Hillary's great new plan: Obamacare for retirerment savings

We already know that Americans aren't saving enough to retire. Well, one of Hillary's top advisors, and probable Treasury Secretary, has a plan.

While Hillary Clinton has spent the presidential campaign saying as little as possible about her ties to Wall Street, the executive who some observers say could be her Treasury Secretary has been openly promoting a plan to give financial firms control of hundreds of billions of dollars in retirement savings. The executive is Tony James, president of the Blackstone Group.

The investment colossus is most famous in politics for its Republican CEO likening an Obama tax plan to a Nazi invasion. James, though, is a longtime Democrat — and one of Clinton’s top fundraisers. The billionaire sculpted the retirement initiative with a prominent labor economist whose work is supported by another investment mogul who is a big Clinton donor. The proposal has received bipartisan praise from prominent economic thinkers, and James says that Clinton’s top aides are warming to the idea.

It is a plan that proponents say could help millions of Americans — but could also enrich another constituency: the hedge fund and private equity industries that Blackstone dominates and that have donated millions to support Clinton’s presidential bid.

The proposal would require workers and employers to put a percentage of payroll into individual retirement accounts “to be invested well in pooled plans run by professional investment managers,” as James put it. In other words, individual voluntary 401(k)s would be replaced by a single national system, and much of the mandated savings would flow to Wall Street, where companies like Blackstone could earn big fees off the assets. And because of a gap in federal anti-corruption rules, there would be little to prevent the biggest investment contracts from being awarded to the biggest presidential campaign donors.

Hmmm. What does this sound like?
It sounds like George W. Bush’s failed attempt to divert Social Security revenue into private retirement accounts, combined with Obamacare's private mandate.
A sort of Obamacare for the failure of 401k's.
And what do you know? The plan is being pushed after a 7-year bull market which made stocks overvalued.
Wall Street needs more dumb money, and quick.

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sojourns's picture

This is not a program. This is a pogrom.

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"I can't understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I'm frightened of the old ones."
John Cage

terriertribe's picture

We're from the government and we’re here to help. Ourselves. The hit parade just keeps marching, doesn't it?

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Now interviewing signature candidates. Apply within.

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"The justness of individual land right is not justifiable to those to whom the land by right of first claim collectively belonged"

Steven D's picture

Sort of interchangeable terms these days in our not at all real democracy.

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"You can't just leave those who created the problem in charge of the solution."---Tyree Scott

enhydra lutris's picture

but fascism. Mussolini may have used the word "corporates" differently from how we use "corporations", but that only made his definition of fascism a bit more inclusive and democratic thn the merger of corporate and government interests is today.

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

The obvious answer would be to strengthen Social Security which operates on a 1% overhead. Waste such as advertising, bloated upper management compensation, and arcane eligibility rulings don't exist in the SSA. Make Social Security the retirement system instead of a supplement.

Clinton's answer: Add a layer of profit skimming to make the system corporate friendly.

Deplorable.

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"The justness of individual land right is not justifiable to those to whom the land by right of first claim collectively belonged"

lunachickie's picture

I will fight them tooth and nail, any way I can, and I will start the day after Election Day, if that woman "wins".

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is the whole point of the proposal.

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I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

longtalldrink's picture

So they begin by skimming off the amount with some "low-ball" percentage like 1.5%...and after the public begins to get used to the idea of the benevolent corporations "helping" us save for retirement...that figure starts creeping up to 2 percent...then 2.5 and then...you get the idea. You know, cost of living increases for Wall Street while COLA for SSI recipients stagnates. They WANT that money and damn it...they will NOT stop until the get it...no matter how many Presidents they have to run through to get the robbery passed.

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Well done is better than well said-Ben Franklin

Here's Yves commenting on this story over at Naked Capitalism, early this morning...


Posted on October 19, 2016 by Yves Smith

...Readers may recall that Bill Clinton planned to privatize Social Security in the second term of his Presidency. The Monica Lewinsky scandal derailed his plan.

