values, new leadership and the experience of getting real results,” spokeswoman Lis Smith said. “The Democratic Party will benefit from a robust issues debate … should Governor O’Malley decide to enter the race.”

Democratic National Committee Chairman and Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz welcomed Clinton as the first official candidate seeking the party’s 2016 presidential nomination. But she also suggested Clinton would have to work for the mantle.

“We expect a competitive primary for the Democratic nomination,” Wasserman Schultz said. “I look forward to the contributions that Secretary Clinton and all of our eventual candidates will bring to this debate.”

As first lady to President Bill Clinton during the 1990s, she was a driving figure in a failed health care overhaul and lived through multiple ethics investigations and her husband’s impeachment.

Clinton graduated from Wellesley College and Yale Law School.

More at Fox News

Disclaimer: This article was not written by Silent Soldier.

Megan Kelly Nails Hillary Clinton For Lying About Signing Form OF-109: Friends Gather In Support

March 19, 2015

Comment by Jim Campbell, Citizen Journalist, Oath Keeper and Patriot.

After being smacked very hard by Megan Kelly at Fox News

Hillary Clinton’s friends gather in overwhelming support for her.

Many Democrats want independent Clinton email probe:

Reuters

By Amanda Becker

WASHINGTON Thu Mar 19, 2015

They have grown far to weary of her scandals and would like her to fade away.

Democrats’ support is softening for Hillary Clinton, their party’s presumed 2016 presidential front-runner, with many favoring an independent review of her personal email use when she was secretary of state.

Support for Clinton’s candidacy has dropped about 15 percentage points since mid-February among Democrats, with as few as 45 percent saying they would support her in the last week, according to a Reuters/Ipsos tracking poll.

Support from Democrats likely to vote in the party nominating contests has dropped only slightly less, to a low in the mid-50s over the same period.

Even Democrats who said they were not personally swayed one way or another by the email flap said that Clinton could fare worse because of it, if and when she launches her presidential campaign, a separate Reuters/Ipsos poll showed.

(GRAPHIC: Hillary Clinton’s emails here)

HARMFUL POLITICALLY

(Reuters) – Democrats’ support is softening for Hillary Clinton, their party’s presumed 2016 presidential front-runner, with many favoring an independent review of her personal email use when she was secretary of state.

Support for Clinton’s candidacy has dropped about 15 percentage points since mid-February among Democrats, with as few as 45 percent saying they would support her in the last week, according to a Reuters/Ipsos tracking poll. Support from Democrats likely to vote in the party nominating contests has dropped only slightly less, to a low in the mid-50s over the same period.

Even Democrats who said they were not personally swayed one way or another by the email flap said that Clinton could fare worse because of it, if and when she launches her presidential campaign, a separate Reuters/Ipsos poll showed.

The polling showed that nearly half of Democratic respondents – 46 percent – agreed there should be an independent review of all of Clinton’s emails to ensure she turned over everything that is work-related.

There was also sizable support among Democrats for the Republican-controlled congressional committee’s effort to require Clinton to testify about the emails. Forty-one percent said they backed its efforts to force Clinton’s testimony.

“Bottom line is if she didn’t do anything wrong, she’s fine,” said North Carolina resident Renetia Lowery, 48, a Democrat and survey respondent.

The online poll of 2,128 adults from March 10 to March 17 showed that Americans, including two-thirds of Democrats, were aware of the controversy surrounding Clinton’s decision to use her personal email rather than a government account, along with a personal server, when she was the top U.S. diplomat from 2009 to 2013.

Clinton has tried to tamp down accusations that she used her personal email account to keep her records from public review, which would support an old political narrative that Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, are secretive and seek to play by a different set of rules.

More than a third of Democrats and 44 percent of political independents agreed that the email issue has hurt the former secretary of state politically.

Disclaimer: This article was not written by Lorra B.

