Clinton: "It interrupted the natural order for me to be elected president"

[checks-n-balances]

I caught some of the Clinton-Couric interview tonight on CNBC on the topic of Ken Starr, and I had NEVER heard of this before:

Couric: “He, in response to your book and some of the things – I guess he's heard about it – he said he hasn't read it yet, but will. He said, ‘I understand the depth of his feelings. People tend to not like prosecutors.’”

Clinton: “That's not true. I like Robert Fisk just fine. People don't like prosecutors who prosecute people instead of crimes.”

Couric: “But you thought he was doing the right thing. How could this be false?”

Clinton: “He absolutely did. Because he believed that it violated the natural order for me to be elected president. That's what he believes. After 1968, they thought there would never be a Democratic president. They thought the only reason Jimmy Carter was elected is because of Watergate. And they really believed when I won, it interrupted the natural order of things. But I don't quarrel with that, and I don't think that Starr believes he's a bad man. I think he believes he's a good God-fearing Christian and that he was driving an infidel from the temple. But his goal was to drive me from office whether I committed a crime or not. And the American people need to know that.”

Transcript & video at:
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5277303/

It sounds like the repubs in general believe they are entitled to the presidency - forever! Like the "Divine Right of Kings"! Could this be the reason some of them will stop at nothing - like stealing elections and God knows what else?

Where and why in hell did they get that idea? Anyone heard this before or find it in his book yet?

[Anarcho-Socialist]

1. He also said pretty much the same in the BBC interview n/t

[Taylor Mason Powell]

self-deleted

duplicate post.

[Taylor Mason Powell]

2. I've heard it for years...

and I think it's true. The Repubs really do think they are entitled to the White House. And any Dem that gets in there, it really does feel to them like a disturbance in the "natural order of things."

That's just one of the many reasons why watching Kerry get sworn in is going to be so sweet. :-)

[checks-n-balances]

9. For years? I must've had a sheltered life existence, under a rock

I have detected this kind of attitude since Clinton took office, and maybe even Carter - especially when the Religious Right started gaining ground. But Clinton was saying it goes all the way back to Nixon. Somebody mentioned the neocon ideology, and the entitlement attitude fits right in with that. But neocons weren't influential that far back. That only explains part of the picture for me. I am fascinated (yet repelled at the same time) by the psychological (maybe sometimes pathological) makeup of the Far Right, which sometimes explains their twisted reasoning and unspoken "logic" that causes so many of them to act more vicious, selfish and vindictive with time.

If they believe that only they should ever be in the White House, then no wonder they have such a basically hard time with equality, democracy, and honest campaigning.

Just another confirmation of how nuts the majority party is.

I'll try to find the BBC interview online.

[Jose Diablo]

12. It goes much further back than Nixon

Who killed the Kennedy's, MLK, Malcomb X? This stopped the populous or progressive movement, COLD.

Who tried to assassinate FDR?

Look at the labor disputes with ford, the coal mine companies in WV and a thousand other places and times.

Look at the civil war. It was about slavery, another word for cheap labor.

Look at the Shay's rebellion in the Northeast right after the revolution.

I imagine you could take the conflict between the 'elites' and common people as far back into history as the written word.

The struggle is timeless. It can never be won or lost totally, because a total win or loss result in instabilities that tear the society apart. After the society is ripped apart, it ratchets back to a previous level of stability and the whole thing starts over.

The best that can be hoped for is a grudging stalemate with the poor having the chance to advance, a large middle class and the 'elites' allowed to keep some of what they earn, so they can continue to be 'elites'.

This last round of struggles was started by the 'elites' getting too greedy. When enough people figure out the score, there will be a battle, and balance will return. Of course, it won't be pretty. It never is.

History is not linear progression, it is a cycle.

[HawkerHurricane]

10. I started saying it in 1994...

when it became obvious that they didn't merely disagree with Clinton, but loathed him... not because of anything he did, but for winning the office they thought they owned/deserved/were entitled to...

[gasperc]

22. they hate democracy

they believe the poor just want handouts and are too lazy to work for a living. Unlike Bush who is on vacation 40% of the time, on our dime

I think they use the word democracy when talking about Iraq just to appease the gullible DEMs who associate the word with our party and maybe Bush ain't all that bad. right

[kaitykaity]

3. They would have hated him no matter what, but

the Perot vote gave them something to start with.
They never accepted his legitimacy, kind of like we
never accepted Bush's legitimacy.

Only the things we hate Bush for are real crimes.
Bush really did steal the election.

[Kat45]

4. I've heard it before, particularly re: the bush family.

Doncha know--they're planning for two terms for shrub, then it will be Jeb's turn, then....

[Must_B_Free]

5. That idea only went away recently.

it used to be that a man knew his place in the world. These people still think like that.

[2Design]

6. wow I have spent the last half hour reading the whole interview

I may actually go buy this book....this looks really good...

[ReadTomPaine]

7. Where did they get the idea? Straussian political theory..

The right to rule and a world divided between those born to lead and those born to serve is a cornerstone principle in the neoconservative interpretation of Straussian political theory. Spend some time online looking it up – there’s a direct line to our current administration and their supporters.

ReadTomPaine

[leftofthedial]

8. they all certainly act like emperors

when they seize power.

[DeepModem Mom]

11. kick

[Nevernose]

13. Clinton said no such thing

Just because one thing is true, does not mean that the inverse is true. It's misleading and innacurate.

He's saying that repukes believe that he violated what their perception of the natural order of things is; nowhere does he suggest that it was "the natural order" of things for him to be elected.

