Bill Clinton Gets Into 30-Minute Debate With A 24-Year-Old Bernie Fan

[LiberalArkie]

SANTA FE, N.M. — Five different times, aides tried to drag him away from the booth where Josh Brody, a 24-year-old supporter of Bernie Sanders, was holding forth about all that had gone wrong in the 1990s: welfare, NAFTA, Wall Street.

“Other people are waiting,” one staffer said, stepping forward.

“I think we’re gonna agree to disagree here, guys,” he tried again.

“All right, Mr. President. These folks are waiting,” a second aide said.

Snip

https://www.buzzfeed.com/rubycramer/bill-clinton-ends-up-in-30-minute-debate-vs-a-24-year-old-be?utm_term=.kuYK2aVPlR#.nidm69kV4l

[Raster]

1. Did Bill whip out his bullhorn?

[Ash_F]

2. Funny how his handlers tried to drag him away

Let them debate!

[tularetom]

7. Hustled him out of there before he unintentionally blurted out the truth

A loose cannon rolling around the deck of the campaign.

[Betty Karlson]

45. That was my impression too. eom

[Barack_America]

3. He really can't handle criticism.

One of his more narcissistic qualities.

[jwirr]

12. And considering that we are dealing NOW with a lot of his

bills that did so much damage he must be having a real problem. And Hillary is going to have to talk to us about those "mistakes" if she wants us to vote for her. Welfare reform without one exemption for people who really needed the help; tough crime laws that caused more trouble than they fixed; repeal of Glass-Steagal; the communications act; commodity futures act.

Not to mention all the goodies that Trump wants us to think about.

[anigbrowl]

23. So he stuck around for 30 minutes of it

You'd have a point if he declined to engage with the guy, but he gave him half an hour of his valuable time.

[LoverOfLiberty]

25. Sorry

Doesn't' fit their narrative.

[TwilightZone]

28. So, he stood around talking to a random Jill Stein fan for half an hour?

Does your knee hurt when it jerks like that?

[larkrake]

31. I think it more dementia creeping in

He use to take criticism, now he gets so defensive

[pinebox]

43. ewwwww

Honestly I hope not because that isn't a pretty thing and I wish that on nobody

[BootinUp]

4. Why not add more of the article?

[wyldwolf]

6. because the kid came across as a rank amateur

Deer in the headlights - spouting left wing revisionism he learned for DailyKOS and such, never expecting someone to actually refute the points.

[Yurovsky]

33. Uh, Kos is supporting Hillary isn't he?

Just struck me as an odd criticism...

[wyldwolf]

49. Uh, you know Dailykos is a community, right?

[AntiBank]

47. deer in the headlights my ass, he went toe to toe for 30 straight minutes with one of the most

powerful, charismatic, polarising political leaders in the last 50 years. I would love to see you try to replicate with a similar person who you are somewhat ideologically opposed to. Camille Paglia would crush you.

[fun n serious]

5. I love Bill Clinton

Thank you Mr. President!

[BootinUp]

8. He really is on our side. nt

[fun n serious]

9. Yes, he is.

[Fawke Em]

11. You must be rich.

He's not on my side at all.

[AntiBank]

46. I guess NAFTA and deregulation of banks and Wall Street was a winner in your house

[Beausoir]

27. Me too. Love the Big Dog.

[NCTraveler]

10. That would be really cool.

But the protracted back-and-forth was also a testament to Clinton's view — one he repeats often on the trail — that politicians and their opponents don't spend enough time listening to one another anymore. This spring, after an encounter with activists from the Black Lives Matter movement, Clinton vowed to try to close that gap. “I realized finally I was talking past [the protester] the way she was talking past me,” he said. “We gotta stop that in this country. We gotta listen to each other.”

[babylonsister]

13. That right there is part of the problem, so

maybe Bill was listening. But sadly, most pols don't give a damn what their constituents have to say, it's all about the benjamins.

[Arkansas Granny]

14. Something I always liked about Clinton was his ability

to break an issue or policy into segments and explain each point in a way that you could understand it.

[Surya Gayatri]

18. Nobody does it better. He would've been a great teacher, if he hadn't become a pol.

He's a natural pedagogue and can lead people to understanding.

[2banon]

15. Reminds me of Bill Clinton's radio interview with Amy Goodman during Gore's run for Prez

That conversation was EPIC.

I don't have the link at my fingertips at the moment, but if anyone is interested it's very definitely worth your time.

I think google Amy Goodman speaks with Bill Clinton during 2000 campaign. something like that.

My memory is a bit fuzzy on details, lots regarding East Timor. Bill was his jolly self for about a minute and then Amy actually asks him hard questions to which he got furious. But he didn't hang up, I'll give him that. He stayed with it for a considerable length of time.

He was actually campaigning for Gore and furious that the conversation was dealing with serious policy matters like East Timor. He wasn't used to having a serious reporter asking serious questions about policy involving things like U.S. backed despots responsible for massacres on his watch and with his support.

[SheilaT]

32. I recall hearing that conversation

between Bill and Amy. You're right, it was epic. And while I don't recall the substance of it, but I clearly recall his tone of voice, his fury at being asked the hard questions.

