Jack Shafer: "There is no way that the new WikiLeaks leaks don't leave Hillary Clinton holding the smoking gun. The time for her departure may come next week or next month, but sooner or later, the weakened and humiliated secretary of state will have to pay."
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gestures as she delivers a statement about WikiLeaks at the State Department in Washington on Monday, 11/29/10. (photo: Yuri Gripas/Reuters)
|
THE NEW STREAMLINED RSN LOGIN PROCESS: Register once, then login and you are ready to comment. All you need is a Username and a Password of your choosing and you are free to comment whenever you like! Welcome to the Reader Supported News community. |
Comments
But would Obama install someone who is a much better representative of citizens who do want a more honest and transparent American government?
You must mean Amy. Jimmy deserves to take it easy, not to take on SecState.
Jimmy Carter is wise and ethical - and people trust him. And not much ego. Almost perfect diplomat - almost too honest for a "modern" diplomat.
Look how much damage to the World Kissinger did - give me almost any World conflict and Henry started it.
I hope everyone saw the Democracy Now interview from Oct. 29. Jeremy Scahill and Rick Rowley, back from Afghanistan, give us a true picture of how we're losing it over there. For the White House and the Military to suggest we're making progress is ludicrous.
Her reputation scorned
Should she resign? That's the line
From our friend David Corn
She did what she was told
That's what politicians do
Why should we be shocked
It's surely nothing new
As for appointment to Supreme court
This should get her in
We all know a prerequisite
Is to lie and then to grin
Hope and change have become strange
Metaphors like broken glass
Aren't we lucky the Republicans
Will take us to our "glorious" past
So glory, glory hallelujah
Amen brother pass the plate
We'll have more lies than dumps have flies
And "Real Folks" can celebrate
A little cyber spam
From a poetic ham
The lines that I will senda
Are especially for Brenda
Hillary is tough as nails
You have to be, where she sails
The GOP will fret and shriek
But she'll survive the Wikileak
On Capitol hill, that marble shrine
Where people's servants act divine
Dynasty's are built to last
First Bill now "Hill" in D.C. glass
No Kennedy's to cajole or push
Two King George's,named Bush
Let's pray it's a sign of dominion falin'
How many kids has Sarah Palin?
A Source is a Source ©
A source is a source, of course of course.
They’ll give you the answer that you’ll endorse.
You say there’s a source? “Of course , of course”,
Said the famous C B S.
Now politics is a funny thing,
Both parties will try to insure their course,
They’ll lie, they’ll sneak, they’ll even cheat,
For that Presidential seat.
All the rich people with money to spend, And Corporations too,
Will try to trick both you and me, To get what they want us to do.
continued.... see below
The election year is rather dear,
For those who want to be in the black,
The winners get rich and the losers don’t,
It’s a political free for all.
After all, a buck’s a buck, Forget about me and you.
The name of the game is Who’s on top, And every one else gets screwed.
So remember folks, when it’s time to vote,
To pull the right lever, no time to choke,
Don’t listen to lies, stay clear of the smoke,
You might as well take a guess.
There’s probably just a few of you folks,
Who don’t see the fun of political jokes,
If you don’t believe this satirical bliss,
Then listen to this..... " I AM NOT A CROOK "
I'm rather fond of the last line that was said on TV by a Republican of yesteryear.
Then there's the meter that brings one back to the long ago "Mister Ed" the talking horse show. Although Nixon usually talked out of the rear end of the horse.
When I first saw this missive by Mr. Corn, two previous incidents (quotes, actually) popped into my memory. Remember these two classic gems?:
"Bomb, bomb, bomb. Bomb, Bomb, Iran"
-J. McCain
"...the missles are on their way."
-R. Reagan
Somehow, I doubt that either of the gentlemen above weren't engaged in similar activities, yet they retained their jobs and diplomatic standing around the world.
In fact, as shocking as these remarks might have seemed at the time, they hardly caused a ripple on the international scene.
This is more a case of the King without his clothes in the larger stage. -Media hay made while it's fresh, than quietly swept aside after everyone has made their outraged pontification.
If anything useful can be gleaned from this incident catching our Uncle Sam with his pants down, it is the true size of the little pricks working in his name.
and any diplomat that did not do that is ineffective. Fingerprints and Wiretaps I do not believe were ordered from Diplomats! Personal
weaknesses are tools used to negoiate. Yeah it is about Wikileaks
and you are proving it by trying to make Clinton the scapegoat. Why are you not writing about excesses of
forgien Governments turned out by wikileaks.
No reason for Hillary to resign...she was only doing her job and
a good one at that !!!!
Stop trying to escalate the situation !!!
If we start calling Hillary Clinton onto the carpet for carrying on the tradition, we've got to line up past politicians for the same "crime." We had a president and vice-president outing one of our own CIA operatives recently. Where was the outcry over that?
But, that's the whole point, sadly the U.S. of today has gone down hill to such a low level and U.S. citizens think it's OK and normal, just as your writings display. Sad, sad, sad indeed.
