Panama and WhichHillary

Lots of commentary has been devoted to HRC's flurry of flip-flops, one that could easily fill one of Imelda Markos's shoe closets. However, there are other questionable aspects of HRC's behavior unrelated to flip-flops. One aspect is her plan for HRC's policies on Wall Street Reform. On TOP there is an excellent pro-Hillary diary by Ollie Garchie. Unlike many anti-Hillary stories and pro-Hillary diaries "over there", the "tone" of OG's diary is laudable, factual and almost compelling. That diary focuses on one of HRC's economic advisors, who, although being a former Goldman Sachs executive has been pivotal in bring some semblance of justice to reign in the Wall Street fraudsters. I recommend that interested readers research that diary (unless you are too angry to venture back to TOP). So after reading this preamble you might be wondering WTF? I am a Berniecrat and proud of it, so you can take my biases for what they are.

One (of many) major problems saddling Hillary is the untrustworthiness of much of her rhetoric, e.g., flip-flopping like a barracuda freshly delivered to the deck of a fisherman's boat. So caveat emptor: if you are going to be swayed by WhichHillary's recent forays into anti-Wall Street rhetoric, the crucial question is not how good her advisors are, nor how grand her proposed anti-Wall Street remedies are on paper, but will she actually enforce these grand economic reforms should she be elected president?

Wikileaks and the Panama papers:

You remember who strongly supported NAFTA? You remember who not only touted the "wonderful" promise of the TPP, helping to design it. In typical WhichHillary fashion, before she overtly was running for President, Hillary called the TPP "the gold standard" of trade deals. Lo and behold, this conservaDem-erstwhile progressive, retroactively moderate, once again progressive stalwart, champion of the establishment, now says that she doesn't like the TPP--well, no; it's actually that she doesn't like some aspects of the TPP.

The above paragraphs are now leading us to the main point of this essay (finally! you say, exasperatedly). So Hillary, up to now the champion of all trade deals, except for her recent partial back-tracking on TPP, is now being shadowed by another emerging crisis (No not the emails again!). Her chief political advisor John Podesta is both indirectly and directly involved in serving two masters. Read the link. John Podesta One master is of course HRC and the other (shock) is Vladimir Putin.

Talk about a conflict of interest here! At the very highest level of the Clinton Mafia, is chief advisor John and his brother Tony Podesta, with shall we say conflicting loyalties. "You cannot serve two masters", even if a person describes one of the masters as Master-in-Chief.

Now the effects of this glaringly obvious conflict of interest at the heart of WhichHillary's campaign is so far nebulous--because a terabyte+ of data is a heck of a lot of reading to do, unravelling this rabbit trail will be far more time-consuming that, for instance the email controversy (dang! How did I let that slip in?)

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WindDancer13's picture

In case you have not seen it, here is the comparison for what HRC and Sanders said about it:

[video:https://youtu.be/JqLZMKKsmxc]

I am finding it fascinating that the longer Sanders has been in the race just how much more activity there has been in discovering corruption...everywhere.

Btw, not angry about TOP, but I won't go there. I prefer to keep my opinion of human nature balanced.

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We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass

I am finding it fascinating that the longer Sanders has been in the race just how much more activity there has been in discovering corruption...everywhere.

So true. Even if Bernie doesn't manage to pull off a win against HRC (and I still have hope there!) it has been good to see that corruption and cronyism is actually getting some attention from people now. If only it could turn from attention into action.

I'm really thinking this nation needs to set up a FIRM firewall between Public Servants and Private Interests. Something along the lines of upon assuming a sufficiently high office (state house?) you have to divest from all private holdings and can never again accept paid engagements of any sort from any company. It may seem extreme to limit public servants to being public servants for life but the revolving door has got to be locked, filled with cement, and the entire thing bricked over! Also it would have the advantage of making corruption much easier to pick out - there would be no questions about "is this corruption?" if you take money from Boeing and then an arms sale gets greenlit by your office 3 months later sense you'd have no legal/valid reason to have taken the money in the first place!

Not to mean that being a Public Servant shouldn't be financially rewarding in its own right, but they have a salary and iirc quite generous pension plan already. That so many of them seem to see holding office as a way to enrich themselves down the road is sickening.

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WindDancer13's picture

I hear people basically saying that they will just give up if Sanders is not elected. Whether he is elected or not, the battle has just begun. With him as president, it may make the road a bit easier. With him as a Senator or a private citizen, we have someone who knows how to bring the various groups together to form a louder voice to achieve the same policies that he is proposing now. Either way, people need to really start seeing this revolution as real, not just rhetoric.

