Hillary's Senate Record: She Helped Wealthy Investors
In 2007, while running for president, Clinton made campaign speeches attacking the tax break for hedge-fund and private-equity executives — one of the infamous loopholes that allows rich people to pay way less in taxes than they’re supposed to — but did not sign her name onto legislation that would have ended the tax break and closed the loophole.
Just as she’s doing now, she was “out here every day saying I’m going to shut them down,” but did not actually use her elected-official power to keep her word, and follow through with the simple act of signing her name onto someone else’s bill.
As Politico reports,
When had a chance to support a 2007 bill that aimed to curb a tax break she publicly decried for hedge-fund and private-equity executives, she failed to sign on.
Clinton said one thing in public, but did another behind closed doors. She attacked Wall Street to voters, but helped them as a senator.
In 2007 and 2008, Clinton did not work with the other senators in Congress to pass a housing bill to stop individual financial players from destroying the economy.
As ProPublica reports,
When a broad housing bill finally became law in 2008, Clinton was not among the more than dozen senators credited by party leaders as playing a key role.
She was not a leader in the Senate to stop Wall Street’s reckless behavior.
In fact, she was barely even a follower.
Additionally, as Politico reports—
Clinton also has some history with the shadow-banking world she says is a continuing risk to the financial system.
While in the Senate, she made a little-noticed overture to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who was involved in talks to rescue giant insurer AIG with government funds. She was calling on behalf of wealthy investors who stood to lose millions and had hired two longtime Clinton associates to represent them.
http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/2/4/1479904/-Clinton-Last-Night-Name-Anything-Wall-Street-Has-Influenced-Me-On-OK-I-Will
So not only did she not battle for the American people against Wall Street, or even follow those who were fighting for the citizens, she actually fought on Wall Street’s behalf.
Furthermore, the classic “Cut it out” 2007 speech that Clinton has used as evidence of her “tough on Wall Street” record (and now suddenly stopped referencing) was not quite as strict and severe as she’s tried to make it seem.
As Politico reports—
For the second time in the debates she referenced a speech she gave to executives before the economic meltdown. In October’s debate she had described herself as going to Wall Street and saying, “Cut it out! Quit foreclosing on homes! Quit engaging in these kinds of speculative behaviors.”
But what did that speech actually entail?
Clinton gave a shout-out to her “wonderful donors” in the audience, and asked the bankers to voluntarily suspend foreclosures and freeze interest rates on adjustable subprime mortgages. She praised Wall Street for its role in creating the nation’s wealth, then added that “too many American families are not sharing” in that prosperity.
HRC's Senate Record = Legislative Failure & Futility
There is not one single example of any legislation with her name appended to it.....
When she talks about “sponsoring” and “introducing” and “fighting for” legislation that obviously hasn’t passed, that’s a smokescreen for failure.
By introducing all that legislation that never makes it out of committee, she’s guilty of what she accuses Senator Obama of: confusing “hoping” with doing.
these were her campaign claims:
• “...{she} worked with her colleagues to secure the funds New York needed to recover and rebuild.”
• “...she fought to provide compensation to the families of the victims.”
• “She is an original sponsor of legislation that expanded health benefit to members of the National Guard and Reserves.”
• “Some of Hillary’ proudest achievements have been her work to ensure the safety of prescription drugs for children, with legislation now included in the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act.” (What in God’s name does that mumbo-jumbo mean?)
But the reality is the exact opposite of her campaign claims:
Note that while her website proclaims that
“She is an original sponsor of legislation that expanded health benefit to member of the National Guard and Reserves”, she wasn’t able to rustle up a single cosponsor for legislation that would have extended military retirement credit for National Guard Members called up after 9/11.
So Senator Clinton is right when she claims to be the experienced candidate, although it’s not the experience she would like us to believe. It’s a track record of legislative failure and futility.
89. S.4065 : A bill to direct the Attorney General to conduct a study on the feasibility of collecting crime data relating to the occurrence of school-related crime in elementary schools and secondary schools. Sponsor: Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham (introduced 11/16/2006) Cosponsors (None)
88. S.4029 : A bill to increase the number of well-educated nurses, and for other purposes. Sponsor: Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham (introduced 9/29/2006) Cosponsors (None)
90. S.4103 : A bill to prevent nuclear terrorism, and for other purposes. Sponsor: Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham (introduced 12/7/2006) Cosponsors (None)
77. S.3909 : A bill to amend the foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to provide assistance for developing countries to promote quality basic education and to establish the achievement of universal basic education in all developing countries as an objective of United States foreign assistance policy, and for other purposes. Sponsor: Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham (introduced 9/18/2006) Cosponsors (None)
59. S.2993 : A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose a temporary oil profit fee and to use the proceeds of the fee collected to provide a Strategic Energy Fund and expand certain energy tax incentives, and for other purposes. Sponsor: Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham (introduced 5/23/2006) Cosponsors (None)
26. S.1144 : A bill to provide military retirement credit for certain service by National Guard members performed while in a State duty status immediately after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Sponsor: Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham (introduced 5/26/2005) Cosponsors (None)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/adam-hanft/the-curious-myth-of-hilla_b_87613.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