This issue has happened before wikileaks ever saw the light of day, I remember very clearly, the Swedish guy investigating the supposed WMD in Iraq, who was supposed to report back to the U.N. and his reports were grabbed by the U.S. and censored before the U.N. ever saw them, as well, the same individual protested that his phone was being tapped. So clearly, it's been happening for a long time, BUT, this time, there's documentary evidence available to substantiate the fact, in other words, Buddy, caught red handed, Clinton will not, ever, live this one down.
Dipiomats should NOT be spies.
I cannot agree with the notion that diplomats have just recently turned into to snoops. When I was abroad decades ago, the CIA operatives were called 'embassy people' by Americans and locals alike. This entire article is based on a false premise.
Hillary Clinton is better prepared for this job and more respected abroad than just about anyone I can think of.
To answer the question: No, Hillary should stay where she us for now. No body who works for the UN or for an embassy should think they are not going to be suspected of being a spy. One starts with the assumption that everyone is a spy and deal with them accordingly. That has always been the rule.
where do you live that you know about the "respect".
Hillary (Clinotons)serv e AIPAC/Israel - NOT American people.
Clintons are pushing for bombing Iran - Clintons were pushing for Iraq war - nothing of US interests/benefit
reference:
www.lrb.co.uk/v28/n06/john-mearsheimer/the-israel-lobby
What becomes obvious under the light of this forum is the lack of awareness and information American's have about their own Gov's affaires!!!
I also doubt these spy activities are new in this administration. I would be very surprised if spying between us and other countries hadn't been going on for a long time. That doesn't make it honorable, but since when has honor been a factor in political decisions?
Why?
Just to give this megalomaniacal bastard and self-appointed messiah of the western world another jump in his self evaluations? Maybe there has been less hurt than expected so far, but just ask who is the big (and maybe the only) gainer. Bibi Netanyahu and his US neo-con crew so eager for yet another war--with Iran.
When that happens, maybe all these self-righteous Wikileak fans will lose some of their current glee. On second thought, they will probably just deny that there was any link between the leaks and the new war.
is our technology advanced and evolved much much faster than our biology...and people have not been able to detach from antiquated belief systems like religious dogmas etc...but women have the first possibility to change this...we take each child to our breast first and from that influence we must begin to evolve a new, True human being.
Hilary is just a human being, and with all she has at her advantage , that she abuses power and exploits her authority , is really disgusting, she should be ashamed and I bet she is...somewhere far under her indignation.
Hillary has done more for us than we can begin to enumerate. But any opportunity to diss Hillary and some of our best thinkers jump to the bait.
Hillary is no more "damaged" now than she was on several other occasions -- throughout Bill Clinton's presidency, She bounces back not because she is teflon, but because she is smart, strategic, works for the good as often as possible in horrific political environment. She is one of our boldest and effective Secretaries of State, as Senator she could not have served NY better. Some wish her 2008 bid for president had succeeded. Folks lets not knock one of our best out of the playing field. PLEASE! This is not American exceptionalism, it is rather an exceptional American woman who we would be wise to respect and support. Be critical? sure ! Knock her out of the ball park? NO. Don't be stupid for 15 seconds of media excitement.
Hillary (Clintons) are puppets of AIPAC
Replace Clintons with Carter - the last ethical president
like torture and killing prisoners in "USrael free" Iraq?
Secrets can't exist except between 2 people, sometimes.
Hillary has the potential to be a Statesman if she loosens her grip on her political bent. Secrets pollute, deep rooted ones, always. Remember, Bush had the temerity to let his inane and foolish ideas flow to his ignorant believers. He had to guts to stand by his lies when confronted with truth. His god is with him!
there could be something bad about his client Israel?
The true terrorists are governments hacking Internet - last free media ..
The truthsharer is always the bitch. Hang the messenger, not the evildoer.
Wikileaks first shared the video of the US helicopter gunship shooting unarmed civilians and media, and US ground forces thereafter driving over one or more of the dead bodies and laughing about it. A child was among those shot, and the US voice even shared a snide remark about that. A mini My Lai, and no one is punished.
Throughout history the truly brave have shared the truth. And repeatedly proven, as one far wiser than I said, that the truth is the true path to actual freedom.
Well, yes, if you look at Churchill's weaknesses only. But as a speaker, a leader, a galvanizer of the public faith when nothing in the reality of WWII fostered anything but despair ... he was brilliant.
On many occasions in my life, I have found one Churchill quote to sum up the situation perfectly. He said:
"After a while, the bombs only bounce the rubble."
Come to think of it, that quote about sums up our national news machine under corporate media. Just bouncing rubble.
The death of the "free press" was the death of all remaining shreds of democracy. Time to start over. This time, without the Original Sin of slavery. Maybe we can get it right this time.
Constitutional Convention, anyone???
That's alright then, for a moment there I thought they were operating outside of the law.
Excepting when it tries to show what we are trying to hide.
--a verse from my latest folksong for YouTube.
Don't know which catergory our current correspondent falls into, but he doesn't sound too knowledgable to me.
