Gillibrand Says Bill Clinton Should Have Resigned Over Lewinsky Affair

[Pugster]

Source: New York Times

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, who holds Hillary Clinton’s former seat, said on Thursday that Bill Clinton should have resigned the presidency after his inappropriate relationship with an intern came to light nearly 20 years ago.

Asked directly if she believed Mr. Clinton should have stepped down at the time, Ms. Gillibrand took a long pause and said, “Yes, I think that is the appropriate response.”

But she also appeared to signal that what is currently considered a fireable offense may have been more often overlooked during the Clinton era.

“Things have changed today, and I think under those circumstances there should be a very different reaction,” Ms. Gillibrand said. “And I think in light of this conversation, we should have a very different conversation about President Trump, and a very different conversation about allegations against him.”

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/16/us/politics/gillibrand-bill-clinton-sexual-misconduct.html?_r=1

[Kingofalldems]

1. Clinton is not president anymore.

Not really a good try.

[Maggiemayhem]

62. Tax Bill Tax Bill Tax Bill Tax Bill That is what you need to worry with In the Senate

Quit grandstanding Gillibrand and do what we have elected you to do. This is making me think twice about supporting you.

[AlleganCarpenter]

69. The Senate version of the tax bill

has become another assault on healthcare. The bill passed by the House must be reconciled with whatever the Senate does. The bill, "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act”, targets the ACA and Medicare.
It also curtails Social Security while maintaining taxes on Social Security benefits.
All this to give massive tax cuts to the wealthy donors and corporations. (Is there a difference?)
When we were fighting tRumpCare a few weeks ago, senators were keeping track of the phone calls coming into their offices.
The following senators are reported to be sitting on the fence. Sen. Johnson says he won’t vote for the current version of the tax/healthcare bill. But I wouldn’t trust him to stand by that conviction. Let’s make a lot of noise and call these folks. Who knows? the healthcare you save may be your own.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME): [phone]
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.): [phone]
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz): [phone]
Sen. Murkowski [phone]
Sen. Corker [phone]
Sen. Lankford [phone]
Copy/Paste and Share!!

[George II]

72. And along with this assault on healthcare comes an assault on women.

[orangecrush]

86. This. n/t

[jodymarie aimee]

2. Oh for God's sake

here we go....just what the Rs want ...more division...

[adigal]

83. When Gillibrand first ran for the House in NY20, I was thinking of running also

I was told to get out of the race, cause Gillibrand had powerhouse backers. Clinton and Schumer started her career off with a $1000 a plate fundraiser in NYC.
So her whining now seems a bit disingenuous.

[shawn703]

3. And she goes from one of my favorites for 2020

To the bottom of the list. I can’t believe we have this coming from a Democrat.

[SunSeeker]

5. +1

[Merlot]

6. Yes, she just dropped a few points for me as well.

Honestly, I wouldn't have wanted any president to resign under those circumstances. And the public seemed to feel the same way.

[leftynyc]

58. They did feel the same way

at THAT time. Do you really think in today's atmosphere he would have survived politically?

[CatMor]

7. I feel the same

she was one of my favorites but after her remarks I no longer favor her.

[elleng]

11. Ditto, among my favorites to making such a foolish suggestion.

[CTyankee]

88. I think what she was trying to say is that today it is different from when Clinton

was in office. She stumbled, tho and it came out poorly. I'll bet she wishes she had phrased that more artfully or not get sucked into all this mess she is in now. Or, maybe she wanted to protect herself if she's planning a presidential candidacy in 2020.

I think we all know that times have changed since Clinton's time in office. She shudda left it alone...

[TheDebbieDee]

21. This is just the latest example of a Democrat with a hair-trigger shooting the party in the foot!

Sen Warren was guilty of this last week with her "The primaries were RIGGED!" excited utterance.

Embarrassing! As a progressive I regret that I'm represented by overly-polite, weak-@$$ed Dems.

Why can't Dems learn how to get ALL the facts, then caucus to come up with a strategy on how to react to these situations without appearing as thought they are eating their own?

[onetexan]

51. she was trying to do exactly that

set herself up for 2020

[Blackjackdavey]

75. Ridiculous

A politician being honest drops her down? Really? She is right. He should have. Had he resigned allowing Gore to step in, I very strongly believe that Gore would have won the presidency outright thus avoiding Bush. That Bill didn't step down made things much more difficult for Gore during that campaign.

[Cold War Spook]

85. So you believe he should have stepped down.

Do you have any reason for this that is not political?

[Blackjackdavey]

87. Political no doubt.

"Do you have any reason for this that is not political?"