[checks-n-balances]

23. I think you interpreted my title the opposite from what I intended to say

But you're probably right - at least in this article. He didn't use that *exact* wording. I was paraphrasing what he had said in order to fit it on the subject line. I should have said "their" instead of "the", and I may have but then it wouldn't fit. Really, I don't even remember. It was just hard to fit the word "Clinton" with everything else, but I wanted people to know it was a thread about him. I did try to quote him *exactly*, but the whole thing wouldn't fit. Next time that ever happens, I'll make a correction in the next line.

I don't like it when people title their threads vaguely, i.e.,"Read this", "What do you think of this quote?", etc.

As you can see from the other responses, they didn't interpret it that way either. Did you even read what they said? In no way was I trying to be "misleading and inaccurate", and if you read my whole post you would probably see that even though the title was slightly paraphrased, I got the gist of it right. So perhaps before you have another knee-jerk reaction to something without having read the context clues, you could at least refrain from mischaracterizing the writer's intentions.

[grasswire]

14. do a web search...

...for Smedley Butler and FDR.

You'll see just how far back this all started.

The same cabal nearly took out FDR in a coup. U.S. Marine General Smedley Butler was tapped to enact a military coup. But he foiled it. He ratted them out.

The story has been suppressed. Maybe someone needs to make a movie of it.

[DaveSZ]

15. Here:

http://mirrors.korpios.org/resurgent/Coup.htm


THE BUSINESS PLOT TO OVERTHROW ROOSEVELT

In the summer of 1933, shortly after Roosevelt's "First 100 Days," America's richest businessmen were in a panic. It was clear that Roosevelt intended to conduct a massive redistribution of wealth from the rich to the poor. Roosevelt had to be stopped at all costs.

The answer was a military coup. It was to be secretly financed and organized by leading officers of the Morgan and Du Pont empires. This included some of America's richest and most famous names of the time:

"You know the American people will swallow that. We have got the newspapers. We will start a campaign that the President's health is failing. Everyone can tell that by looking at him, and the dumb American people will fall for it in a second…"

-more

[DaveSZ]

16. Bastards make me sick

They've taken over both parties now though.

[Piperay]

17. The repukes were completely enraged

when Clinton won in 92. My local newspaper (a RW rag) had quotes from local repuke officials saying "how dare Clinton take the Presidency, it's an outrage, it belongs to them"! :mad:

[DaveSZ]

18. .

The truly brilliant thing that the elite has done, is to convince the masses that its candidates look out for their best interests.

Also RW radio propagandists have convinced ordinary Americans that liberals are really the elites and they don't look out for ordinary American's best interests.

This is why they need a puppet president.

The Reagan model worked so well for them that they've decided to try it again with BUsh.

[sangh0]

24. They were enraged when Carter was elected too

but they couldn't be as obvious about it. But when Reagan was elected, the DC pundits went crazy lauding the Reagan's for bringing "dignity" back, which meant they threw lots of DC parties for the elite. Mo Dowd was orgasming in print about how those parties (along with the fine china and crystal, and designer dresses) proved that we had a "real" president now.

[moondust]

19. I have heard him say that

after he was first elected and went to Washington Trent Lott & Co. simply ignored him as if he didn't exist.

They absolutely believe in the Divine Right of Repukes, possibly an extension of Manifest Destiny/Divine Right to whatever they want.

[Solly Mack]

20. When people say "Clinton interrupted their plans" that's what is meant

Clinton was not supposed to be President (to rightwing thinking). That he was threw the rightwing into a frenzy.


And honestly, I've heard this since Clinton was elected the first time.

[DemBones DemBones]

21. Remember how quickly the RWers put

"Don't blame me, I voted for Bush" bumper stickers on their cars? They did it without giving Clinton a chance.

[Gin]

25. The rich lead and the rest serve....sounds like Saudi Arabia and the royal

family's way of doing business.

[Sterling]

26. PNAC, the cons make long term plans that assume power

will be theirs, fill in the blanks as to what that means they are willing to do.

[Sterling]

27. PNAC, the cons make long term plans that assume power

will be theirs, fill in the blanks as to what that means they are willing to do.

[ClassWarrior]

28. I thought that was an excellent exchange.

Go Big Dog!!

[PROGRESSIVE1]

29. I do agree with this! The Rethuglinazis believe that they have....

a "divine right" to the Presidency!

[Jose Diablo]

30. This is how they gain support

They use the religious sentiments for a God led country, to further the political aims of the elite.

It's an old game. The kings in ancient times had deals with the priests. Same thing. New twist.

Joe Sixpack gets out of church on Sunday and is glad his politicians are on God's, and his side. Calling the technique "divine right" is on the nose.

[Jose Diablo]

32. The ultimate "reality show"

Call it Armageddon. We have an anti-christ and a future messiah to bring peace after the anti-christ unites the world government under one religion.

Then the messiah brings peace and ushers in a 1000 years reign under the elites, who of course will represent the messiah on a local level. Anybody against this arrangement will of course be against God, and immediate death would be sentenced and enforced by the 'believers'.

OMG, thats what these guys are up to. They want to bring back a world wide theocracy under a doctrine of last days.

[Dulcinea]

31. No more Dem Presidents after 1968?

Of course not, as far as the far right is concerned!

Who forced civil rights & reproductive choice on them? The neocons & their ilk have spent the last 30+ years trying to roll back or eliminate these things.

[ElementaryPenguin]

33. They got that idea because we on the left let them believe we were wimps!!

AND MOST OF US ARE ANYTHING BUT!

FUCK them! This nation was intended to be a democracy - and that's sometimes a disorderly, messy thing - and these pampered/delusional friggin' fascists will just have to deal with it!

:mad: