The campaign just got even more heated with questions again raised over the media’s balance in reporting. First, David Brock is back in the news. Brock has been widely attacked for what critics view as sleazy and vicious work on behalf of Hillary Clinton. You may recall Bernie Sanders denounced Clinton for her continued alliance with Brock and use of his controversial PAC organizations. Clinton has refused to denounced Brock or to discourage Democrats from working with or contributing to his PACs. Now, Brock has offered money to anyone who produces damaging video or audio tapes against Trump. In the meantime, Sidney Blumenthal is back in the news. Blumenthal has long been denounced as an “attack dog” for Clinton and something of a rumor spreader. He was so radioactive that the Obama Administration took the rare step to blocking Clinton’s effort to bring Blumenthal into the State Department. Blumenthal earned the nickname “Sid Vicious” for what critics call his lethal targeting of anyone who is a political threat to Clinton. However, Clinton has refused to separate herself from Blumenthal and he continues to be a close confidant. Now, after virtually all of the media from CNN to the New York Times insisted that Trump had lied about Clinton playing the birther card before Trump, reporters have stated that indeed it was not just a couple of Clinton campaign workers (who either resigned or were later fired) but Blumenthal who spread that claim in 2008. Blumenthal denies the story, but the journalist insists that Blumenthal personally pressured him to pursue the story and told him that Obama was born in Kenya. The most recent controversies again raise questions of the Clinton camps use of such people and the media’s reporting.
The man who Sanders called “the scum of the Earth” continues to run the huge PACs pushing for Clinton’s election. Now, the founder of Media Matters and key figure behind the Correct the Record super PAC, has posted a call for tapes on Trump called “TrumpLeaks.” The posting expressly states “TrumpLeaks can provide some compensation to those who have usable, undoctored video or audio that has been legally obtained or is legally accessible.” It is a call that strikes many as cash for trash, a move that NBC News would “cross a new line.”
The controversy rekindles the view of the Clinton camp as maintaining a shadowy army of PAC and attack forces. However, Brock’s long work on behalf of Clinton has received little mainstream attention even after the repeated objections of Bernie Sanders.
In the meantime, the Blumenthal story has reinforced questions over the use of surrogates to spread rumors. The Clinton camp immediately denounced Trump for saying that it was the Clinton camp that first raised the birther issue and that he simply “ended it” by forcing the release of the birth certificate. The Clinton campaign called out Trump as a liar and the media immediately followed suit with anchors assuring viewers that there was no truth to it. The Clinton camp admits that a couple of campaign volunteers did push the story in 2008 but were fired or resigned. Blumenthal however has continued to be one of Clinton’s closest advisors.
Former McClatchy Washington Bureau Chief James Asher insisted on Twitter that it was Blumenthal who raised the issue of President Barack Obama’s birthplace with him in 2008 and pushed him to pursue the birther story. Blumenthal is not just any advisor. He has long been one of her closest advisors and she has for years refused to denounce him or separate herself from him. Indeed, many of the Clinton emails are from Blumenthal giving Clinton continual advise on different matters. He was also repeatedly accused of spreading rumors against opponents during prior campaigns.
CNN Jake Tapper did raise Blumenthal’s involvement with Vice Presidential candidate Tom Kaine on Sunday.
Tapper: “There’s no doubt that it is offensive and it is a lie. But I’m asking you about Sidney Blumenthal, who was banned from joining the Obama administration by the Obama White House precisely because he trafficked in a lot of questionable information about Barack Obama. If it’s true, if there’s evidence that Sidney Blumenthal did push the lie, should Hillary Clinton disassociate herself from Blumenthal, and should she pledge he will not work in her administration?”
Kaine: “I have no reason to believe that’s true, Jake. None. But again, Sidney Blumenthal isn’t running for president.”
In the meantime, Politifact has called Trump a liar though it did not delve into the Blumenthal angle. Instead, it notes that it is clear that Clinton people did spread the rumor but focuses on the narrow question if they were “first” or “started” the birther controversy as opposed to being before Trump’s raising of the issue.
With the battleground states now in what appears a statistical tie, the fear is that this is only going to get worse before (if ever) it gets better.
It’s heartening to see virtually all are coming to see what I have said for a couple of years now. The poutine eating, Clintonista, Isaac the Canadian, does not have an intellectually honest cell in his brain. When he first arrived, the Canadian claimed to hate the duopoly. As we all see, he embraces the duopoly. He can be trusted even less than his candidate.
Autumn, You consistently come up w/ great videos. I’m sure JT is proud of his former student, Ms. Conway.
Karen S.-
But we have Isaac’s ringing endorsement of Hillary, that she is less of a scumbag than Trump.
