Saturday Reads, Summer Solstice Edition: Dreaming of a Woman President, and Other News
Posted: June 22, 2013 Filed under: 2016 elections, Barack Obama, Foreign Affairs, Hillary Clinton, misogyny, morning reads, SCOTUS, U.S. Politics | Tags: Claire McCaskill, Edward Snowden, Ready for Hillary superpac, Summer solstice, Supermoon, Toronto, Unique Lives and Experiences Conference 48 Comments
Good Morning and Happy Summer Solstice!!
Hillary is in the news this morning, so I thought I’d begin with her latest public remarks on the presidency. Claire McCaskill kicked off the Hillary talk on Tuesday when she said she was supporting a new superpac called Ready for Hillary.
“Hillary Clinton had to give up her political operation while she was making us proud, representing us around the world as an incredible Secretary of State, and that’s why Ready for Hillary is so critical,” McCaskill said in a statement released by the group. “It’s important that we start early, building a grassroots army from the ground up, and effectively using the tools of the Internet –- all things that President Obama did so successfully –- so that if Hillary does decide to run, we’ll be ready to help her win.”
McCaskill was one of the female Senators who abandoned Hillary to jump on the Obama bandwagon in 2008. Hillary gave her call after the announcement of support.
An early endorsement this week for a 2016 presidential run by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton merited a phone call from the potential candidate, according to Sen. Claire McCaskill.
Clinton made the call after the senator’s Tuesday announcement that she was endorsing a political action committee pushing a presidential run.
“She did call me after this all happened the other day,” the Missouri Democrat said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “We had a great conversation. I’m not going to talk about what we said. But I think she’s got a big decision to make and I think she’s in the process of making it.”
McCaskill called the endorsement of Clinton an easy decision. “She is by far the strongest, most capable, most qualified candidate for President of the United States,” she said. “I am part of a lot of group of people, big huge group of people, that really wants her to run. And it seemed like coming out publicly and stating the obvious, that we all want her to run, was an important thing to do right now.”
Naturally, the corporate media is *concerned* about Hillary’s ambitions. The Washington Post sees “worries” for her in the new superpac.
The upstart super PAC, called Ready for Hillary, is fast emerging as the quasi-official stand-in for potential 2016 presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton, scooping up advisers and gathering big donations more than three years ahead of election time.
But the group is also making some advisers in Clinton’s orbit decidedly nervous about its potential impact on her own efforts, which for now consist of philanthropic pursuits and remaining mum on a presidential bid. Some allies also fear a repeat of 2008, when an assumed air of inevitability contributed to Clinton’s loss to fresh-faced challenger Barack Obama….
“It’s hard to even know what’s what any more,” said John Morgan, an Orlando lawyer who served on Bill Clinton’s 1996 national finance committee. “It’s become a cottage industry. It’s like, ‘Who are you?’ Just because you put the name ‘Hillary’ at the end of your PAC — it could be a bait and switch. I want to make sure I can get the biggest bang for my buck.”
Ready for Hillary — launched in January by Clinton boosters Adam Parkhomenko and Allida Black — is getting help from a number of veterans from Hillary and Bill Clinton’s political operation. Former Bill Clinton strategist Harold Ickes, former Clinton White House political director Craig Smith and former Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer Jim Lamb are advising the group on strategy, while longtime confidant James Carville recently sent out a fundraising solicitation under his name.
Former U.S. secretary of state Hillary Clinton poses with Jaden Szigeti, 9, for a snapshot before speaking to 5,000 at the Metro Convention Centre. (Toronto Star)
So what does Hillary herself have to say? Well she made a speech at the “Unique Lives and Experiences” conference in Toronto on Thursday, and she expressed a desire that many American women share. She wants to see a woman president in her lifetime. From Politico:
“Let me say this, hypothetically speaking, I really do hope that we have a woman president in my lifetime,” Clinton said in Toronto, before a women-centered event Thursday. “And whether it’s next time or the next time after that, it really depends on women stepping up and subjecting themselves to the political process, which is very difficult.”
She added that President Barack Obama’s election was historic, and said, “I hope that we will see a woman elected because I think it would send exactly the right historic signal to girls, women as well as boys and men. And I will certainly vote for the right woman to be president.” [….]