My reasoning is indeed completely political. I felt at the time that if he had given Gore an opportunity to audition for the job, and the path was clear to do so, Gore would have had an easier time. Completely political. No bones about it. As a matter of principle, I understand why he didn't. I am also capable of seeing both sides. Criticizing Kirsten who seems to have the same capability makes no sense whatsoever. Which is it going to be? Men of power having relationships with vulnerable women (i.e. different status) whether consensual or not is okay or is it not okay? What is the ethical difference between a president fooling around with an intern and a 35 year old DA fooling around with a 16 year old? Note I asked about ethical, not moral.

[Merlot]

4. Eh, not so much.

For me, the circumstances around the repubs ongoing investigations of Bill Clinton made me not want him to resign. I never felt like Monica appeard as a victim, nor did she want that label.

This was a long time ago, not sure how I'd feel if this went on in the current climate. But I never thought he should resign back then.

[elleng]

12. She was not a victim at all,

and after all, he was impeached for the 'big' lie.

[burrowowl]

36. She was of age and it was consential!

I was in France at the time and they were amazed at the idiocy of the charge.

[Sienna86]

59. He was in a position of power.

Gillibrand understands this point.

[SunSeeker]

8. Oy. Kirsten, Bill had a CONSENSUAL affair with Monica.

Should JFK and FDR have resigned too?

[former9thward]

15. Any CEO would have been fired over that affair.

When someone who is in a position of power over an intern about 30 years younger the issue of consent goes out the window. Bill Clinton knew better or should have. We should expect a better standard for Presidents. Maybe you don't. I don't think he should have resigned but I don't think the women who accused him of sexual abuse should have been called liars and "trailer trash".

The media hid affairs that JFK had and FDR. So it was a different world since no one accused them when they were in office.

[SunSeeker]

20. I am not aware of ANY CEO being fired for such an affair.

I worked in two different firms where married top executives had affairs with low level employees. Those execs are still there.

You are trying to paint the Lewinsky Affair as if Bill pursued her, when it was just the opposite. Monica was not Bill's victim. It was consensual. They were both adults.

[Maeve]

73. And then there was Gingrich and HIS intern....

but enough whataboutism

[former9thward]

81. I guess you don't follow business news

Travis Kalanick to Take a Leave of Absence. Here Are 9 CEOs Who Were Fired or Decided to Step Down.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/slideshow/246043#

I don't care who "pursued" who. I would expect a low level manager to be smart enough to say 'no' to workplace sex with an intern, let alone the President of the U.S. But again you clearly have different standards for the Presidency.

[SunSeeker]

82. OFFS, that firing was due to SEXUAL HARASSMENT, not for having a CONSENSUAL AFFAIR.

I did not say Bill showed good judgment. He clearly did not. But it was a CONSENSUAL affair in which Monica pursued him. That is not sexual harassment. Facts matter.

[lunamagica]

23. If people had thought that of FDR and Churchill, I can't imagine the world we'd have now

[TexasBushwhacker]

17. Don't forget George HW Bush!

His secretary Jennifer Fitzgerald did a lot more than type.

[Stonepounder]

39. And what about JFK? Lots of pretty will sourced rumors about women being

smuggled in through tunnels under the White House. And don't forget Marilyn Monroe.

[TexasBushwhacker]

40. I found his affair w/ Judith Exner more disturbibg

considering she was mobster Sam Giancana's mistress.

[Stonepounder]

42. We could really have fun with that little factoid and conspiracy theories.

[elehhhhna]

66. Ya forgot thomas jefferson

[marble falls]

9. Why are digging this crap up again, don't we have enough of the current crap to sort through????

[elleng]

14. The Democrats'

[marble falls]

18. Why are we so freaking divided??? We have a lot of down ballot seats for state wide elections ...

and a slew of House and Senate seats to fill.

Let alone the Orange Baboon is getting pressure taken off him.

[hibbing]

10. What about FDR?

[DURHAM D]

13. From the woman in Hillary's old senate seat...

She just dropped off my list of possible Presidential candidates. Also, I will not donate to her ever again.

[Fiendish Thingy]

16. I agree

We would've had President Gore, who may have won a second term and been at the helm and possibly prevented 9/11.

No Bush, No Trump. If only.

[lunamagica]

26. No, we wouldn't have. Without mentioning how the Supreme Court handed the presidency

Last edited Fri Nov 17, 2017, 02:45 AM - Edit history (1)

to Bush, Gore lost because of poor campaign management by Donna Brazile. Gore's biggest mistake was to distance himself from President Clinton on the campaign trail.

[oasis]

47. +1

[7962]

57. He would've been an incumbent. Much bigger advantage.

As close as the race was, it would have likely been enough of an advantage to win.

[lunamagica]

64. I think Clinton and Gore campaigning together woould have been a landslide win

[karynnj]

84. Obviously not what the campaign's polling and focus groups said

The Gore campaign was greatly impacted -- even to the VP choice of Lieberman, who was partly chosen because he was an early Democrat to speak out against Bill Clinton's behavior. (Now, there was also the idea that being the first jew on a ticket would generate excitement.)