Watch: SPECIAL REPORT: NOTES ON ANOTHER CLINTON SCANDAL: WAS VINCE FOSTER KILLED? – OF COURSE, HE KNEW THE CLINTON SECRETS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 26, 2015

Arlin Report: (If you haven’t checked out his site, you should!)

The same night that Foster died, White House staff working for Hillary raided Foster’s office. Hillary may have been upset by the news of Foster’s death, but, as claimed by Senator Alfonse D’Amato (R-NY) in the comments related to the Whitewater scandal, Hillary’s chief of staff Margaret Williams removed certain files from Foster’s office (from rense.com).
Many believe Vince Foster may have been killed in the White House, his body moved to a park. 3 men in red vest were seen running from the scene where the “suicide body” was found. A suicide victim does not move, obviously…….killers move bodies, would especially from the White House.

Originally posted on Buffalohair Gazette International:

More at Arlin Report:

IS HILLARY REALLY OUT OF TOUCH WITH AMERICANS? [Video]

January 9, 2015

Desert Musings:

It’s a question that plagues pretty much everyone that runs for president. Are you out of touch with every day America? And it’s a really simple question really. The answer in every single case is, “Yes”. Because you don’t get to be a serious candidate for the White House without having been part of an elite group of people for a very long time. Unless you’re Barack Obama….then you get a pass on everything because we apparently wanted a black president other than Bill Clinton.

Which leads us to the question that a lot of people are asking, “Is Hillary out of touch with the American people?” Well, to hear Bill talk (which he recently did), the answer is “No!” According to Bill, he talks to “normal folks” at the grocery store every weekend in his town (which is Chappaqua, New York…median income $163,201). Now, I know Clinton came from some humble beginnings. Wrong side of the tracks beginnings would be more apt. But Hillary is a different story. She came from an affluent neighborhood in Chicago, attended good schools, went to an Ivy League school, and got a law degree. She really never was in need.

 

 

So, is Hillary “out of touch”? Well, she hasn’t driven a car in over 20 years. I don’t know the last time SHE went shopping. I’m sure Bill is down hitting on the check out girls at the Piggly Wiggly in Chappaqua, but Hillary? Probably not. They have their own chef, when they’re not eating out. Bill even has an executive chef at his presidential library in Little Rock, and he uses him frequently when he’s in the apartment up top. So, cooking isn’t something they’re well versed in. Somehow, I can’t see Hillary playing Martha Stewart and making an apple pie from scratch.

I really think that Hillary IS out of touch. She’s made so many stupid comments during her book tour that tells you she really doesn’t understand what “normal America” goes through on a day to day basis. They may have struggled as a newlywed couple for a month or two, but I’m sure her daddy always bailed them out. I’ll put it this way. Hillary’s nickname isn’t “princess” because she wears a crown. It’s because she always gets what she wants or she throws either a fit or a lamp. Spoiled? Yes, most definitely. In touch with America? I have my doubts. When was the last time Hillary Clinton had to pay bills? How about do a load of laundry, or was dishes by hand? How about wash dishes period?

More at Desert Musings:

Video: SLICK WILLIE (BILL) CLINTON NUMBER ON SEX LIST

January 6, 2015

Arlin Report:

 From Blacklisted News

SOURCE:  THE SMOKING GUN

JANUARY 5, 2015

Billionaire Sex Offender’s Phone Book Contained E-Mail Addresses, 21 Phone Numbers For Bill Clinton

Now that Prince Andrew has found himself ensnared in the sleazy sex slave story of wealthy degenerate Jeffrey Epstein, Bill Clinton can’t be too far behind.

Epstein, who paid teenage girls for naked massages at his Palm Beach, Florida mansion, is a convicted sex offender whose circle of powerful friends hasincluded financiers, celebrities, politicians, and scientists.

In fact, Epstein, 61, has maintained many of these relationships even after pleading guilty in 2008 to a felony charge stemming from a lengthy probe of hislewd interaction with scores of underage girls, many of whom were recruited while they were students at a Palm Beach high school.