Friends and supporters of Clinton say she is genuinely undecided about whether to run again, even if some of the moves she is making now, immersing herself in domestic policy on issues affecting women and children that have been the core of her life’s work, would certainly be helpful if she launches another national campaign.
Yet that argument — the historic nature of a female president, combined with a pent-up desire among women voters to break that barrier — is the one most often espoused by Clinton backers.
Here’s the video that was posted to YouTube after the event.
In an “intimate” setting with 5,000 other people, Hillary reminisced about her life:
In a verbal stroll through her life, Clinton mentioned her mother’s difficult early years as an abandoned and mistreated child, she recalled the first time she ever heard the voice of her husband, former president Bill Clinton, back when he was a student, drawling about “the size of watermelons” in Arkansas. She mentioned the “extraordinary sense of anxiety” that she and every other American felt after the attacks of Sept. 11.
And she spoke candidly about how she had learned to cope with sexist attacks and snippy criticism about her hair, her clothes and all the things that don’t really define her.
“My attitude is different than it was 20 years ago,” she said. “I don’t care.”
The crowd clapped its approval.“I learned to take criticism seriously but not personally” Clinton told her audience.
She is amazing. I so miss her as Secretary of State. In contrast John Kerry is so boring that he’s already become almost invisible. With Hillary as SOS, there were frequent stories about her travels with photos of her colorful outfits. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have her engaging personality, not to mention her valuable experience and brilliant mind in the White House?
In other news…
The news broke yesterday that Edward Snowden has been charged with three felonies. Most media outlets are reporting that has been charged with espionage, but so far that hasn’t been specifically stated by the government. From Politico:
Snowden was charged with conveying classified information to an unauthorized party, disclosing communications intelligence information, and theft of government property.
The charges, which can carry a penalty of up to ten years in prison on each count, were filed in federal court in Alexandria, Va., last Friday….
The charges were first reported Friday evening by the Washington Post, which said the complaint against Snowden was sealed. It’s not immediately clear whether the charges were unsealed before or after the Post report.
A Justice Department official confirmed Friday evening that a complaint was filed in the case, but declined further comment on the matter.
The Washington Post reported this morning that the charges were conveyed to Hong Kong authorities a week ago, but so far they seem to be dragging their feet about arresting Snowden.
The reason for the hold-up is unclear. There could be delays in the legal process for issuing the warrant. Or, officials may still be looking for Snowden, who is believed to be in Hong Kong but could also have found a way to leave the semiautonomous region.
The U.S. government asked Hong Kong to detain Snowden on a provisional arrest warrant June 14, the same day it filed criminal charges against him, including theft, “unauthorized communication of national defense information” and “willful communication of classified communications intelligence information to an unauthorized person.”
Under an extradition treaty between Hong Kong and the United States, a provisional warrant, as opposed to a regular one, is a faster way to detain suspected criminals since it does not require the initial approval of Hong Kong’s leader, currently Leung Chun-ying.
Instead, a judge can issue the warrant immediately. Simon Young, a legal professor at the University of Hong Kong said this means a warrant for Snowden’s arrest in theory could have been made as early as June 14, more than a week ago.
The Supreme Court justices are taking their own sweet time in announcing the most important decisions of this SCOTUS session. At The Daily Beast, Richard L. Hasan asks “What’s Taking the Supreme Court So Long?”
With everyone anxiously awaiting potentially blockbuster decisions on issues fromaffirmative action to voting rights to same-sex marriage, it is easy to criticize the Supreme Court for being too slow.
After all, Fisher, the affirmative-action case involving the University of Texas, was argued in Supreme Court back in October. By historical standards, the court is deciding very few cases: it issued 167 with opinions in the 1981 term, but is expected to decide only 77 this term. Why save all of the big calls for the end? Are the justices trying to create maximum suspense to get more attention?