Very rarely do politicians get asked the hard questions. Or if so asked, they go off on some tangent of their own choosing, rather than actually answering the question. And more rarely does the interviewer repeat the question, try to hold them accountable. Amy Goodman does that. She's a national treasure.

[2banon]

41. found the link

actual recording begins at :51 seconds into the broadcast.

Note: I did misremember the topics, it wasn't about East Timor, that must have been a different interview with a different pol.

enjoy!

[2banon]

42. Here's that link Sheila

actual recording begins at :51 seconds into the broadcast.

Note: I did misremember the topics, it wasn't about East Timor, that must have been a different interview with a different pol.

Enjoy!

[LoverOfLiberty]

36. I don't have the link at my fingertips

of course you don't

[2banon]

40. oh ffs if you're actually interested here it is

actual recording begins at :51 seconds into the broadcast.

Note: I did misremember the topics, it wasn't about East Timor, that must have been a different interview with a different pol.

[tabasco]

39. He should have known what to expect from Amy!

She is one of the few real journalists left in the USA.

[Doctor_J]

16. Arguing with Bill Clinton would be a loser over the long term.

He's pretty smart and seems to have an encyclopedia between his ears. Sorry he joined the bfee.

[NWCorona]

17. I actually like this story!

[Exilednight]

19. Bill lost right here:

The Sanders voter told Clinton that his administration had drawn down investments in “basically" every agency, naming the Department of Education in particular.

"I doubled education," Clinton replied.

“If you go from the beginning to the end of your term, each of these departments have shrunk,” Brody said.

"That’s just wrong. I doubled education," Clinton said. (Reached by email later on Wednesday, a spokesman said Clinton had been referring to federal spending and dollars allocated to college aid.)

Brody was right. Bill partially gutted primary education, but always has a lawyers answer by way of technicality.

The 2007 immigration bill, he said. "Hillary said yes. Her opponent said no... You always have a choice."

Brody should have responded with, "yes, we always have a choice, my candidate voted against the IWR, Hillary voted for it, and now hundreds of thousands Iraqi civilians are dead, always ng with over ten thousand US soldiers."

[TwilightZone]

26. Department of Education budget, discretionary, 1993-2001

1993: $23,850,756,000
2001: $42,230,821,000

That's way closer to double than your claim of "gutted".

No technicalities needed, just actual data and not just a hunch.



Source: http://www2.ed.gov/about/overview/budget/history/index.html

[Exilednight]

29. remove college spending.

[TwilightZone]

30. Speaking of technicalities and cherry-picking...

"naming the Department of Education in particular.

"I doubled education," Clinton replied."

Clinton didn't say "The Department of Education, except the parts of the budget that Exilednight doesn't think should really apply".

The article also specifically notes that the figure included "federal spending and dollars allocated to college aid" so removing them would be pointless. Your argument makes no sense.

[Exilednight]

48. yes, because sending people to college unprepared is a great way to run the he Dept of Education.

[tritsofme]

20. Gotta give this young man a lot of credit. It takes serious guts to engage in spirited

substantive and public debate with a former president over 30 minutes. What an incredible opportunity that political junkies (myself included) on a site like this would cherish.

The kid's spunk is probably what impressed Bill enough to stick around that long.

[pacalo]

21. I'm impressed by Josh's maturity & poise in handling this situation.

Bill Clinton seems to me a tragic figure who is desperate, but is clueless about how out of touch he really is with those he is trying to sway.

Paul Ryan, who wants to get rid of Medicare, could tell us how the Real Bill thinks ...

[One Black Sheep]

22. I got to give Bill C. credit for this

most former presidents would not engage so deeply and long like this with one of the "peasants". Nice to see a former president engage in a respectful debate with a citizen. Good for Bill Clinton.

[Yurovsky]

34. As much as I dislike about Bill Clinton, you have a point...

He didn't have to stick around and debate this young man. The fact that he did does merit a tip of the hat.

[closeupready]

38. I do have to agree, as well.

The VIP's I've met in my life made an impact on me because I could see that they were actually listening to me, looking at me and assessing my intelligence and character, with a glance. Sounds simple, but consider that even among married people, so many don't listen to their spouses, or children.

[TwilightZone]

24. A Stein supporter. Why did he even bother? They already know everything.

Just ask all three of them.

[danimich1]

35. He really didn't need to stay there

I think it's great that he spent that time talking with someone who opposes him and his presidency. As much as I'm a Bernie supporter, and I don't like everything the Clintons did, I can't imagine how hard the job of president must be. He could have just walked away and not listened. But he stayed. There's a reason why people who have met him personally like him.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

37. It would be exceedingly difficult to keep up with Bill Clinton for 30 minutes.

Whatever I may think of him these days, Bill Clinton is one very, very smart guy. Props to both of them for hashing it out.

[pinebox]

44. Props to both

Honestly, I give both props.

Josh knows his stuff and I give Bill credit for actually taking the time to discuss things with him. Who does that? Nobody.
This is a nice discourse and I wish we saw more of this these days. It allows politicians, and let's face it, most are completely disconnected with America, to get a good vibe and sense of the country.