As the Clintons knew, only a Democrat can dismantle Social Security. Hillary looks to be picking up where Bill left off. As David Sirota describes in a must-read story, Hillary is planning to introduce mandatory retirement accounts, a scheme that Hillary has mentioned in high concept form earlier. As details emerge, this “enrich Wall Street at the expense of everyone else” program is even more attractive to pet Democratic party constituencies than the 1.0 version of going after Social Security directly. No one in the Clinton or George W. Bush administration was so audacious as to cut in private equity and hedge funds in the way this variant would.

But Hillary, and her major advisor on the plan who is also on her short list of Treasury Secretary candidates, Blackstone CEO Tony James, are too adept to label these required savings accounts as a stealth replacement for Social Security.The plan, as described in Sirota’s article parallels the way the contributions are made now to Social Security, with both employers and employees required to put aside a percentage of payroll…but not in the form of Social Security taxes, but in individual retirement accounts that in turn are put in “pooled plans run by professional managers”.

If you look at James’ speech, what he is proposing sounds innocuous, a supposed additional 3% of worker savings. But that is a nearly 25% increase over what workers are paying into Social Security now. Moreover, most experts agree that to the extent that Social Security needs fixing (30 forecasts are fraught), some not very onerous tweaks would do the trick. First and foremost would be to eliminate the payroll tax ceiling.

It’s not hard to see the long-term game plan. Social Security will be cut due to purported need to keep the budget balanced while funding bombing runs in the Middle East. It will be turned from a universal social safety net more and more into a welfare program. That in turn makes it easier to make more cuts, since its core supporters will be further and further down the food chain.

Moreover, the canard is the assumption that James makes: “…if these savings are invested correctly and earn a good return for the retiree.” Tell me how this happens in a world of ZIRP, NIRP, low growth, high private debt levels, and equity prices increasingly dependent on unsustainable stock buybacks? …

And, folks wonder why so many Americans have given-up on our current political system?

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"Freedom is something that dies unless it's used." --Hunter S. Thompson

Raggedy Ann's picture

It's really good to see you here. Smile

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"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

LapsedLawyer's picture

all seemed to gravitate here.

*Pun intended Wink

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"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it."
-- John Lennon

Creosote.'s picture

navigate in one night. Does anyone have a way of contacting him?

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Thanks, Raggedy...

I'm really pleased that there's a comfortable place for me "to be" online, these days. That being said, I'm busy as hell in my personal life at the moment. But, it's great to be among online friends. Thanks again for the nice sentiments!

--Bob

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"Freedom is something that dies unless it's used." --Hunter S. Thompson

CambridgePulsar1919's picture

But this is part of $$Hillary's strategic plan for generational warfare. Just as Yves suggested, the 'great success' of this forced investment scheme will be the excuse to cut S.S. benefits for those under (pick an age). It's not coincidence that this destruction of S.S. as an insurance program is planned for after most Boomers reach retirement 'home plate', because $$Hillary, and the scum that think like her know that nobody is touching the Boomer's S.S. checks and getting away with it.
This isn't an attack on the Boomers, it's simply pointing out the evil genius of lowlife scum like $$Hillary who realize that you always have to be working the numbers, and if you depersonalize the S.S. rip-off for Boomers, the chances of success of said rip-off go up dramatically.
I'm sure the lazy Millennials who're laying around their parent's basement looking for free stuff never saw this coming. Because they're just a bunch of personality worshipping Bernie Bros scrounging around for free stuff.

$$Hillary wants our nation to play by reverse life boat rules, throw the damn kids overboard so there's room for the rich old ladies, and their trunks full of diamonds and pearls.
On the upside, there'll be lots of jobs delivering adult diapers and groceries for the grandkids. It's better that way anyhow, 'cuz Grandma's Cadillac is such a gas hog, she's better off only driving it to church on Sunday. She's got a lot of praying to do.