Epstein is pictured above in his most recent sex offender registry photo.

But while Prince Andrew and other public figures resumed meeting with a post-prison Epstein, Clinton appears to have avoided the billionaire, who owns a private Caribbean island, a Manhattan mansion, a New Mexico ranch, and a Paris apartment in addition to his waterfront Palm Beach residence.

 

 

According to court records, Clinton “frequently flew” with Epstein aboard the investor’s private jet from 2002 to 2005, the year news of the police investigation of Epstein was first reported.

During the early stages of that probe, cops surreptitiously collected the trash from in front of

Epstein’s Palm Beach home. The refuse included documents with the names of some of his many underage masseuses, as well as an Amazon.com invoice for the purchase of sex slave books like“SlaveCraft: Roadmaps for Erotic Servitude–Principles, Skills and Tools,” “Training with Miss Abernathy: A Workbook for Erotic Slaves and Their Owners,”and “SM 101: A Realistic Introduction.”

Read more at Arlin Report:

GEORGE W BUSH: HILLARY CLINTON IS MY ‘SISTER IN LAW’

December 8, 2014

DANIEL CRANE

Comment illustrates frustration with crony elections

Underscoring frustrations expressed by many about the two party monopoly in America, during an interview with CNN’s Candy Crowley yesterday, George W. Bush responded to a question about his brother Jeb running against Hillary Clinton by referring to Hillary as his “sister in law”.

Noting how Bush referred to Bill Clinton as his “brother from another mother,” Crowley asked the former President, “what does that make Hillary Clinton to the Bush family?”

“My sister in law,” responded Bush.

Bush agreed that Hillary would be “formidable” in a presidential run-off, but said he would be willing to bet that Jeb Bush would beat her if Hillary decided to throw her hat in the ring.

Bush’s comment serves as a reminder that the U.S. political system is becoming increasingly crony, with little difference between the leadership of both major parties or both candidates in a typical presidential election. Should Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton be chosen as candidates, it will ensure that a Bush or a Clinton has been in the White House for four out of the last five presidencies.

“There is no difference in voting for Hilary or voting for Jeb … they are both liberal Democrats,” responded one YouTube user.

The relationship between the two families was perhaps best illustrated by last year’s Guccifer hack of the Bush family emails, which revealed that George W. Bush refers to Bill Clinton as “bubba” or “brother”.

The hack also unearthed how Jeb Bush credited his father George H.W. Bush with restoring Bill Clinton’s political reputation.

“[H]e helped restore his sordid reputation. A very tough thing to do but with kindness, dad probably helped Bill Clinton than anything he himself has done,” said the former Florida Governor.

Written by Paul Joseph Watson
Read more at Infowars

Bill Clinton and Charlie Crist: The odd couple

Politico: While everyone’s focused on Hillary Clinton’s next potential campaign, it’s Bill Clinton who’s been racking up frequent-flier miles, trying to get Democrats elected in the midterms.

He’s crisscrossed the country in the past eight months, doing more than 20 events for Democratic hopefuls from Florida to Kentucky to Rhode Island as the party’s most sought-after surrogate and rainmaker. In some cases, he’s gone to bat for candidates who supported his wife six years ago; in others, he’s gotten behind contenders who have long relationships with the former first couple. And the former Arkansas chief has an obvious soft spot for governors, a group that has received little attention from the current president.

At a campaign rally in Miami Friday, Clinton will test the strength of a relatively new relationship, with Charlie Crist, the Republican-turned-Democrat who’s running for his old job as Florida’s governor. Crist was once a harsh Clinton critic, denouncing him during the impeachment scandal in the late 1990s — a fact states Republicans have been quick to resurrect.

But now, as his wife is eyeing another national campaign, the perennial battleground of Florida looms potentially large for the Clintons. And Bill Clinton and Crist have developed a rapport, speaking a number of times since Crist launched his candidacy, multiple sources familiar with the conversations told POLITICO. Clinton, a famous dispenser of campaign advice with an eye for the granular in a race, has occasionally chewed over Crist’s own bid against GOP Gov. Rick Scott.