If he repeats that standard spiel of his another hundred times, all readers of JT’s column will become convinced by Isaac’s powerful logic.
Magical thinking??
Who in their right mind thinks HRC is the lesser of 2 evils?
1) She ignored over 600 requests for additional security from Benghazi, then lied about receiving them, then lied to the families that it was all over a video when the emails show she was telling others it was a terrorist attack, then claimed the families were not telling the truth. The Benghazi Committee discovered that they decided to wait to rescue the Embassy until they could try to take the video off the internet, and rescue teams kept gearing up then changing then gearing up then changing…4 times. Finally, it was people whom we’d help throw out of power who actually rescued the survivors. It was the most negligent disaster imaginable. So she did a very poor job.
2) She set up her own email servers, backed them up to the Cloud, and used something like 13 devices, lied about it, and her aides are taking the 5th. After she was subpoenaed, and Congress directed the records to be saved, they used Bleach Bit to wipe them. FBI transcripts show that she kept saying “I do not recall” dozens of times, including not being able to remember ever being trained on how to handle classified information or signing a document acknowledging she’d been trained and understood the consequences. (She was.) So, again, she did a poor job.
3) She used the FBI to target people who worked in Travel so that she could replace them with her own cronies, lied about it, again was caught via email having perjured herself, but was not prosecuted because she claimed she just forgot.
4) She illegally had background files on her political opponents, with her fingerprints all over them, but was not charged because they could not prove the timeline of when those fingerprints were laid down. Again, points to an entrenched habit of lying and skirting the law without consequences.
5) She attacked the victims of sexual assault and harassment while enabling her husband to continue such vile acts, calling them liars and bimbos when she knew her husband had at least been chronically unfaithful.
6) Her closest advisor Huma was the editor for an Islamic extremist magazine for 12 years, currently run by her family members, in which it claims that women’s rights are against Islam, among other things.
7) She has a clear and consistent record of lying.
8) After being on record and video for saying virtually the same things about immigration and the border that Trump does, she claimed Trump was racist for it. And the media has blithely ignored that Switzerland, France, et al are building walls and manning them with tanks.
What kind of sleaze ball does these kinds of things, and what’s wrong with voters that they keep pretending this is the lesser of any kind of evil? She is a congenital liar who did a poor job, literally killing people with negligence, when she was in power. There are the deaths that come from wars and military action, which must weigh heavily on our leaders. And then there are deaths that come from ignoring security requests. The consistent Clinton Strategy (from Black Hawk Down onward) is to make our military look as least threatening as possible, avoid putting boots on the ground in favor of ineffective measures, leave our guys hanging so they get shot up, and then lie about it. They are inept. Remember when the Clintons denied the Black Hawk Down guys sufficient military equipment because they thought it would make them look too militaryish to the locals? And then a whole bunch of people died? Over and over again, they keep doing this.
Meanwhile, Trump was hiring women at the upper echelons of his businesses at a time when no one else was. The same with minorities. By all accounts, he could care less about someone’s gender, race, ethnicity, or creed. What he cared about is if they could get the job done. And if he was pissed, he was just as crude if you were a man as a woman. I’ve never been enamored of Trump, but this insane media bias and voter instant amnesia have pushed me into constantly defending the man, as I did Bernie.
Way to go, Karen. You really spelled it out in no uncertain terms. Couldn’t have said it better myself.
I think the key takeaway is that Clinton got caught lying again, but the enabler press is working around the clock to continue to mislead the American people into thinking it never happened.
And it’s working. Her voters keep looking to the press to tell them that it’s all OK.
I fondly recall a month ago when all questions about HRC’s frequent coughing and other health issues were dismissed as the typical right wing conspiracy. Then she finally had to admit she had pneumonia, but her doctor claimed it was non contagious. Which is absurd because pneumonia just means that an infection took hold in the lungs. Someone else could get that infection from being in close proximity but it would simply manifest higher in the respiratory tract. That doesn’t mean it’s not contagious. Try walking into a neonatal unit at a hospital and declare you have pneumonia but won’t wear a face mask because “it’s not contagious.” Good luck. So now the media has flipped and instead of saying it’s all a conspiracy, now they say that it’s sexist because a woman is not allowed a sick day. No mention of all the lying about it, or the fact that you cannot believe a single thing that comes out of her camp. All she had to say was that she had a cold she just couldn’t shake which was making her cough. People would be handing her a lozenge and hot tea and making her stay home for a few days rather than wondering what the heck is going on when she coughs for 5 minutes at a time.
And you would think that after all the shenanigans that woman has put up with, that Bill would help her out. But Slick Willy as usual does her more harm than good. His interview was edited to cut out the part where he said she frequently fainted when she got overheated, to rarely. They finally had to air the whole segment and admit they cut out his slip of the tongue.