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lunachickie's picture

There's no denying the evil of this "plan". Calling it "genius", however, assumes that it will work.

Over my dead fucking body will it work. They'll have to kill me wherever it is I happen to be sitting. And I am far, far from alone in such sentiment. There are a lot of people born between 1960 and 1964 who are not going to put up with this shit. They try pulling it, and there will be a fight that you have never seen the likes of before. You might want to take that into consideration....

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CambridgePulsar1919's picture

"as well you should" ???
Should what?

I'm glad you're angry. Unfortunately, I think Occupy showed us how the Oligarchy plans on dealing with any uprisings.

'Our' govt. has had plenty of recent experience with dealing with militant uprisings. Sticks and stones may break their bones, but only if they're not in APCs.

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lunachickie's picture

Sorry, I thought that was obvious....?

Unfortunately, I don't give a shit what the Oligarchy thinks they have to deal with any uprisings. Fuck them very much.

I'm glad you're angry.

I'm glad you're glad I'm angry. Are you trying to be encouraging or discouraging? It's so hard to tell sometimes....

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CambridgePulsar1919's picture

Why should I get clobbered for suggesting the perfectly plausible?

Did I somehow give the impression that I support this horrid scheme? I'm just as against it as you are, which was my reason for stating that I'm glad you're angry. We need people to be angry, angry gets shit done.

I dunno, I thought I was pretty clear, but maybe my previous, less succinct commentary has poisoned the well a bit.

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lunachickie's picture

maybe because to call it "genius" isn't plausible? That was my only real objection--cuz I'm with you insofar as "anger" can be quite motivational. And I don't think you're supporting them, I just think you're giving them way too much credit for "winning" when they haven't won yet.

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Unabashed Liberal's picture

was chomping at the bit to strike a GB, was so that he would swoop up most of the Boomer Generation when he got his long sought after cuts. As with any so-called 'reform,' there will be an effective date for the changes/reforms/cuts to begin--that's a given. If corporatist Dems have their way when they strike a GB, the cuts will likely apply to most of the Boomer cohort--except for those who are already receiving their Social Security benefits, which is the oldest tier of Boomers. See below.

Baby boomers are the demographic group born during the post–World War II baby boom, approximately between the years 1946 and 1964.

This includes people who are between 52 and 70 years old in 2016, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

You may recall that the most recent cuts to Social Security, which were enacted late last year (i.e., the demise of the 'file and suspend' option which increased a couple's lifetime Social Security benefits by as much as $50,000), took effect in April 30, 2016--just months after the legislation passed. BTW, this legislation was passed by a majority Dem Party vote.

If FSC is elected, a GB is pretty much a done deal, IMO. Heard two reporters on XM Radio (Mason, and Werner of AP) discussing almost two months ago, that FSC's staff is negotiating with Ryan and House Republicans to pass legislation within the first months of her term. And, any new spending--including an infrastructure bank bill and/or a tax reform bill--will require budget offsets.

Generations need to unite in trying to stop these odious and unnecessary cuts. Unfortunately, I doubt that anything short of massive (peaceful) protests, will stop this train.

Mollie


“I believe in the redemptive powers of a dog’s love. It is in recognition of each dog’s potential to lift the human spirit and therefore– to change society for the better, that I fight to make sure every street dog has its day.”
--Stasha Wong, Secretary, Save Our Street Dogs (SOSD)

The SOSD Fantastic Four

Available For Adoption, Save Our Street Dogs, SOSD

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Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

harrybothered's picture

The Republicans are going to be all for this. Likely to be bipartisan too. I hope this is one of those things we end up holding her feet to the fire on. I also hope that we're enough awake that we don't need Bernie or anyone else to bring us to action. Of course, if that were true, she might not win at all.
So ready for this to be over. That Giant Meteor shows no signs of appearing...

