Hillary Clinton Adopts Citizens United in Defense of Her Wall Street Millions

Hillary Clinton was paid $2.9 Million from 12 speeches
to huge banks, (Zaid, Jilani, The Intercept). Money for
nothing, assures Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton declined again last night to release her transcripts for talks to Wall Street for which Clinton was paid $2.9 million.

In fact in last night's debate Clinton refused to acknowledge the question posed twice by CNN's Dana Bash, who limited her question to the mere $100,000s for which Clinton was paid by Goldman Sachs.

CNN's DANA BASH: Secretary Clinton, if I may, Senator Sanders keeping bringing up the speeches that you gave to Goldman Sachs. So I'd like to ask you, so you've said that you don't want to release the transcripts, until everybody does it, but if there's nothing in those speeches that you think would change voters' minds, why not just release the transcripts and put this whole issue to bed?

CLINTON: You know, let's set the same standard for everybody. When everybody does it, OK, I will do it ... .

SANDERS: Well, let me respond. Secretary Clinton, you just heard her, everybody else does it, she'll do it. I will do it.
(APPLAUSE)
I am going to release all of the transcripts of the speeches that I gave on Wall Street behind closed doors, not for $225,000, not for $2,000, not for two cents. There were no speeches. ... (CNN Transcript of Democratic Debate)
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Now, as Glenn Greenwald notes: The "key argument of the right-wing justices in Citizens United has now become the key argument of the Clinton campaign and its media supporters to justify her personal and political receipt of millions upon millions of dollars in corporate money: 'Expenditures, including those made by corporations, do not give rise to corruption or the appearance of corruption' — at least when the candidate in question is Hillary Clinton," (The Intercept).

In other developments, Michael Hudson, Bill Black and Jaisal Noor have an exclusive at Countpunch revealing why Bernie Sanders is right about breaking up the banks, and the New York Daily News is a sham.

Clueless Pundits

Mark Nickolas at Huffington has a great piece out on the foolishness of pundits, including UW-Madison alum Jeff Greenfield.

On this historic day, I thought it would be instructive to look back on just how wrong some of the pundits were when Barack Obama (D) launched his bid for the presidency two years ago, including the embarrassing remark by an esteemed member of the self-described 'Best Political Team on Television' (CNN):

'Illinois Senator Barack Obama's announcement this week that he's likely to enter the Presidential race adds a dash of glamour and excitement to the Democratic field. But all of his media attention doesn't change the basic truth of the 2008 primary contest: The race is between Hillary Rodham Clinton and everybody else.'
- The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, Jan. 18, 2007

'Ask yourself, is there any other major public figure who dresses the way [Obama] does? Why, yes. It is Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who, unlike most of his predecessors, seems to have skipped through enough copies of 'GQ' to find the jacket-and-no-tie look agreeable. And maybe that's not the comparison a possible presidential contender really wants to evoke... Now, it is one thing to have a last name that sounds like Osama and a middle name, Hussein, that is probably less than helpful. But an outfit that reminds people of a charter member of the axis of evil, why, this could leave his presidential hopes hanging by a thread. Or is that threads?'
CNN Senior Analyst Jeff Greenfield, 'The Situation Room,' CNN, Dec. 11, 2006

VA Battles Wounded Warriors at Home

Nice job CNN!

If you did not see CNN's piece (running now) on how the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) screws our vets, you can link to it at: Wounded warriors face home-front battle with VA.

Atrociously. That's how our vets are treated. Can we shame this president?

Many vets just give up with the VA, frustrated with the all hoops they have to jump through.

Many end up homeless.

Many die, taking their unprocessed claims with them, with VA approval.

Many kill themselves.

An one Wisconsin vet lands up in jail for calling out the VA for the scum that they (or too many) are.

This all comes from the top - George W. Bush and his buddies at the veterans’ benefits-hostile American Enterprise Institute.

This is the Enron scandal of the many Bush scandals.

By the way, if you didn't catch the following in September, check it out:

Top VA Official: Bible Study "More important than doing [my] job."

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Anti-war Sentiment Towards Iraq War at Record High

Yeah. Maybe this will inject some spine into the Dems' next week House vote.

Reports Katy Byron from CNN:

Opposition to the war in Iraq has reached an all-time high, according to
the CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll released Thursday morning.

Support for the war in Iraq has dropped to 31 percent and the 68 percent who oppose the war is a new record.

Despite the drop in violence in Iraq, only one quarter
of Americans believes the U.S. is winning the war. There has been virtually no change in the past month in the number of Americans who believe that things are going badly for the U.S. in the war in Iraq.

The public also opposes U.S. military action against Iran. Sixty-three percent oppose air strikes on Iran, while 73 percent oppose using ground troops as well as air strikes in that country.

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Citizens Lead the Way in Debate

Just watched the CNN/YouTube Q & A for the democratic presidential candidates.

Pointed, specific questions that cut off or at least minimized spin and talking points. Best one of these people-asking-candidates events that I have seen.

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