The Democrats keep hammering home the message that Trump fans hatred, while comments of the “basket of deplorables” and other hateful rhetoric of their own is applauded. We are seeing the rise of the New Fascism, the State Media, and the State Approved List of Opinions, and its takeover of universities.
I don’t care if it was some nerd in his mom’s basement in Rhode Island who was the very first person to wonder if Obama was born in Africa. The truth is that 1) Clinton’s camp preceded Trump to this line of questioning, 2) Trump beat that line of questioning to death long after most let it go, and 3) legal scholars for the most part believe that “native born citizen” means an infant is born a citizen. Being born on American soil is not required to be an American citizen, or else you would never get ambassadors or other officials with wives of child bearing age to ever serve or travel overseas. The issue has not been exhaustively dealt with, of course, but the birther movement would likely have had no bearing on his eligibility to run anyway. Personally, I think he used whatever backstory helped him at the moment – which is why he allegedly presented himself as a foreign national to get AA preferential enrollment to Harvard when he admittedly had grades way too low to consider.
Karen,
“Which is absurd because pneumonia just means that an infection took hold in the lungs.”
Not necessarily. It can mean Usual Interstitial Pneumonia, which is fluid build up and inflammation not due to infection but to dysfunction.
Her doctor said it was non contagious bacterial pneumonia, which is not UIP.
But you are right that inflammation may not always be due to infection. In Hillary’s case, however, it was.
https://realitybloger.wordpress.com/2015/12/03/new-election-same-old-blood/
And then we got my brotha from anotha motha weighing in:
Deplorable!
“Clinton should include herself in her basket of “deplorables.” She’s got “racism” and “sexism” covered through her endorsement of mass Black incarceration and welfare “reform.” Killing hundreds of thousands of Muslims in Syria surely qualifies as Islamophobia, and waging war on the world is the highest expression of xenophobia — fear of foreigners…
http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/09/19/hillary-clintons-basket-of-deplorables/
http://www.blackagendareport.com/clinton_deplorable_baskets
Vote for a good candidate. Look at th people surrounding Trump and Clinton. They are not good. They have done great evil in the world. Stop accepting evil from candidates.
It comes down to the greater of the two scumbags which is Trump or the lesser of two evils which is Clinton. Compare and contrast before simply jumping on Trump’s simplistic finger pointing sideshow. Reflect upon from where Trump has come. He is the problem, regardless of whether he is good at making money. His entire economic being is founded upon making money from the rich, for the rich, using the ‘everyman’. Trump pays illegal immigrant labor sub minimum wages and people applaud this. Trump is a pimp for the 2%. Trump is the oligarch with whom Clinton is accused of sleeping. You have a choice between the devil and someone who does deals from time to time with the devil. One has some hope. The other is pure evil, or in Trump’s case evil and idiotic.
@Isaac,
Yup, pure evil sums up HRC and her peeps quite well. Trump is a “maybe” evil – at least he has not killed thousands of people!
I really enjoyed watching Kellyanne Conway handing Bill Maher’s arse to him this weekend. Maher is owned by HBO so he has to shill for the Hill.
Kellyanne really blew Maher away on this one.
She is so good.
Issac,
I put two links below to back up what I”m saying here, but Clinton is not the lesser evil. Trump is a wanna be. She has participated in murder of civilians, torture, impoverishment of ordinary people and is a war monger. She has already done everything you fear about Trump and you will greeenlight her to do much more.
It is liberals who will cement fascism in the US because you will never see it in one of your own. You’ll just accept it on behalf of everyone else and ask us to say thank you! Well, no thanks!!!!!
No, there is a third choice. Gary Johnson.
But form trumps over substance.
We will not vote for the right candidate, because of inertia and tribal influences.
Get down to principle, basics, and actual fundamental qualities.
Gary Johnson has all of them beat on all these points.
Gary Johnson = TPP nuff said
A lot more to say.
TPP is a mess of good and bad. It is not a treaty but an agreement.
Cato Institute said it is not great, but on the average good.
Don’t pillory Johnson for coming down on the side that is okay instead of bad.
Nope: NO self respecting Libertarian would EVER vote for a candidate in favor of the TPP. I think Johnson is a loser planted/funded by Soros to draw votes off the Donald. So I suspect you are a “correct the record” guy
Trump pays illegal immigrant labor sub minimum wages and people applaud this.
Trump hired a subcontractor 37 years ago who hired illegal immigrants. On that pinhead of fact, you produce that acre of embroidery.
It’s no surprise that Hillary cLIEnton hangs around with other liars. So what’s new?
Where was Blumenthal born?
What is wrong with being born in Kenya?
What is wrong with being born in New York City?
