Thursday Reads: Afternoon Tea and Politics
Posted: September 3, 2015 | Author: bostonboomer | Filed under: morning reads, U.S. Politics |
Good Afternoon!!
Has Hillary Clinton finally been caught doing something criminal? It’s highly unlikely, but here is the latest attempt to tarnish her reputation.
Washington Post: Staffer who worked on Clinton’s private e-mail server faces subpoena.
A former State Department staffer who worked on Hillary Rodham Clinton’s private e-mail server tried this week to fend off a subpoena to testify before Congress, saying he would assert his constitutional right not to answer questions to avoid incriminating himself.
The move by Bryan Pagliano, who had worked on Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign before setting up the server in her New York home in 2009, came in a Monday letter from his lawyer to the House panel investigating the 2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
The letter cited the ongoing FBI inquiry into the security of Clinton’s e-mail system, and it quoted a Supreme Court ruling in which justices described the Fifth Amendment as protecting “innocent men . . . ‘who otherwise might be ensnared by ambiguous circumstances.’ ” ….
“While we understand that Mr. Pagliano’s response to this subpoena may be controversial in the current political environment, we hope that the members of the Select Committee will respect our client’s right to invoke the protections of the Constitution,” his attorney, Mark MacDougall, wrote.
Two other Senate committees have contacted Pagliano in the past week, according to a copy of the letter, which was obtained by The Washington Post. The requests came from the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Homeland Security Committee, according to people familiar with the requests.
OK, that doesn’t sound like a big deal to me.
More from Talking Points Memo: Clinton Campaign: We Wanted Staffer Who Set Up Email Server To Testify.
Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign encouraged a former State Department employee who helped set up her private email server to testify before the House committee on Benghazi.
Attorneys for Bryan Pagliano on Monday notified the committee that their client would invoke his Fifth Amendment right not to testify at a hearing next week.
An anonymous Clinton campaign aide told The New York Times that Pagliano’s decision was “both understandable and disappointing.”
“We had hoped Bryan would also agree to answer any questions from the committee and had recently encouraged him to grant the committee’s request for an interview,” the aide told the Times, adding that the campaign believes Pagliano “has every reason to be transparent about his I.T. assistance.”
The unidentified aide told the newspaper it makes sense that Pagliano, as a private individual, doesn’t want to participate in a “political spectacle.”
Completely understandable, IMHO. What normal person would want to sit and listen to ignorant, irrelevant questions from the likes of Trey Gowdy and the rest of the Benghazi Committee? Still the Republicans will make hay from this, says Taylor Marsh.
As an antidote to that nonsense, here’s an insightful piece by Larry Sabato: The Populist Revolt Against Brain-Dead Politics.
Take a deep breath. It won’t help you understand what’s happening in the contest for the presidency, but it won’t hurt either.
By contrast, many media analyses of the state of the race have reached the breathless level. Supposedly, there’s never been anyone like Donald Trump on the political scene. In fact, there’s a long tradition of anti-establishment outsiders making a splash. Conventional wisdom says Hillary Clinton is close to throwing away her second chance at the White House. Actually, while she’s been very unimpressive as a candidate in this cycle, Clinton’s many advantages still make her a strong favorite to be the Democratic standard-bearer (absent an indictment).
Yet observers are right when they insist “there’s something going on out there.” And in our view, what’s going on is a populist revolt against the utterly predictable, locked-in, hyperpartisan politics of the two major parties.
The most important word is “predictable.” While there are 22 presidential candidates — 23 if Biden runs — most of them are human tape recorders. On the top 25 or 30 issues, each has memorized a paragraph or two; mention the issue and the candidates push the “play” button in their heads. Almost word-for-word each time, they recite the pollster-researched, consultant-approved soundbites designed to produce a Pavlovian response in partisans.
Problem is, Americans would generally prefer to elect a human being, not an automaton. It’s at least possible that a few more intractable problems would get solved if potential presidents were less inflexible — or so it appears to many voters.
Whatever else you think of him, Trump is no automaton. He isn’t rehearsed, at least compared to the others: We can’t take our eyes off him because we’re not at all sure what he’s going to say next.
Read the rest at the link.
Next, check out this post at #HillaryMen: Who Needs Fox? NY Times and Morning Joe Battle for Title of Chief Hillary Basher.
One of the most egregious aspects of the 2016 presidential campaign is the vitriolic, gender-biased attacks against Hillary Clinton by major media outlets.
The New York Times has taken the lead, but they are not alone.
Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski use their Morning Joe platform on MSNBC to malign Hillary and mangle her public image. The show has become a cesspool of Hillary-bashing rivaling the fetid swamps of fringe rightwing Clinton haters.
The Washington Post angles their headlines for maximum damage to Hillary’s character. CNN ponders criminal penalties against her when no criminality is alleged.
It goes on and on. The institutional forces that have barred American women from the presidency are manifested in the media’s obsession to take down the first woman with a viable path to the White House.
Soak up more wisdom from Peter Daou and Tom Watson at #HillaryMen.
Now for some of that “brain-dead politics” that Larry Sabato referred to.
From TPM, Rand Paul: Kentucky Clerk ‘Shouldn’t Be Forced’ To Sign Off On Gay Marriages.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said on Thursday he supports Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who has refused to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, and added she “shouldn’t be forced” to sign a form she finds objectionable on religious grounds.
“I do support the notion that she shouldn’t be forced to sign something she finds religiously objectionable,” Paul said during an interview on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.”