Looking at all of Clinton's times as a surrogate, he was a mixed blessing. He is undeniably charismatic and especially at that earlier date said to swallow out the oxygen in the room. On the other hand, he could be a loose cannon and was known to publicly moan that the nominee was simply not doing thing right - "as he would have". In both 2000 and 2004, this made me question whether he really wanted them to win. However, after seeing him, if anything be worse, on HRC's 2008 and 2016 campaign, I suspect that he simply is undisciplined and unable to really accept a position where he supports the nominee - even if it is at his own reputation's expense.

If you remember the 2000 convention, there were issues with Bill Clinton. To begin with, he opted to schedule a major TV interview the weekend before the convention to discuss how he was putting his life back together after M.L. scandal. This was seriously neither needed or helpful -- I doubt it even helped HRC's Senate run. Then there was Bill Clinton's movie star entry - through a tunnel with sun glasses. The speech was more "here's what I did, then something that highlighted the nominee's contributions - giving Gore all possible credit. ( Obama was more generous with HRC than Clinton to Gore.)
Cite any 1 or 2 month period, out giving rallies, where Bill Clinton did NOT create an issue that did not help a campaign.

If you question whether Clinton could have "transferred" his popularity to Gore, consider that Obama had far more accomplishments and was actually more trusted as honest and trustworthy -- and even though he was out there more than any prior President and he is at least as charismatic as Clinton - with far less baggage ... and he could not pull the election out for HRC. (yes, I know she won the popular vote, but that was not how elections work.)

I suspect that even if a President campaigns flawlessly, in the general election, it is pretty much assumed that he/she will support his/her party's nominee. The only thing they might do is get more people out and excited to vote.

[L. Coyote]

19. If every married man who had sex with another woman resigned, the economy would collapse.

She should have defended Clinton and made sure there was no false equivalency between women accusing Trump of sexual assault and Clinton engaging in a consensual affair.

[SunSeeker]

25. And if every married woman who had sex with another man resigned, the economy would collapse.

It is ridiculous to equate consensual extramarital affairs with sexual assault. It normalizes the horror that is sexual assault and wrongly puts it on the same footing as consensual sex. This is very harmful to sexual assault victims. Very disappointed in Kirsten.

[delisen]

77. It puts us in a victorian strait jacket.

[lunamagica]

22. Well, I don't know whom I'll support in 2020, but I know it won't be her.

[xxqqqzme]

24. Oh, for crying out loud.

He was IMPEACHED by a rethuglican House. Isn't that good enough for her?

[Dawson Leery]

27. She just moved to the bottom of my 2020 list.

[onecaliberal]

28. I guess she is so busy eating her own she cant comment on the pedophile the cons are going

Seat in the senate.

[Lifelong Protester]

29. I don't want to see any of her mailers here

asking for money! She dropped down a few pegs with me.

[weissmam]

30. he had an affiar big diiference from Drump

[George II]

31. She actually didn't say what the NY Times headline says.

[Pugster]

37. They asked her yes or no and she answered yes

Is that accurate?

[George II]

38. Read what she said, and what she said after the so-called "yes".

[JI7]

32. How about Kennedy and FDR ? how about Jefferson ?

[LenaBaby61]

33. Oh Gawd ....

ANOTHER purity Democrat

It's bad enough that Liz Warren went off half-baked with that yes the primaries were rigged claim last week. She didn't think before she spoke.

IF Gillibrand thinks Bill Clinton should have resigned, why doesn't SHE resign since she's obviously still so butt hurt over it? Hell, we have a self-described pussy-grabber installed in the White House. She can resign now and let a Democrat with some common sense have her seat

[Tactical Peek]

34. Fuck that shit.

The people on the bottom of the ladder need you to recalibrate your values, ma'am.

[WyLoochka]

35. Good to know early on

can cross Kirsten off my list to support.

[Drunken Irishman]

41. This is ridiculous. Clinton didn't sexually assault her - he fucked her with her consent.

By that logic, FDR, JFK, LBJ and all their ilk should have resigned too.

[C Moon]

43. With Dumpty in office, the GOP could NOT have chosen a worse topic to base their 2018 hopes on.

[RandySF]

44. .

[RandySF]

45. .

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[Angry Dragon]

46. GHW Bush had a long term affair starting before he was President

[videohead5]

48. Monica flashed

Her thong at Bill...this is ridiculous.

[iluvtennis]

49. I like Gillibrand, but I totally disagree with her. Let's focus on today's problems.

[TomCADem]

50. For gods sakes, Moveon.org

Not only is Hillary not President, but Bill has not been President for over 16 years. Can believe that she is giving Trump a free pass and buying the Right WingKs what about isms.

