Dismissing Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) political revolution as “hermetically sealed” from reality, former President Bill Clinton tried to level the playing field for Democratic front-runner, former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. When Bernie nearly tied Hillary in Iowa, the gloves came off in camp Clinton, sending the former president out to go negative. Hillary needed some urgent rehab after embarrassed at a Feb. 4 town hall meeting with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, telling voters she had no qualms taking $675,000 from Goldman Sachs for three brief speeches. “That’s what they offered,” said Hillary, trying to save face, but, truth be told, she most likely demanded the exorbitant fees. Sanders hammered Clinton on her close ties to Wall Street, taking some $15 million in her Super PAC, something her husband Bill insists doesn’t change Hillary’s political positions.
After retiring voluntarily from secretary of state Feb. 1, 2013, Hilary joined Bill on the speaking circuit, raking in millions, leaving the Clinton’s net worth estimated at $111 million, they’re definitely in what Bernie calls the top one-tenth-of-one percent. Lashing out at what looks like the last honorable politician, Bill hopes to deliver Hillary the needed victory Feb. 10 in the New Hampshire primary. “When you’re making a revolution, you can’t be too careful with the facts,” the former president told a Milford, N.H. campaign crowd. Bill’s attacks hope to rehab Hillary’s Feb. 4 gaffe with Anderson Cooper. Hillary sells herself as a “fighter,” champion of the Middle Class, something belied by her prodigious wealth. Bill hopes to discredit Bernie’s message that you can’t be a progressive candidate taking millions from Wall Street without some kind of quid pro quo or something for something.
Hillary denies she’s ever changed any position as a result of taking campaign cash. But, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), in her 2003 book “The Two Income Trap” cites Hillary’s flip-flop on the Wall Street-backed 2001 bankruptcy law, first opposing it, then supporting it, disadvantaging single-mothers or others struggling economically. Sanders opposed the 2001 bankruptcy bill from the get-go because it favored the banking industry. Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein said Feb. 4 that Sanders would be “dangerous” to the economy, obliquely throwing his support to Hillary. “It’s very effective. The system is rigged against you by the big banks, and both parties are in the thrall of the big banks. Anybody who takes money from Goldman Sachs could possibly be president,” said the former president. Bill Clinton wants to paint Bernie as an extremist that won’t be good for the economy.
Bernie’s attack on the banking industry indirectly blames Bill Cliinton for ending the 1933 Depression-era regulatory act know as Glass-Steagall, preventing regular banks from risky stock market investing. Bill signed the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act Nov. 12, 1999, essentially repealing Glass-Steagall, deregulating the banking industry, allowing ordinary banks to cross over into risky stock market investing. Bernie condemns Wall Street speculation that brought down the economy in 2008, forcing the Federal Reserve to bail out the banking industry. He’s pushing for a Wall Street speculation tax that helps pay for a Medicare-for-all single-payer health care system. Bill dismissed Sander’s Medicare-for-all plan as having too many unknown costs. “You can’t offer a health care program [if] you don’t know what it costs,” said Bill, dismissing Sander’s call for a single-payer system.
Attacking Bernie’s call for free tuition at public colleges and universities, Bill dismissed the idea as too costly. “Free college for everyone sounds better than what I said,” added Bill. “[But] we can’t afford everything,” calling Bernie’s giveaways unrealistic. What’s unrealistic is not the idea but getting anything passed in the GOP-controlled House and Senate. Almost tying Hillary in Iowa, Bill wants to lessen the embarrassment of losing New Hampshire by a wide margin heading into South Carolina. Bernie’s attacks on Wall Street and on past foreign policy blunders, especially the Iraq War, have resonated with young voters, attracted to the campaign’s idealism. Bill ripped young male Sanders’ supporters for posting “profane” and “sexist” attacks against Hillary on the Internet. Bernie condemned any “sexist” attacks by anyone supporting his campaign.
Bernie’s attacks on Hillary’s close ties to Wall Street hit home in CNN’s Feb. 4 town hall with the Democratic front-runner admitting to receiving astronomical sums for speaking to Goldman Sachs. Critiques from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) have only reinforced the perception that Hillary has close ties to Wall Street. Even more troubling for Hillary’s credibility are bizarre parallels on foreign policy with former Defense Secretary and Iraq War hawk Donald Rumsfeld. Both Hillary and Rumsfeld called Iran out on being the world’s chief sponsor of terror. When you consider the two years of sweat by Secretary of State John Kerry to mend U.S.-Iranian relations, resulting in the July 14, 2005 Iranian Nuke deal, Hillary’s hawkish words toward Iran hurt U.S. foreign policy. Sending Bill to rip Sanders on Hillary’s ties to Wall Street could backfire before New Hampshire.
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