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"The presence of those seeking the truth is infinitely to be preferred to those who think they've found it."
Terry Pratchett, Monstrous Regiment

Lily O Lady's picture

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"The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now do you begin to understand me?" ~Orwell, "1984"

Oldest Son Of A Sailor's picture

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI2oS2hoL0k]

No offense intended to any of the practitioners of the Wiccan Arts...

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"Do you realize the responsibility I carry?
I'm the only person standing between Richard Nixon and the White House."

~John F. Kennedy~
Economic: -9.13, Social: -7.28,
Daenerys's picture

That will catch asbestos on fire!

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This shit is bananas.

CambridgePulsar1919's picture

If there's one thing we've learned from the election season and all the email leaks, it's that $$Hillary and her cult don't give two fucks what the voters think, especially not the poors. They're just props. The Billionaires pull the strings.

We are screwed.

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lunachickie's picture

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"The justness of individual land right is not justifiable to those to whom the land by right of first claim collectively belonged"

lunachickie's picture

no matter how many people try to beat you down verbally, patronize you and your anger, or in general try to tell you to fucking give up. That's flat-out not going to happen.

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keep me down"

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"The justness of individual land right is not justifiable to those to whom the land by right of first claim collectively belonged"

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LapsedLawyer's picture

to help her get any legislating done at all, running the same obstructionism game they've been running for the last 8 years (with the last 4 being the most conspicuous). I've already read where they've made big noise about approving none of HRC's nominees to the Supreme Court, and a while back there was talk out of the House (likely to remain in R hands) about new hearings on the FBI/State Department quid-pro-quo regarding email classification as well as impeachment talk.

So stay tuned.

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"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it."
-- John Lennon

sojourns's picture

The republicans can not stand it when any Democrat succeeds at legislation. No matter how much a bill may be right up their alley. If they didn't think of it first or find a way to steal it they'll push it aside cuz it's from a Democrat.

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"I can't understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I'm frightened of the old ones."
John Cage

Lily O Lady's picture

it through. Rs swore to block all Obama's legislation, but quite a bit has passed in spite of that. Expect more of the same.

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"The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now do you begin to understand me?" ~Orwell, "1984"

Will be interesting if this bullshit turns out to be Hillary with gop allies fighting democrats in Congress. Or maybe some gop crazies will be against it just because Hillary proposes it and stops the bullshit.

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Roy Blakeley's picture

They really do not give up. We need to be continually vigilant, never celebrate prematurely and develop strategies to beat these asses.

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In one Wikileaks speech, Hillary stated she believed in Simpson-Bowles as the proper framework. I thought the Cat Food Commission was done for as good parts of the democratic party base was against it, but Hillary supports it. I think we may be looking at her public/private personas as it relates to protecting social security. To her so called liberal base, and to law makers she will be against Simpson-Bowles, but in private support it and push for its policies recommendations--Schumer will go along, not sure about Pelosi but Pelosi to me at least seems like she sees her job as supporting the Presidents agenda over above anything else.

Yah, with a President Hillary, will be critical to watch Clinton as he makes her move to what I call the Rockefeller right.

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polkageist's picture

They have not given up since Franklin Roosevelt was elected and tried to remedy the overweening power of the wealthy. This single mindedness of the moneyed class is what Ben Franklin was talking about when he said we had a republic if we could keep it. The issue is in doubt.

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-Greed is not a virtue.
-Socialism: the radical idea of sharing.
-Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.
John F. Kennedy, In a speech at the White House, 1962

tax, and provided Medicare for all and a living middle-class income for retirees, my employer could give me:

a 6% raise to cover my share of the FICA
... plus a 4.5% raise to cover my share of the Medicare bump
... plus a 5% raise to cover the increase in my income taxes
... plus pay their increased share of the FICA and the Medicare bump

... and they'd still come out ahead, compared with what they currently spend on my healthcare plan, nevermind what they contribute to my retirement fund.

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The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.

Oldest Son Of A Sailor's picture

We will be mandated by law...
To place a portion of our employment compensation...
In the hands of people who are skilled at making vast sums of money disappear...