And waiting for Clintons to speak on this terrorists actions -
"... That, of course, means Western governments, especially the United States and Israel. These governments use their espionage agencies to gather information about the Iranian nuclear program. There are reports about efforts to damage equipment purchased abroad for the program, to recruit agents from within Iran's nuclear project with access to information, and to lure senior officials associated with the country's nuclear program to defect.
The possibility that Western, or even Israeli, spy agencies are behind the latest assassination is supported by precedent. According to foreign news reports, Israel acted in a similar fashion during the 1960s against German scientists working to develop missiles in Egypt, and during the 1970s against various scientists. These included Egyptians and the Canadian scientist Gerald Bull who worked on Iraq's nuclear and missile projects under Saddam Hussein.
please explain it to me.
I suppose for the same reasons we don't call the president a puppet of the bankers...
Julian Assange is a messanger coming to us with news of what is happening behind closed doors (secrecy).
Most countries leaders make decisions based on secret agreements amongst themselves, not representing the citizens of their country.
Everyone should know what is going on.
I would also not be surprised if some diplomats made deals amongst themselves, without the nations they allegedly represent knowing anything about it!
Now that we "know", though, what are we gonna do about it? Moreover, what's to say that WikiLeaks didn't take out the parts that didn't suit THEIR agenda?
Like I said, WikiLeaks can "forget" to pass on whatever documents or parts thereof that they don't like!
Secretary Clinton has disappointed me by failing to break with Bush-era practices like these--but the same could be said of President Obama. Yet to point that out is to risk a rhetorical burning at the stake. Apparently it's a lot easier to pound on Clinton than to address her boss's disappointing performance on, say, closing Guantanamo or ending the occupation of Iraq or the war in Afghanistan.
It's time we became a honorable nation again One whose word can be trusted.
We had lost of most of our credibility in the GW Bush Admin, now Clinton has put the icing on the cake. The USA is neither honorable or trust worthy at home or abroad.
We "have to assume she did it out of her lust for power"? Come on, you can't be serious.
Hillary "did it" because, as David Corn notes, it was already being done by the prior administration--and this administration, from the top down, has taken its own sweet time distancing itself from Bush-era practices in any way but rhetoric. I say this as someone who voted for Obama hoping for better than this.
did she not run for president alongside obama?
did we not hear weeks ago that disgruntled democrats were pushing clinton to challenge for the presidency?
lust and power has always been a clinton trait, whether from bill or hillary.
I personally lost all hope that he did mean business with his promise of change when he selected all the wrong people for his cabinet, but especially when he selected Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State (SOS). Obama won over Hillary in the Democratic primaries because of Her militant war-like attitude. She sounded more like McCain, and Obama makes her SOS.
Demanding that Obama replace her with someone like Jimmy Carter would be a complete waste of time since her actions and her words are what Obama instructs her to do and say. When she speaks, it's Obama speaking. And, to consider her as a candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court is a joke. Do you want someone who supports Bush's unconstitutiona l Bills like the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act, and the FISA Bill, because that's exactly what she's doing working for the Obama administration? Do you really?
Try to understand that we're all screwed.
Somehow we need to get the big money out of elections. Tax payer funded campaigns and rank voting/instant runoff voting.
Transparency!
would you venture an estimate?
theres a whole big world outside the US, a lot of countries are talking about this, its not just the US, as the worlds most powerful nation, there is a responsibility on the US to lead the way in world political matters. Asking your diplomats to gather iris data, biometric data and other personal information on foreign officials, is not under the law. Its what distinguishes diplomats from being labelled as Spies. Spies operate outside the law, diplomats are supposed to operate within the law... if they are doing what is essentially what is deemed as "spy work" then should they not be charged appropriately, along with the person that issued the command?
Perhaps it's because it's easier to use Hillary as a punching bag than to confront the multiple foreign policy failures of her boss (his steady retreat from his campaign promises on Guantanamo, Iraq and Afghanistan comes to mind right away). Beating up on Clinton draws cheers from the right as well as the left, while criticizing Obama elecits screams of fury from many on the left and--thanks to the President's foot-dragging on breaking away from Bush-era policies--less anger than you'd have expected from the right. But making Clinton a whipping girl for the Obama Administration's foreign policy abuses and mistakes won't solve anything, especially since we've no guarantee a successor wouldn't do just as she did.
Transparency must be part of democracy. How can you have democracy if you don't know what your elected officials are up to?
Ultimately ideologic purity, on either side, means nothing - and when actually governing persons begin to believe it does, governments, and nations, fall.
Our purpose as Leftists SHOULD BE to push our agenda, to the exclusion of the Right's agenda, just as theirs is the reverse of that (and yes, it really is). We do not need puity, we need functionality - and yes, I know many of those who read this won't like it.
where's the leadership? Isn't the US supposed to be the leader in this world political arena we find ourselves in?
Why can't we have purity AND functionality? Is it too much to ask for a government who actually try and work for us on our behalf without resorting to underhanded tactics under the notion of "its ok, everyone's doing it"
I guess it is.
RSS feed for comments to this post.