[get the red out]

52. We can't do one thing about the past

No matter what we think about it, we need to be in the present and look to the future.

[Mike Nelson]

53. I thought she was...

...smart? Me, I would have seen Monica L. coming a mile away... but, really... Is adultery grounds for resignation? Probably only Jimmy Carter would be okay... Also, maybe Nixon didn't have an affair? Clinton, Bush I, Ike, FDR, JFK, LBJ all come to mind as ought to resign under this standard. Nancy admitted she and Reagan were adulterers in her book... Trump is obviously an offender, although I think he's likely impotent by now. What's Kristen Gillibrand's standard?

[n2doc]

54. Well hell, why not drag out Chappaquiddick yet again? And Marylin Monroe?

I mean, if we are going to wallow in RW distractions, why not go for the classics?

Politicians can be soooo stupid.

[Cicada]

55. Lewinsky seduced Bill, not the other way

Lewinsky said before she went to the White House that she was going there with her knee pads. She wanted sex with Clinton and he wanted sex with her. Clinton did not abuse her, did not harass her. If Gillibrand thinks Bill should have resigned because he lied, she has an arguable point. Although I think lying about such a private matter is generally acceptable. But if her argument is that consensual sex with an intern or with someone who works for you is inevitably immoral then I disagree. If we ban romance at work then we are foolishly depriving people of the greatest thing in our world.

[George II]

71. Exactly. Bill Clinton was a weak man when it came to women, but....

....in the Lewinsky affair she is the one who instigated it and pursued it.

[bucolic_frolic]

56. What is this

trading Bill and Al for every Republican groper?

[LisaL]

60. Oh give me a break.

He can't go back and resign, can he?
So it's a moot point.

[Sunlei]

61. Senators right, Trump has to face his multiple assaults, grabs of woman & exploits with Epstein.

[Demsrule86]

63. So Gillibrand should not even consider running in 2020 for president.

There is no reason for her to attack a past Democratic president. She is done politically.

[The Wizard]

65. Standing with Repubics

on this issue is a sure fire loser. And WTF does it have to do with the Republican jihad against the working class? We have to focus on defeating the enemy. And yes they are the enemy, and they're weirdos to boot.

[BeyondGeography]

67. She is basically saying Bill is not worth the trouble anymore

And she’s right.

[paleotn]

68. Oh, good freaking God, folks....

Can we give it a fucking rest?! Clinton's affair was in bad taste and cliche-ish, but consensual. There's no evidence to support the harsher claims against him, or it would have been paraded out by the Rethugs long before now. Franken was joking around and went too far, but there's no pattern that's been exposed and it wasn't about exerting power over someone. Sexual harassment and assault are about power and control, not sex, end of story. Sex is just a side benefit of such behavior. Franken admitted his error and has atoned for it. Moore stooped to the level of pedophilia for fuck's sake and refuses to own up to it. Trump admitted on tape to serial assault. Jesus folks....use your fucking brains! Degrees, dammit, degrees!

If you're looking for the perfect candidate / politician, supposedly the only one that ever existed was 2000 years ago. Beyond that, we're all degrees of fallible. Some on the tails.....most clustered around the mean. So grow the fuck up, will you?!

[hamsterjill]

70. Oh good freaking grief!

Enough already! Bill is not a saint, but what he did was not illegal. Monica wasn’t 14. She was an adult and a consenting partner.

Democrats shoot themselves in the foot over issues like this trying to appear SO politically correct. It’s why the Republicans use this sort of thing.

Wise up!!!

[Bayard]

74. Exactly

I have no problem with sex between consenting adults. I don't think Monica has ever complained, or say she felt pressured. Its none of my business.

But now this is all we'll be hearing for the next month, instead of Russian investigation and the tax plan. If Dem lawmakers jump on this bandwagon, they are fools. I'm expecting a tidal wave of accusers coming out against them now.

[saidsimplesimon]

76. Pugster

No rec.

I am no fan of Clinton political missteps. However, I am sick and tired of rehashing past mistakes without any action plans.

[FreeStateDemocrat]

78. Gillibrand is DOA in Democratic national politics, this was a cheap shot, forgot to include JFK or

maybe FDR. I hope she gets contested by a real Democrat that has some discretion about unnecessarily hanging out the dirty laundry. There are enough pukes out there wanting to drag our party through the mud that do not need her help. Gropper must be very proud of his junior senator.

[Hugin]

79. Did I just wake up and it is still 1997?

-whew-

I had the weirdest dream where Donald Trump was President... and there was a dirty guy who reeked of gin, Barbie and Jar-Jar were in the White House, too.

Weird, huh?

[yurbud]

80. wasn't that consensual? If she wanted to say some other allegations were valid, that's something el