“Whoever wins Florida is the next president of the United States,” said John Morgan, a major Democratic donor whose law firm employs Crist. “That’s just math.”

The governor is “extremely important,” Morgan added. “They control the secretary of state, voting days, voting hours.”

It wasn’t until Crist won his primary last week against Nan Rich that Clinton was able to formally back him. Rich was a supporter of Hillary Clinton, Morgan noted, and now that Crist is the nominee “I think [Clinton’s] hands are untied.”

Clinton and Crist had their first real dealings in 2010, when Crist was running for the U.S. Senate as an independent. His advisers sought help from Bill Clinton to get the Democrat, Rep. Kendrick Meek, a longtime Clinton ally, to drop out of the race and thwart then-state Sen. Marco Rubio from winning. Clinton tried, but Meek stayed in and Rubio won. Still, it established some level of political discussion between the Clinton and Crist camps.

The appearance with Crist will cap a week of campaigning for Democratic gubernatorial candidates by Clinton. Earlier, he attended events for Connecticut Gov. Daniel Malloy and Maine candidate Mike Michaud. While in Maine, he stopped by Kennebunkport to pay a visit to former President George H.W. Bush, with whom he has forged a bond since working with him on post-Hurricane Katrina relief.

Clinton will attend a fundraiser on Saturday for embattled Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu and another one the following weekend for Georgia Democratic Senate hopeful Michelle Nunn.

The former president did an ad for Rhode Island treasurer candidate Seth Magaziner, the son of Clinton’s longtime adviser Ira Magaziner. He is doing a direct mail piece for Nina Turner’s secretary of state race in Ohio, another key presidential proving ground.

Clinton’s team prefers to let campaigns he helps announce the visits as they see fit. That typically means as much local exposure as possible to move voters but little attention in the national media, meaning some events slip under the Beltway radar.

This month, Clinton will also host a fundraiser for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, before joining his wife in Iowa for the final Sen. Tom Harkin Steak Fry in Indianola. Clinton’s appeal is global in a way that few other surrogates’ is, a far cry from 2010, when the White House asked him for surgical help in a brutal mid-terms cycle.

This time around, it’s President Barack Obama whom many campaigns are steering clear of, and Bill Clinton who is in high demand.

“I’d like to think these are just previews to a robust schedule over the next eight weeks,” said DCCC Chairman Steve Israel, saying there are 70 House districts in which either Clinton could be a huge help.

At the same time, Bill and Hillary Clinton are expecting a grandchild, which will most likely affect their political schedule.

“I would imagine … that if the baby is born before the election, he or she will also be in great demand in these districts,” Israel joked. “I do not imagine that grandma and grandpa will allow that to happen, however.”

Bill Clinton’s focus has been both future-looking but also personal. He is deeply invested in races in Arkansas, talking frequently with people there about how Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor and gubernatorial hopeful Mike Ross are faring.

Clinton is known for being difficult to control as a principal, with a deep love for campaigning and a willingness to stop in front of a waiting microphone even as aides try to shove him along. But despite that free-wheeling aspect to his political approach, his allies believe the perception that he is quick to go off-message is unfair.

“There are two politicians who are best at staying on-message and sticking to the script, and that’s Bill Clinton and Jeanne Shaheen,” said Terry Shumaker, a co-chair of Clinton’s 1992 and 1996 campaigns in New Hampshire.

“When he campaigns for other candidates, it comes across as very sincere and also genuine — he’s also knowledgeable about issues in an election which a lot of surrogates frankly aren’t,” he added. “He just connects with people in a way that I’ve never seen any other politician do.”

Written By MAGGIE HABERMAN, Politico

 

 

By Lorra B. Chief Writer for Silent Soldier

http://SilentSoldier.us