These criticisms fundamentally misunderstand both the modern Supreme Court’s mission and the psychology of the justices. There may be a lot of reasons to criticize the court, but the end-of-the-term crunch is not one of them.Consider first the Supreme Court’s mission. Justices are unlike legislators, who simply vote to express their preferences. Justices are expected to give reasons for their decisions. Further, the court on some of the toughest questions is divided along strong ideological lines. For example, a majority opinion from a conservative justice can generate a dissenting opinion from a liberal justice. The dissenting justice won’t just say “I disagree,” but will offer reasons—reasons that the dissenting justice writes not only for history but in the hopes that one day a majority of justices will change their minds and adopt the dissenting view in a majority opinion. Both a majority and dissenting opinions will be circulated within the court, and each opinion will be modified numerous times to respond to the arguments of the other side, and to respond to the concerns of other justices who may join one or more of the opinions. Sometimes a justice will agree with the result but not with the reasoning of an opinion, and that justice will write separately, prompting another round of revisions.
We’re still waiting for decisions on 11 more cases, and those could be announced this week. It should be interesting.
Finally, today is the summer solstice, and people the world over celebrated the beginning of summer. Read about it at the the WaPo: Summer solstice observed at Times Square, Stonehenge, in D.C.
And tomorrow a unusual celestial even will take place, according to the Sydney Morning Herald: A Supermoon, when ‘people turn into lunatics’
ONLY ONCE a year Earth, Moon and Sun line up to create the perfect conditions for a so called ‘Supermoon’.
According to popular folklore, this is the time when “people turn into lunatics”, ships run aground and earthquakes rattle our planet.According to NASA , it is the best opportunity to get a good look at Earth’s rocky satellite.
The distance between Earth and Moon varies between about 357,000km and 406,000km throughout the year, and depends on the moon’s elliptical orbit around Earth.When the moon is on its farthest position from the earth, it is called Apogee while the closest encounter is named Perigee.
About once a year a full Moon occurs during the Perigee orbit, resulting in a 14 per cent larger and 30 per cent brighter appearance.
Right wing nuts should stay indoors and avoid looking at the sky. They’re already lunatics; we don’t need them to go completely around the bend.
peej
Carissa
ecocatwoman
mablue2
peggysue22
quixote
skydancingguestblogger
Mona (aka Wonk the Vote)
Sky Dancing 
haha. lunatics-made me chuckle.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB_cBQ4nWa8
Thank you, Boomer, I really appreciate your words on Hillary Clinton.
Thanks. I would so love to have her as president, but I hate to think of the agonies we’ll have to deal with to make it happen.
No, think of the glory when she finally wins!!! I want to live to see the day.
Oh, if only.
Amen! in a non-religious way 🙂
We are so ready for a new way of living………..I am not going to worry, meanwhile I will walk in the sun, and take a deep breath when the wingnuts start selling their brand of hate. Yeah, it will be mighty fine day when a woman, when Hillary is president.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIjR2_lhrfA
One of my favorites!!!
Ditto, ditto!
Thanks for this post, BB.
It sounds like Hillary might indeed run. Big names are already getting organized ( and I am not referring to McCaskill ). I’m excited by the hopeful signs. It’s something to look forward to in an otherwise very depressing political scene. ( I feel like I should say it’s something to hang on to – like a drowning person clinging to lifeboat! )
Hillary 2016
We can only hope. And look where she goes to talk about it. An organization that helps children, not Halliburton or Goldman Sachs.
This is a real good question from Juan Cole: So When will Dick Cheney be charged with Espionage? His Crime was the Same as Snowden’s | Informed Comment
Read more of the argument at the link.
And BB, I do miss Hillary as SoS. Big Time.
Apparently Juan either doesn’t know, or ignores, that Snowden and the others are not charged with espionage but with lesser charges under the espionage act. Credibility is hard to gain but really easy to piss away.
Of course, those MSM publications like the Washington Post were also reporting he was charged with espionage, Watch the media deteriorate before your eyes. Why can’t we have a better pres corps?
Like our government we have the best Corporate America can buy.
No kidding? 🙂
So far, despite the headlines, Snowden has not been charged with espionage.
How soon after she throws her hat into the ring will the print and broadcast media attacks begin?
Go back to 2000 and you see a pattern in media malfeasance, they do everything in their power to ensure the election of the corporate toady.
Yes, they will attack her, so we fight back. Are we so cowered that we have forgotten how to do that? Should we just give up? Life is not for sissies. Hasn’t Hillary taught us that over and over again?
Do you think they’ll wait until she announces? I imagine they’ll do preemptive strikes.
