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« on: September 15, 2016, 05:22:22 PM » |
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The Patriot Post Digest 9-8-2016
From The Federalist Patriot
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Mid-Day Digest
Sep. 8, 2016
THE FOUNDATION
“Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it.” —Thomas Paine (1777)
FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS
Clinton Asks to Be Judged by Her Record — So Be It1
By Nate Jackson
On Wednesday night, voters got a pre-debate look at the dueling foreign policy and national security visions of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. As for Trump, his lack of experience in government might play to his advantage in this election — ironic given Clinton’s constant harping on her experience. After all, she blustered, “I’m asking to be judged on the totality of my record.” So, speaking of Hillary’s record, let’s focus on some of her whoppers, at least two of which she characterized last night as “mistakes.”
Email
Facing repeated questions about her email scandal2 from both host Matt Lauer and members of the audience, Clinton was visibly irritated. She repeated her lie that nothing she sent or received was marked “classified,” “top secret,” or “secret.” But she also conceded that “it was a mistake to have a personal account. … I make no excuses.” It was only a “mistake” in her mind because she got caught. And she’s done nothing but make excuses.
As if to highlight that point, a retired naval officer asked her, “Had I communicated this information not following prescribed protocols, I would have been prosecuted and imprisoned. Secretary Clinton, how can you expect those such as myself who were and are entrusted with America’s most sensitive information to have any confidence in your leadership as president when you clearly corrupted our national security?”
The double standard is palpable. One Marine sent one email to save lives. Hillary deleted thousands of emails to conceal an event that cost lives. Which one is being reprimanded?3
Iraq and ISIL
“I think that the decision to go to war in Iraq was a mistake,” Clinton argued. “And I have said that my voting to give President [George W.] Bush that authority was, from my perspective, my mistake.” Later, she asserted, “I will also be as careful as I can in making the most significant decisions any president and commander and chief can make about sending our men and women into harm’s way.”
Clinton and many other Democrats made an extensive case4 for the war in Iraq before the 2003 invasion, based on the available evidence and intelligence5. Those same Democrats changed positions due primarily to perceived political advantage in the 2004 election. In 2007, Harry Reid even went so far as to declare the war “lost” while our troops were still fighting it and the successful surge was just beginning. Clinton and her cohorts were anything but “careful” when Patriots in uniform were actually in harm’s way. She can make theoretical promises now, but she betrayed our troops when it mattered.
As for fighting the Islamic State going forward, she promised, “We are not putting ground troops into Iraq ever again and we are not putting ground troops into Syria.”
There are already 5,000 troops in Iraq. She and Barack Obama just don’t want you to know that.
Libya
Finally, on her disastrous record in Libya — intervening to overthrow Moammar Gadhafi and sending Libya into a chaotic spiral that yielded Benghazi — Clinton had the gall to say, “We did not lose a single American in that action. And I think taking action was the right decision. Not taking it and permitting there to be an ongoing civil war in Libya would’ve been as dangerous and threatening as what we are now seeing in Syria.”
Where to begin. We suppose by observing that Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty were unavailable for comment. No, the four dead in Benghazi weren’t killed “in that action” against Gadhafi, but they were murdered because of that action, which sowed chaos in that nation and allowed a new base of operations for the Islamic State. Gadhafi was not a good guy, but he had begun to cooperate with the U.S. after seeing what happened to Saddam Hussein. Clinton rewarded him with a death sentence. It’s also not the first time Clinton has made the boneheaded assertion about not losing “a single American.” She said the same thing in March6.
Bottom line: Is Hillary Clinton, based on her own record as she insists she be judged, really the person we want as commander in chief for the next four years?
Clinton Announces, ‘It’s Over, Period’!7
By Mark Alexander
In a slow-pitch softball interview with her adoring fan, ABC’s David Muir, Hillary Clinton8 announced this week that there is no need to ask any more questions about her motives for concealing her communication. She declared that because the FBI released some notes from their interview with her, she’s “happy it’s over.”
In my column, “Clinton the ‘Congenital Liar9,’” I covered the most damning evidence from those heavily redacted FBI files about Clinton’s effort to conceal all of her official communications10 while secretary of state. Only in Clinton’s warped universe could the release of this information mean “it’s over, period.”
In excerpts from the ABC interview, most of her responses are classified “L” for “Lie,” so instead of redactions, I have annotated them for clarity.
CLINTON: “What I did has raised questions for people, and I deeply regret that. [She regrets getting caught.] And that’s why I said there’s no excuses. [All she has done for 18 months is make excuses.] I took responsibility a year ago. [No she didn’t.] I take responsibility today. [No she doesn’t.] I made a mistake. I’ve apologized for it. [Not really.] And I’m just happy it’s over, because that’s, you know, the end of what’s been, you know, a very difficult period. [It’s not over.]”
MUIR: “When Americans hear [about your effort to erase servers and destroy smart phones], do you think that feeds into what the FBI director said about you, that you were ‘extremely careless’ with your emails?”
CLINTON: “Well, I hope not, because I take classification very seriously. [Apparently not.] Always have, ever since I was on the Senate Armed Services Committee some years ago. [Apparently not.] And what I want people to understand is really two things. I take responsibility. I have learned that trying to explain what happened made it sound to some people like I was trying to excuse it. [Again, because all she has done for 18 months is make excuses.] There are no excuses. I take responsibility, I made a mistake, I’ve apologized and obviously I wish I could do differently what happened. [Again, now that you got caught.] … I take classification seriously and I think the record shows that I have. [Actually, not.]”
Muir asked a few more easy questions about the FBI file.
CLINTON: “I’m glad that the FBI has released this material. [No she’s not.] Our campaign called for them to release it. [No they did not.] Because we didn’t want selective cherry-picking and leaks coming from Republicans on the Hill. [It’s all a "vast right wing conspiracy.”] We wanted people to be able to see it and at the end of all of their investigation the FBI concluded there was no basis for any further action. [Based on the limited information from the interview — in which Clinton was not under oath.]“
MUIR: "The director also thought you were extremely careless. Do you agree with him?”
CLINTON: “Well, I respectfully disagree…”
Does this interview sound like somebody “taking responsibility” or more like a parole hearing for somebody fishing for a pardon? Maybe she’s practicing…
For the record, here’s Title 18 USC §207111: “Concealment, removal, or mutilation generally — (a) Whoever willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates, obliterates, or destroys, or attempts to do so, or, with intent to do so takes and carries away any record … filed or deposited with … any public office … shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both. (b) Whoever, having the custody of any such record … willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates, obliterates, falsifies, or destroys the same, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both; and SHALL FORFEIT HIS OFFICE AND BE DISQUALIFIED FROM HOLDING ANY OFFICE UNDER THE UNITED STATES.” |
