The Politics Thread

[Juliajms]

I disagree with you there. I love Bill Clinton. However, that incident was an example of terrible judgement. He didn't just mess with a white house intern, he did it in the oval office. All of that is flat out wrong and very different from just having meaningless sex with a woman who didn't (indirectly) work for him in a random hotel room. Gennifer Flowers, I could tolerate. The Lewinsky thing told me that BC either felt that the rules didn't apply to him or that he was so out of control he didn't care about the consequences of his actions.

And while I am pro Hillary up to a point, I've enjoyed no drama Obama. It's been nice not to wake up to a new scandal every day.

[GMac]

^^^ I see what you're saying about the drama. But it seems that everyday there is a story of someone pissed off at the Pres because of something he's proposed or signed.

It has been drama free IRT his personal life. But as Pres? Not so much.

That's not to say I don't support the man 100%. I love me some Obama. I just wish that every. single. thing. Wasn't beaten up so much by Congress and the media.

[DramatistDreamer]

I voted for Hills when she ran for NY Senate but man, she is going to have to do a LOT better if she intends on running for President. Who the hell has their own server?? For a public official, it's not a good look as it implies something to hide. Even if she was using it to keep love notes to Bill private, when you're a public official, that is a no-no.

The dynamics behind her campaign kind of imploded in the primaries last time around. I read that she will be using some staff from Obama's 2008 & 2012 campaigns but if she doesn't inject some discipline into the dynamics behind her campaign it won't matter.

As for Obama's personal life, believe me someone has always tried to find something, even if it makes no sense, like the selfie shot at Mandela's memorial (which by the way, was a celebration of Mandela's life and was not meant to be morbid). People tried to make it as if Michelle was going to move out of the WH the next day or something.

The last one was when Malia went to visit some colleges and universities in NYC, one article asked why the president wasn't accompanying her. Are they serious??

On the other side of the aisle, I had to laugh when John Boehner had to beg for a clean bill for DHS and was reduced to relying on Democratic support after many (*coughs* Tea Partiers) turned their backs. Didn't this party used to be disciplined and (somewhat) unified?

[quartermainefan]

They wouldn't be the Clintons if they didn't have something to hide. If they didn't have something to hide I would be disappointed.

[Juliajms]

That's not the result of bad choices he's made though. We're in the age of the tea party right now.

[DRW50]

Which is part of the problem.

[DRW50]

I read some article that gave the reasons for this, and among them were the elimination of earmarks as bribes, and the size of this Congress, along with gerrymandering taking away moderates (now even more likely given SCOTUS' likelihood of eliminating independent redistricting committees in AZ and CA).

Media darling Chris Christie sells out his state yet again. Remember what a fighter for his state he is? Remember how many times we had to hear this, day in and day out, for years?

His state is a state of corporate cash.

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/03/christie-blasts-back-to-defend-exxon-settlement-115810.html?hp=l1_3

[ThePrinceOfSunspear]

Lol he's going to die some day totally regretting not running in 2011/2012 when practically EVERY Republican in this nation was begging him to run and put them out of their misery with Mittens....

Now he's destined to lose to Jeb or Scott (or God help us Rand or Ted). And he'll be lucky if he gets the Veep spot. Chances are he'll alienate people and burn more bridges.

[quartermainefan]

I don't see it as a problem. They have a complicated private life but that doesn't impact their abilities. He is better than she is at doing stuff but she isn't bad. If it took 200 girlfriends and a hundred political schemes to make Bill Clinton into Bill Clinton, then it is great he did all that. There is just nothing left to say about them and their secrets. Everybody knows the Clintons will always have an angle or some shady aspect to everything they do and most people accept it and don't seem to care.

People should vote for Hillary to backdoor Bill back into a position of influence. They were always buy one get one free, and he knows his stuff.

[DRW50]

It complicates their abilities in that it always overshadows most of what they do. It's one of the reasons Democrats lost Congress in 1994 and one of the reasons his last few years as President were full of scandal and impeachment.

In this case it just seems like what could be a minor scandal - and yes I know the media is a big reason why it isn't just a minor scandal - but it's made more complicated by the general Clinton inability to run a tight ship.

[Juliajms]

And to continually think that the rules don't apply to them. After everything that's happened in the past, you'd think a lesson would have been learned about that, but nope.

[Juliajms]

I'm really interested in this new book coming out on kids in poverty. Here's an interview with the author, Robert Putnam.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/03/06/the-terrible-loneliness-of-growing-up-poor-in-robert-putnams-america/

[DRW50]

New Jersey politicians strike again.

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/03/bob-menendez-federal-corruption-charges-115834.html?hp=t3_r

[DramatistDreamer]

I'm not a fan of Robert Menendez, I've always thought his voice on diplomacy were antiquated, and rang of a Cold War mentality. If he is removed, the downside will be the possibility of someone who is even more inflexible slotting in that position.

Chris Christie's regard is sinking lower as we speak. He's been shifting New Jersey's finances more and more in the red since his re-election. The deficits are piling up and he's already broken his promise on how the pensions would be funded. And this deal with Exxon is probably going to lead back to the time when New Jersey became a punchline.

I can remember riding in a car with school friends in the 90s when suddenly we'd all have to roll up our windows and my friend from Jersey would say "Ah, that's that New Jersey smell".

[Juliajms]

OMG, yes! I remember that too. We'd go through Jersey to visit my family in NYC and that would happen.