For a long time, I have said that as progressives (and, by the way, I know what my definition of a progressive is), we should ***defend*** the status quo candidate about the nonsense about her emails. I said this before Bernie made his epic “Enough with the damn emails” statement during the Democratic debate because, putting aside whether it was wise to have a private email server, we should not be ginning up a phony issue.
Phony because, in my humble opinion, it is precisely the over-classification of government information that threatens our democracy and open debate, and, I hate to break it to the Republicans, the former secretary of state was not sending around the launch codes for nukes or some other “national security” info...typically, as we’ve found out from Wikileaks and Edward Snowden and others, the great secrets contained in emails have to do with things earth-shakingly obvious as the personality of some foreign leader or that the U.S. has been spying on an ally. That’s not, respectfully, information that’s likely to endanger Main Street Americans. And, I personally do not believe that the email garbage should disqualify the status quo candidate from being the Democratic nominee—for that judgement, there is a much longer list if legitimate issues.
What is far more dangerous to us is the behavior of the corporate class, particularly those on Wall Street. Their behavior has destroyed the livelihoods of millions of people and their future. They have robbed us. Period.
Last night, the status quo candidate tried to portray herself as a “progressive”, including claiming that she would be tough on Wall Street. I, and many other people, don’t find that to be in the least bit credible.
Let’s be clear: being paid $225,000 to give a speech to Goldman Sachs is legalized bribery. Respectfully, and I would say this about virtually every politician I know and support, no politician’s speech is worth that money. Politicians are not Stephen Hawking, Marie Curie, Albert Einstein, Rosa Parks or other people who actually invented something new, advanced knowledge or have something to say that is unique. Most of these highly-paid speeches are pablum, recycled policy language.
The only reason someone is paid that sum for an hour speech (maybe it was shorter or longer by a bit) is to curry favor and gain access to the recipient. Every American understands that—especially, since most Americans would not earn that amount of money in 3 or 4 YEARS of working hard at a modest income real job.
As I waited early this morning to do a short “New Day” CNN debate, I saw the ticker on CNN include the words “Clinton stumble”, referring to her answer about being paid such an astonishing amount: “That’s what they offered”.
No, it was not a stumble. It was perhaps one of the most honest, straightforward things she said in the forum. She does not believe there is anything wrong in being paid $225,000 by Goldman Sachs. Nothing. Wrong.
When you become part of the system, when you are enriched and become part of the elite (the Clintons are actually not 1 per-centers...they are more likely in the one-fifth of one percent), you become blind to the obvious, either conveniently or because you no longer have a moral compass that can distinguish between right and wrong.
But, ok, let’s a deep change has overtaken her. There is a simple way to gauge the status quo candidate’s credentials on the extent to which she would take on Wall Street:
Release the video or the audio of those speeches or the transcripts.
Without a doubt, when a world celebrity of the stature of the status quo candidate comes to speak, there will be a video shot, or an audio of that speech, or a transcript made.
Release it to the public.
Let people see or hear, in the wake of the greatest financial crisis in our lifetimes, what the status quo candidate said to “hold Wall Street accountable”. She had the forum to be clear what her position was about the illegal behavior on Wall Street. Let’s here it. Unedited.
Let the people judge for themselves.
#ReleaseGoldmanSachsSpeechVideo
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