On Tuesday, Paul said people like Davis who are “making a stand” for their beliefs are a “part of the American way.”
Paul did not say whether he had spoken to Davis, but said she “just doesn’t want to sign it because it indicates her approval of this.”
And here’s the second half of today’s “dumb and dumber”:
Washington Post, Mike Huckabee offers support to Kentucky clerk who refuses to issue gay marriage licenses.
Mike Huckabee called a Kentucky clerk who is refusing to issue gay marriage licenses Wednesday to offer his prayers and support for “not abandoning her religious convictions.”
The Supreme Court turned away a request by Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis to be excused from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, but the clerk continues to refuse to issue those licenses, calling the requirement a violation of her religious liberties.
“I spoke with Kim Davis this morning to offer my prayers and support. I let her know how proud I am of her for not abandoning her religious convictions and standing strong for religious liberty. She is showing more courage and humility than just about any federal office holder in Washington,” Huckabee said in a statement.
In fact, almost all of the GOP “human tape recorders,” as Sabato called them, think Kim Davis has a right to refuse to do her job, according to Think Progress, Only 2 Republican Candidates Think Kim Davis Needs To Quit Or Follow The Law.
In a section of its 2012 party platform, the Republican Party made its views clear: “In this country, the rule of law guarantees equal treatment to every individual.” But at least six Republican presidential hopefuls have now come to the defense of anti-gay Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis, who will face contempt charges on Thursday for violating a court order by refusing to issue marriage licenses. A smaller number of Republican presidential candidates have said that as a public official, Davis should have to do her job or resign….
Though many of the same Republican presidential candidates have been outspoken critics of lawlessness by government officials, several have rushed to defend Davis and suggested that religious beliefs should be legal grounds for public officials to opt-out of certain parts of their jobs.
Go over to Think Progress to read the reactions from “human tape recorders” Ted Cruz, Chris Christie, Bobby Jindal, and Marco Rubio.
So these morons think they can disregard both the Constitution and the Supreme Court–not a good look for a presidential candidate.
That’s all I have for you today–sorry I got such a late start. What else is happening? Please share your links in the comment thread and enjoy the rest of your Thursday.
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Kentucky clerk Kim Davis found in contempt, taken into custody after defying gay marriage order: Live updates
Good. I’m glad she will be held in custody until she decides to actually do her job. I found it interesting that, even though the women bringing the suit asked for fines only and not jail, the judge stated he didn’t think that a fine would force her to issue the licenses. Good for him!
I had seen some meme earlier about what might happen if a Quaker refused to issue gun licenses because of his pacifist belief and I think it may have come from this FB post.
Oops – I guess the FB link didn’t work.
The other clerks were told by the judge to let him know this afternoon if they would issue licenses. If not, it is evidently the Judge has decided to jail them as well if they answer that they will not issue licenses. One of the deputy clerks is Kim Davis’ son. Seems she is the daughter of the former clerk and her son is poised to slip in when she retires. Even though it is an elected position, sounds like nepotism as well as bigotry is alive and well in Kentucky.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/kim-davis-rowan-deputy-clerks-will-issues?utm_content=buffer4843d&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
This is weird. Her mother held the clerks job like for decades before her and hired her. Now. she has the job and her son works there. Aren’t there any nepotism laws in Kentucky?
Apparently it’s a dynasty.
Mouse you know that is how they do things in these towns….nepotism is just another word for “you’re hired” or “wins election” in places like Banjoville.
It’s like that in big cities too. Boston has a long history of jobs for close friends and family.
Yup…Chicago too….
Hey look
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/confirmed-wing-part-is-from-missing-malaysia-airlines-flight/
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/kim-daviss-son-refuses-to-issue-same-sex-marriage-licenses-after-mother-is-jailed/
Kim Davis has not the intellect to be masterminding this strategy. It is the Liberty Counsel cretins who are fundraising for their six figure salaries.
yeah. They’re using her ass.
She is being used, but she is also a religious zealot who thinks she can use the god excuse to act out her bigotry. There are 6 clerks in the office, one of those clerks is her son. The judge called them in individually and asked each one of them said they COULD issue SS Marriage licenses. Each of them said they COULD, except for her son. The judge offered to free Kim from her contempt of court charge if she would allow her clerks to issue the licenses, she refused to talk to the Judge, but declined the offer through her lawyer. She’s a dumbass, but she’ll likely be a very rich dumbass soon.
I can’t stop seeing the Syrian child who drowned. That image is so heartbreaking.
I know that’s just awful!
and she Godwin’d
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/lawyer-representing-kim-davis-compares-her-punishment-for-flouting-law-to-being-jewish-under-the-nazis/
They wouldn’t recognize a good analogy if it kicked them in the ass.
Not to put too fine a legal point on the Kim Davis matter, but does anyone else find it highly ironic that the Republicans, particularly those of the Huckleboob ilk, are promoting and condoning criminal behavior.
Ms. Davis’ conduct was a civil matter until she willfully disobeyed the Judge’s lawful and fully judicially reviewed Order. With her willful conduct she is now a criminal both in terms of the federal judge’s order, as well as the willful refusal, under Kentucky state law, to comply and administer her official duties.
In politics, I guess you can’t pick your friends, but you can pick your criminals.
Highly ironic, but the point escapes the Republicans. Just like they hate government interference, but it’s OK for the government to get into your bedroom, or between you and your doctor.
Not to mention the always funny “Keep Government Out of My Medicare!”
Hillary has been very impressive to me.
Great post and I absolutely love the pics.