2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumYes, Character Does Matter...
People here talk about character, honesty, etc. Good things to have, and I think these are things that epitomize Bill and Hillary Clinton. They were born in middle class circumstances, got into elite schools without legacy, and achieved success in their individual careers before Bill became President. Unlike the Bushes, or LBJ (remember Landslide Lyndon?), Clintons didn't rig anything, but used skill and achivement.They persevered against the hatred, lies, and venom of their enemies.
But that aside, we're talking about politicians here. Bernie Sanders, Martin O'Malley, etc. are also politicians. A politician says things for votes. When you have millions of people you need to please enough to get them to vote for you, of course not everything is going to be forthright all the time. That is why the real "character" and "morality" that matters is the ones that the policies and tactics display. Bill and Hillary don't smear their political enemies, as they could've done to Rick Lazio, Bob Dole, or Bush Sr. Those 3 used smears against the Clintons as Republicans and far-left Clinton haters do today.
Ending the deficit by raising taxes on the rich in 1993 took big political risk for the sake of America and the party. That was moral and character worthy. Being for welfare reform in '92 and signing it in '96 got a divisive racially-tinged wedge issue off the table and made the Democratic Party, which is more moral and character worthy than its opposition, once again viable in national elections after 5 out of 6 elections from 1968-1988 being losers. Monica had nothing to do with policy, so who fucking cared. Hillary, like many others in 2002, didn't imagine a President would lie a country to war as Bush did. She believed it was the right thing. Bush was immoral there, not Hillary, Biden, or other Dems who may have genuinely believed Bush. Her SOS foreign policy, such as being for killing Osama, where Biden was against, was moral and honest to get rid of an evil terrorist. Bill's foundation does things for developing nations which demonstrates character and morality.
Policies and effects are what matter here. We're electing Presidents, not preachers. No politician is an honest Abe, not even The Bern. Hillary has the experience, the courage, and character, but most importantly, track record of action, not just words, to be the President of America.
elleng
(131,107 posts)murielm99
(30,763 posts)about the Bern. You should post it in a few other threads, too.
oasis
(49,408 posts)doesn't get close to getting the credit she deserves. On the other hand, plenty of debunked negative crap sticks with her and stains her overall record.
99th_Monkey
(19,326 posts)and because no other candidate would be sounding those alarm bells if he had not gotten
into this race.
PatrickforO
(14,587 posts)We wouldn't be having most of these conversations if Bernie hadn't gotten into the race. That's why I'm supporting Bernie, not Clinton, because she would not have spoken of these root cause issues like wealth inequality, campaign finance reform, single payer health care, free college and strengthening Social Security. She just wouldn't, because I believe she is very liberal on social issues, but to the right of Eisenhower Republicans on non-military discretionary programming, neoconservative in foreign policy, and neoliberal on free trade.
For me, that's not a good mix. Character aside, she just doesn't represent me.
beam me up scottie
(57,349 posts)I'd rather vote for a progressive who always believed in equality.
Now that's character.