Have they gone suicidal?

Oh and stop calling Social Security and Medicare an entitlement...
Or refund the damn money that was taken out of my paycheck for it since I first started working!

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"Do you realize the responsibility I carry?
I'm the only person standing between Richard Nixon and the White House."

~John F. Kennedy~
Economic: -9.13, Social: -7.28,

35 years of interest!

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Oldest Son Of A Sailor's picture

46 years of interest in my case...

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"Do you realize the responsibility I carry?
I'm the only person standing between Richard Nixon and the White House."

~John F. Kennedy~
Economic: -9.13, Social: -7.28,
riverlover's picture

I think that Hillary has underestimated the knowledge base out here.

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Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.

LapsedLawyer's picture

Fargo and everything'll be hunky dory, just you wait!

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"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it."
-- John Lennon

lunachickie's picture

Have they gone suicidal?

They really do think people won't fight back if it takes helping the oligarchs run blood in the streets.

I sincerely advise anyone who would laugh at that, to laugh at your own peril.

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snoopydawg's picture

health insurance making people buy junk insurance which people can barely afford to pay the premiums and then have such high deductibles they still can't afford to see a doctor, now this.
I don't understand how the government can make people put their money in this program.
People should get to decide on their own money management company to invest this money in, not the government.
As people have been saying for decades, raise the f'cking cap on SS and problems solved. But of course the government doesn't want to inconvenience the rich people who won't even have to rely on SS for their retirement.

Progressive lawmakers and advocacy groups have been pushing to fund more robust Social Security benefits by lifting the cap on the amount of income that is subject to the payroll tax. That initiative has been promoted by Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, and most recently President Obama.
Why not try this instead?
Others have trumpeted separate initiatives to expand defined contribution programs. Since 2015, California, Connecticut, Maryland and Oregon have enacted legislation allowing workers who do not already receive retirement benefits to opt into state-run retirement programs. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio — echoing a proposal from the Democratic-aligned Center for American Progress — has called for letting workers with no retirement coverage buy into the Thrift Savings Plan, a low-fee, defined-contribution system for federal employees. It invests only in assets such as stocks, bonds and Treasury bills that do not generate big fees for Wall Street firms.

Hey Barack, you have been in office for over 7 years and just recently you agree that we should lift the cap on SS?
It's nice of you to suggest this just before you enter your lame duck term, you worthless POS.
Imagine if you had spent as much time trying to help people in this country as you have on working on the TPP and the two other trade agreements that are going to see more jobs offshored, give the banks, financial institutions and the corporations more power over our regulatory agencies that have already been captured by the industries that they are supposed to be regulating.
You already screwed us over with the ACA and now your sidekick is going to screw us over on SS.
I'm sorry that I believed the shit you sold me during your first campaign, but I didn't believe you when you tried to sell me the same shit during your second campaign and I don't believe a thing that Hillary says she is going to do except for what she said to the banks.
BTW, in one of her speeches she gave to the banks

I'll be back in a few minutes with what she said to them

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

snoopydawg's picture

Addressing a Goldman Sachs event in 2013, in one of the speeches that WikiLeaks published on Saturday, Mrs. Clinton gave a tough-minded, realpolitik answer to the question of how to handle a problem like Syria. If the best chance of success was to act secretly inside that country, she made clear, she had no problem doing that.

She went on to say — as her audience already knew because of revelations in the news media — that as secretary of state she had advocated secretly arming the Syrian opposition (Al Quada) and moving forcefully to counter the Russians, who at that point were supporting President Bashar al-Assad but had not yet fully entered the conflict.

“My view was you intervene as covertly as is possible for Americans to intervene,” she said in answer to a question from Lloyd C. Blankfein, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, which paid Mrs. Clinton about $225,000 a speech to give what felt like an insider’s view of the making of American foreign policy, months after she left office.
But she quickly acknowledged that “we used to be much better at this than we are now.”