What is wrong with being born in Ferguson?
You’re looking at two men with a long history of unscrupulous behavior, as well as a history of selling their services (once upon a time) to people who did not at that time ordinarily employ scumbags. In Blumenthal’s case, it was The New Republic under Michael Kinsley and then the Washington Post. In Brock’s case, it was The American Spectator. It is doubtful Brock would be a figure of any significance at all bar for George Soros’ patronage. By about 1997, Blumenthal was sufficently tainted by past behavior that no journalistic outlets wanted him. Brock was always a low-rent character. He’d burned the last of his bridges by about 1999.
Correction: Hendrik Hertzberg was the editor of The New Republic when Blumenthal was employed there.
Demoncrats have surpassed Repuglicans on vileness scale. I stand in solidarity with Trumpsters though as a Deplorable. HRC’s contempt for working class people is increasing apparently. However, I remain JillnotHill 2016
Why not stand with principled Honest Johnson?
Gary Johnson carries none of the disgusting baggage that either Trump or Clinton have.
He truly is the good-guy David against these two corrupt and duplicitous Goliaths.
Johnson is pro TPP. He is owned by the corporate globalists. NOT a “good guy” IMO
Why not stand with principled Honest Johnson?
Because he’s a tedious business Republican, just marginally less conventional (and retrograde) than William Weld. The ‘libertarian’ pose is humbug.
What a lame posting. All these Democrat sleazy activities don’t even come close to the crud manufactured by the Trump campaign. There appears to be some parameters with the Democrats, some idea of what is too much, some measure of restraint.
With the Trump gang there is no restraint, no limits to the lies, no frontier of self debasement that will go unexplored, and no shame. There is simply mob mentality focused on blaming the other side for everything, offering simple solutions to simplistic minds, and a good laugh thrown in for good measure.
Turley, take the same equation and go after Trump and the Republicans, at least on a one to one comparative exercise. No contest, hands down, Trump and his gang far eclipse any skullduggery by Clinton and the Democrats.
Well Issac, if you’ll notice, the professor goes after Trump university as well. That’s the problem with things today. Your commentary exposes your thin skin, despite your attempts to show otherwise. Hard objectivity would be appreciated, not, “but… the other guys….”
The Hilbots skin is getting even thinner as Trump is thumping her soundly. And Jill is coming up in the polls.
It’s Obvious that you are a stone cold Simple Minded Clintonite and DemocRat Supporter/loonie….. I see that you want to be totally controlled via the gov. Clinton Regime…. Just wait till All of your Life/Possessions are soon Confiscated… if you Vote…. Wake up America !
Assertions, opinions, typifications.
But no content.
I am sure you have more information to substantiate Trump’s similar behavior.
The point here is, that Clinton does it too.
Clinton made great political waves denouncing Trump’s allegation that she was in fact the originating source of the Birther movement. It turns out she and her closest advisors in fact did do that.
Brock is Hillary’s version of Roger Stone, but likewise she will not denounce him.
All these Democrat sleazy activities don’t even come close to the crud manufactured by the Trump campaign. ….
If your moral scales are perfectly calibrated according to principles of who? whom? they don’t.
I have a few friends from Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Syria & other mid east countries.
Completely assimilated in U.S. But they say the same thing. Hillary has a face that they could punch. And sleep like a baby.
BRAVO……
It’s not just the sleeze it’s the refinement of the sleeze and its professionally camouflaged delivery .
What sort of relationships did those two fealty freaks have with their mothers?
Brock was an adoptee and has been a practicing homosexual since about 1980. It’s a reasonable wager that family relations Chez Brock were suboptimal.
Ahh……..the Clinton way.
Blumenthal is the whole reason we even know about Clinton’s private server and accounts since Guccifer hacked him. Has Blumenthal had to turn over any emails as part of the email or Foundation investigations? I would think he would be an accesory, since he is so closely associated with Clinton. Lawyers, what do you think?
No. Trey Gowdy’s committee subpoena’d some State Department documents and his staff noticed the odd domain name ‘clintonemails’.
Sounds like there are some scumbags out there.
I believe the Bluementhal is the source and I wouldn’t believe a commitment from Hillary relating to Blumenthal. She loves to sleaze and slime her opponents and the media assets her. I’m sick of it.
Hey, Tom Kaine, Hillary is running for president and Blumentahl is a close adviser. Don’t play the Sid is running for president card.
http://canadafreepress.com/article/coming-your-way-from-the-un-obama-king-of-the-world?utm_source=CFP+Mailout&utm_campaign=9411fb9ca6-CFP+Daily+Mailout&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d8f503f036-9411fb9ca6-297716945&mc_cid=9411fb9ca6&mc_eid=f34c700b05