I’ve seen plenty of attacks already. They’re getting warmed up.
I think she is quite sincere in stating that she has developed the ability, and thickness of skin, to just….not care.
I thought she did pretty well back in 2008.
Yes, she did. Not caring too much about her own ego freed her for caring about the people.
You never got the feeling from her that it was about her. Not self-centred. She was passionate about the needs of the country and its people. Her intellect was focussed there.
T. S. Eliot has that great phrase “to care and not to care.” She has that ability, to care about what matters, to not care about the slings and arrows hurled by lilliputian detractors.
Jon Chait: House Republicans Hate Poor Too Much to End Farm Socialism
Little bit of truth in legislating on the farm bill failure.
Snowden leaking more details on U.S. spying on China. It’s beginning to look like the claims of having info on domestic abuses of NSA was just a con.
http://www.scmp.com/
BTW, Hong Kong is providing security and a safehouse for Snowden. I’d say that, along with revealing espionage secrets, makes him a Chinese spy
Pretty close to it anyway. The arguments against criminal charges are simply ludicrous.
My Abortion, at 23 Weeks
I believe the reason the corporate media has stopped swooning about Obama has a lot to do with the “threat” of Clinton running. I give them no credit for forming a reasoned opinion or actually analyzing anything. They take their orders from their corporate masters. The corporations supported Obama in ’08 because everyone knew the Republicans would lose and a populist like Clinton could not be tolerated. So the media swooned over Hope and Change. The drumbeat from the media for the next 3 years is going to be about the failure of the Democratic presidency because Clinton must be stopped. The corporations must promote the idea of Democratic Fail. I know there are plenty of complaints about the Obama presidency, but I don’t believe that the media criticism has anything to do with the fact that Obama hasn’t pushed a progressive agenda enough. The corporations cannot allow another Clinton presidency. It’s going to be a messy 3 years if she runs. I don’t know if I can bear it.
NYT public editor critiques the insulting NYT Michael Hastings obit.
http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/22/times-obituary-of-michael-hastings-did-not-capture-his-adversarial-spirit/?_r=1&
hah! Perfect!
BB did you read this article Digby highlights?
Creepy.
I don’t consider Snowden in the same class as these government employees, however.
You know what is sad, I am more in tune with what is going on than the “average” person…and I still am very confused about all the specifics when it comes to Snowden and what documents he actually has in his possession, and what information, I mean exactly what info it is the NSA is getting in their metadata grabs. I know that there has been lots written, and perhaps it has been spelled out in simple terms. (But I really have not had the desire or energy to look or read about it.) I don’t know if it is because I am tired of all the shit, and feel like there is no way to fight the big brother looking over our shoulder. Or…if it is that somewhere in the back of my mind I knew this shit was happening anyway, and I’m really not surprised at all.
As for the kind of stuff in that McClatchy article, now that is freaky creepy.
You could read Kurt Eichenwald’s articles at Vanity Fair. They were helpful to me. But of course he agrees with me that deliberately helping the Chinese to block U.S. spying is wrong. Maybe if it were a friendly country, but China? They have hacked into the defense dept computers, they’ve stolen U.S. technology and secrets. They’ve put poison in dog and cat food. Why would anyone want to help them?
Snowden claimed he care about the civil liberties of Americans, but it turns out he just wants to cause as much damage to the U.S. government has he can. Personally, I don’t want some random person making those decisions for me. I didn’t vote for him.
I know, I did read them. But like I said…I don’t think my brain is functioning right now. PAD?
I’ve waited to see if Juan Cole would put up a correction on his blog post, about the espionage charges thing, but he hasn’t.
It isn’t his area of expertise.
Easy to see the why of the threat policy, but I don’t believe that method can work. What’s needed is much more thorough vetting of people with access to secret information.
A soldier’s last words. Heartbreaking.
Yes. It’s terrible what’s been done in our name.
This completely broke my heart today. Terrible in so many ways.
Ly the blame where it belong, on our corporate owned media that beat the war drums.
Say what?
N.C. lawyers listen as Justice Scalia bemoans ‘moral arbiter’ on eve of gay marriage ruling
http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2013/06/scalia-loves-founding-principles-except.html
Then he should resign.