2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumWho you gonna believe?
As part of its attempt to secure the votes of Latinos, the Clinton campaign suggests that Sanders lied when he said this:
I voted against that piece of legislation (the 2007 immigration reform bill) because it had guest-worker provisions in it which the Southern Poverty Law Center talked about being semi-slavery. Guest workers are coming in, they're working under terrible conditions, but if they stand up for their rights, they're thrown out of the country. I was not the only progressive to vote against that legislation for that reason.
Their "proof" is a brief press release in 2007 in which Sanders identifies the impact of the guest worker program on the wages of American workers as a basis for opposing the legislation.
The accusation is, of course, a stupid one. Obviously Sanders could have had multiple reasons for opposing the guest worker program. But the smear is especially unconvincing given that one year later we find Sanders making these remarks:
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont: "So it is terribly important that we understand that in the year 2008 slavery – slavery can exist in Immokalee and how workers can be treated as bad as they are."
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont: "How in God's name does slavery occur in the United States in 2008?"
Sanders fought to end the semi-slavery of the Immokalee workers in 2008. (At the time, Clinton was busy attacking Obama for being too pro-gun-control.) Yet she is now questioning whether he was really concerned about semi-slavery in 2007. Not very convincing Hillary.
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99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)the candidate known for lies, smears and distortions.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)"It's the only explanation", said Hillary surrogate David Brock, "He couldn't possibly be telling the truth, in my experience politicians never do, take my word for it, after all I'm paid to lie".
Note to jury: this is tongue in cheek, David Brock didn't really say that.
Dragonfli
(10,622 posts)Well Mr Scotty, that is all well and good but you forgot to address Whether or not Bernie went back in time, how very covenant of you to leave out that bit, I think you are hiding the truth of Bernie's time machine, I mean how else can his speeches and views over the course of decades remain consistent when viewing youtube without such a machine! Stop evading and answer the truth you, you bernibot yo!!! arggle bargl!
(bug slat graphic)
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)He also went back and chained himself to another protester in Chicago - just as the camera crew showed up. And Capehart was right all along, Bernie was really at a commie rally that day! You Bernie purists will believe anything!
Vattel
(9,289 posts)and get Bruce Rappaport to wear his clothes!
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)Thank dog for people like Brock and Capehart, if not for their dedication to truth and justice I might have fallen for Bernie's shtick.
Vattel
(9,289 posts)Replacing "merit" for family ties as a basis citizenship was an awful idea. The guest worker program provision was awful. The border security provisions were awful. It was a big turd. We could have done better in Obama's first two years, but he broke his promise to address immigration reform in his first year.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)Bernie held out for a better bill, he's no purist and he does know where to draw the line.
Voted are rarely easy and the thing about Bernie is that he always explains his votes to his constituents. They might not always agree but he's honest. Vermonters trust him with good reason.
Bangbangdem
(140 posts)Voice for Peace
(13,141 posts)Yup. That was Bernie.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)
Bettie
(16,122 posts)who used it to alter his birth records and put notices in Hawaii papers when he was born.
I want to use the time machine too. When is it OUR turn to use the time machine? 
jhart3333
(332 posts)
Cassiopeia
(2,603 posts)This is a serious problem, especially in the farming community. I'm sure this is probably 10% of the tip of the iceberg and goes much deeper.
http://www.ciw-online.org/slavery/
The CIW’s Anti-Slavery Campaign has uncovered, investigated, and assisted in the prosecution of numerous multi-state, multi-worker farm slavery operations across the Southeastern U.S., helping liberate over 1,200 workers held against their will. The U.S. Department of State called the CIW a “pioneer” in the worker-centered and multi-sectoral approach to slavery prosecution, and hailed the CIW’s work on some of the earliest cases of slavery as the “spark” that ignited today’s national anti-slavery movement. Since those early cases, the CIW has continued shape the national movement against slavery, between playing a key role the passage of the 2000 Trafficking Victims Protection Act, being appointed by the Florida legislature to the Statewide Human Trafficking Task Force, and co-founding the national Freedom Network USA and the Freedom Network Training Institute (FNTI). Through the FNTI, the CIW trains state and federal law enforcement and non-governmental organizations throughout the U.S. on how to identify and assist people held against their will in slavery operations.
snip
Slavery in Agriculture
In one of the most recent case to be brought to court, a federal grand jury indicted six people in Immokalee on January 17th, 2008, for their part in what U.S. Attorney Doug Molloy called “slavery, plain and simple” (Ft. Myers News-Press, “Group accused of keeping, beating, stealing from Immokalee laborers,” 1/18/08). The employers were charged with beating workers who were unwilling to work or who attempted to leave their employ picking tomatoes, holding their workers in debt, and chaining and locking workers inside u-haul-style trucks as punishment (“How about a side order of human rights,” Miami Herald, 12/16/07).
This case became the seventh such farm labor operation to be prosecuted for servitude in Florida — involving well over 1,000 workers and more than a dozen employers — in the past decade. Since then, the federal government initiated two more prosecutions, bringing the total to nine as of 2012. Here below is a list of the nine cases, in chronological order:
More detail at link.
Vattel
(9,289 posts)
cantbeserious
(13,039 posts)HRC is bought and paid for by the Oligarchs, Corporations and Banks.
Camp HRC is engaging in a scorched earth policy to win the nomination at the behest of her benefactors that are apoplectic about change.
Duval
(4,280 posts)Jitter65
(3,089 posts)I am assuming that when you oppose a bill you have a better proposal? If there is one, I think Bernie should put that out there and bring it up when Congress is back in session. That would attract a lot more Hispanic voters.
Vattel
(9,289 posts)Edited to add: It is a far better proposal than even the immigration reform bill he voted for in 2013 (or was it 2014?). Not even close. Not that Congress would pass such a bill. But sadly, Obama had the chance to pass a good bill in 2009 or 2010 and he completely dropped the ball.
AzDar
(14,023 posts)
loyalsister
(13,390 posts)It won't work anymore. Today's politicsl reality is that tube will outsmart half truths and lying surrogates every time. Clinton's campaign seems to be living in the 90s. Have they not been paying attention or are they so arrogant as to believe people will not call them out on it? I can't decide.