Why is Blankenfein asking her questions about her Syrian policy? Because we know that banks make a ton of money from wars.

“To have a no-fly zone, you have to take out all of the air defense, many of which are located in populated areas,” she said. “So our missiles, even if they are standoff missiles so we’re not putting our pilots at risk — you’re going to kill a lot of Syrians. So all of a sudden this intervention that people talk about so glibly becomes an American and NATO involvement where you take a lot of civilians.”

Her assessment of the risk came before she was formally running for president. But two years later, in a television interview in October 2015, she sounded willing to take that risk. “I personally would be advocating now for a no-fly zone and humanitarian corridors to stop the carnage on the ground and from the air, to try to provide some way to take stock of what’s happening, to try to stem the flow of refugees,” she said.

She doesn't give a flying shit about how many innocent people are killed during her wars of aggression, just like she didn't care about how many women and children would go further into poverty after she helped get the welfare reform bill passed, or how many people who have a felony record can't get food stamps, public housing or other social program help after she helped passing the crime bill.
$17 billion was removed from schools, housing vouchers, food stamps and other social programs.
I recently received a housing voucher, but because congress keeps cutting the program, my voucher was for a place where the rent was $550.
Can you imagine what those places looked like in this rental market?
The only one I found that allowed dogs was 550 square feet and in the middle of gang and drug areas.
I wonder if Hillary's supporters knew about this program and what she and Bill did to poor people during his tenure, would they give a second thought about voting for her?
We already know that they don't have a problem with her warmongering or how many people have been killed because of her Iraq vote and what she did during her time as SOS.
And they believe that the Clinton foundation has saved millions of people's lives in Africa because of the AIDS drugs, which they actually haven't because the drugs have been watered down.
Has anyone heard what else the Clinton foundation has done to help people? If you look at their website, it's not clear whether they are directly helping people. It reads like a technical manual, but it's not specific where the money is going or who its actually helped.
In tonight's EBs there is an article about how many people are fleeing to refugee camps that are already over filled and there isn't enough resources
or money for them.
With the millions that Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other governments have donated to her foundation and since those countries are responsible for the refugee crisis, I think that the Clinton foundation could spend some of the money to help the refugees.
rant over

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

The bankers are desperate, they know full well that once the retirement boom picks up more pace, as people can't put retirement off any further, That in effect will create a large draw down of funds in the stock market, As total invested retirement capital goes from $10's of trillions to $3-5 trillion, This will push equity prices down, or at the very least flatline the market for a good 10-20 year period.

They will push hard on this, as they need something to pass before the Euro banking system creates the next crisis, which will end any chance of such a system passing.

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chuckvw's picture

to hear how they squirm over there to defend this shit. They'll get their Clinton the Second when she smirks and says, "I came, I saw, you're fucked, suckers."

Someone who still goes over there will have to let the rest of us know.

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You should only listen to both sides when one side isn't totally full of shit. -Jim Jefferies

Amanda Matthews's picture

House. It was Hopey-Changey that put the safety net up for cuts during his demand for 'austerity'. (Of course that was after giving the Wall Street thugs a key to the Fed.) But they wouldn't bite.

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I'm tired of this back-slapping "Isn't humanity neat?" bullshit. We're a virus with shoes, okay? That's all we are. - Bill Hicks

Politics is the entertainment branch of industry. - Frank Zappa

Daenerys's picture

Taking money from your paycheck without your consent; talk about stealing from the poor to give to the rich. And I don't mean that in the same way the lolbertarians like to whinge about how taxes are theft. How could it even be legal??

The grocery company I once worked for tried such a thing: They automatically enrolled everyone in a Wells Fargo 401k program, and then made you jump through hoops to opt out of it. I forget what the % was they wanted to take out, but I did the hoops because duh, I couldn't afford to have any more taken out of my checks than what was already coming out in taxes. Fuck this shit!!

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This shit is bananas.

"

i.e. she changes lies like a kaleidoscope.

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I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.