Yes, the revolving door needs to stop. I think it is possible to simply pass a federal law that states that no government official can become a lobbyist or corporate board member for at least five years before or after leaving office...along with campaign reform, of course. It would help ensure that at least a few more elected officials were in public service to serve the public rather than as a resume builder.

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We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass

Martha Pearce-Smith's picture

"I am finding it fascinating that the longer Sanders has been in the race just how much more activity there has been in discovering corruption...everywhere."

It's just that now more people feel empowered to actually reveal what they know....to expose the truth. Bernie Sanders has given honest people permission to come forward to confirm what has been going on for decades. The 1% is truly starting to feel the Bern....

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WindDancer13's picture

Not particularly fire and brimstone, but I think Dante's Hello would be oh so appropriate.

I think people have been telling what they know long before this, but the majority of people have not been willing or able to listen. Now they have everyone's attention, and the harder the powers try to hide it the more it gets exposed. Which in turn brings out more truth tellers. It is a very nice circle.

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We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass

Alison Wunderland's picture

SOP. Corruption is so ubiquitous that it no longer even warrants a yawn. The entire world leadership structure (with the rare exception) is so blatantly honeycombed with sociopaths that corruption is taken for granted. Lying, cheating, stealing, depravity no longer phase the casual observer. And even when the blinders come off there doesn't appear much that can be done about it because it's like single-handedly battling a Hydra.

This is how civilizations meet their ends.

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Martha Pearce-Smith's picture

"it's like single-handedly battling a Hydra."

None of us is fighting the Hydra alone....Bernie is bringing us together.. it is US...it is WE.... it is the 99%. WE are far stronger than the 1%...

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Alison Wunderland's picture

By "single-handedly" I meant there's one Bernie (and all us little people). And there should be lots of Bernies in all the countries of the world.

Feeling overwhelmed at the moment.

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Martha Pearce-Smith's picture

myself just yesterday. Hang in there, it passes...

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WindDancer13's picture

there are a lot of Bernies among us. I have wondered often what was the tipping point that made Sanders decide to run. With all the negatives of running a huge campaign like this, it had to be something that was so compelling that he couldn't walk away from it thinking that someone else might pick up the gauntlet.

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We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass

WindDancer13's picture

Corruption has escalated during the years when it has become harder and harder to achieve the American Dream. Everyone has been so busy chasing that dream that they have had little to no time to pay attention to what the bigger picture is. Excessive consumerism sold by those corrupt powers also had a hand in it along with isolation. We may be better connected on so many ways nowadays that we have actually lost the personal interactions that help form our world views.

On the other hand, the elite are the ones who are doing the yawning. To quote HRC, "Everyone else is doing it." Those who accept that excuse are the elite, no matter what is in their pocketbook.

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We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass

Alison Wunderland's picture

Bernie Camp today. 1" to 3", all day. Shit. I hate cold weather. Still have 2 cartons of siggies, so I don't really have to leave the comfort and shelter of Chateau Bidet until the end of May.

At least I won't look like a freak for resembling Nanook of the North. Pisses me off that I have to dress for Polar Expeditions when other people are running around in t-shirts.

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WindDancer13's picture

We got about 6-12 inches last night (south-mid MI).

LOL, me too. I think that sometimes I look like the kid brother (except female) in A Christmas Story.

[video:https://youtu.be/HW4IZ0Flh3M?list=RDppOXpyhM2wA]

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We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass

SnappleBC's picture

(thanks to Colbert for that).

Yesterday was shorts weather. Today I need to mow the lawn. Man I love Victoria's weather.

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A lot of wanderers in the U.S. political desert recognize that all the duopoly has to offer is a choice of mirages. Come, let us trudge towards empty expanse of sand #1, littered with the bleached bones of Deaniacs and Hope and Changers.
-- lotlizard

Thumb's picture

Was it just me, or were there signals being sent out that the FBI investigation was wrapping up, maybe as soon as the end of May, and then literally three days after the Panama Papers broke Comey comes out and "clarifies" that the FBI isn't going to rush their investigation and no one should expect a quick resolution?

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"Polls don't tell us how well a candidate is doing; Polls tell us how well the media is doing." ~ Me

Lenzabi's picture

Bernie is just rallying the rest of us to do battle with corruption and the desire to reign it in and halt the damage it does

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So long, and thanks for all the fish