Former Clinton adviser David Gergen confirms Hillary's opposition to NAFTA on CNN.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQJxtzLQ51Q

"I was there in the White House during the NAFTA fight and I must tell you Hillary Clinton was externally unenthusiastic about NAFTA and I think that's putting it mildly.....she was very unhappy about it and wanted to move on to Universal Health Care....She's NEVER been a backer of NAFTA"


saw this on CNN last night!! I clapped when I heard this! It is so true. The media has been making her look bad while covering up everything Obama does that may seem sneaky. Then he acts all calm when all he does at his speeches is talk bad about Hillary and being tied to NAFTA or how she gets mad over something HE STARTED. It's sad to see how sexist this country is. It's nice to know we are not racist but so sad to see how females still don't get the respect we deserve.







HILLARY 08!

[AX10]

1. K & R!

[K Gardner]

2. Obama is a SNEAKY SEXIST !

[Zueda]

6. No.. I think it says sexiest sneak.

I'm a straight male but I can see how some see him as sexy.

[tabatha]

9. Obama has multiple quotes of her praising it.

The problem is Hillary.
Why write (where it can be retrieved) one thing, while actually thinking another.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

25. but Obama was NOT there in the WH....David Gergen was!

[democrattotheend]

29. So why did she not come out and say she lobbied against it?

I believe her that she was against it and lobbied against it behind the scenes, as she did with the first two versions of welfare reform (and probably the one that Bill eventually signed). But she should come out and say that she had argued against it and thinks Bill made a mistake in signing it. Otherwise, she is trying to have it both ways - campaign on her record in the Clinton Administration but run from one of his big achievements as president.

[karynnj]

31. This is part of the problem with a spous of a former President running

Per this, everything she ever said in public favorable about something that didn't work can be considered not true. If she didn't believe in it - she could have said nothing in public on it.

The public statements count.

[K Gardner]

48. And Gergen specifically says she "kept her mouth shut" to try to preserve her chances on health care

[K Gardner]

27. She had reservations about it UNTIL she thought it was politically popular, then she

changed her tune.. now she's changed it back again. Who can keep up?

[Auntie Bush]

13. Yes he is.

Have you not seen his condescending down his nose look at Hillary?

[K Gardner]

23. Yes ! That was AWFUL ! Have you seen Hillary Shaming and Mocking him? Cuz

I thought that was real classy !

[pnwmom]

70. He does that a lot. WHY? Someone should tell him to

watch his body language. It's off-putting.

[woolldog]

3. Too bad that statement

contradicts what she wrote in her book.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

45. got a link?

[woolldog]

57. yes

see my post #20 on this thread.

[skipos]

4. "I think, on balance, NAFTA has been good for New York and America" - Hillary Clinton 04

I am glad she has decided it is in her own best poltical interest to change her position here, but it doesn't make me like her one iota more.

edited: meant 04 not 08

[LakeSamish706]

17. Well first of all one has to ask the question, was she for it before she was...

against it? She does more flip flopping than any politician in both parties in this race. They talked about Romney and his flip flopping.... Hillary seems to be the magician of them all when it comes to that.

[susankh4]

5. Thanks for the link!

I have always admired David Gergen for his objectivity.

[emilyg]

38. Same here.

[SteppingRazor]

7. I disagree that it's sad to see how sexiest this country is.

I think it's great that we're the sexiest country. B-)



(Sorry, but that was a hilarious typo. :) )

[OHdem10]

Never underestimate how Media Hatred of Clintons affected

Public Opinion.

I cannot believe it is all sexism. of course, the Boys Club at MSNBC
cannot be overlooked.

[Levgreee]

8. "I think, on Balance, NAFTA has been good for New York and America"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJ0swdRvYgw

[AtomicKitten]

10. He actually referred to her being ambivalent to it, not opposed.

[scheming daemons]

11. So she lied in her book? ....or was that her GHOSTWRITER lying.....

....

[rodeodance]

12. Whow --thanks.

[Skwmom]

14. I believe she was opposed to NAFTA being front and center rather than

her health care issue. Thus she wasn't against the agreement, but against it being pushed before health care.

[Avalux]

15. Hillary claims NAFTA as one of Bill's successes in her book "LIving History".

I can't provide a quote but it's on page 291.

It's fairly clear she has done an about-face on NAFTA and I have bigger questions about her man Mark Penn's anti-union activities.

Obama can't make her look bad unless there's something to the story. If Hillary wants to use Bill's presidency as part of her experience, then she needs to be accountable for what she's said in the past related to that.

And Gergen? He's hardly a credible source.

[woolldog]

20. Here you go.

http://fromtheleft.wordpress.com/2008/02/24/hillary-clinton-praised-nafta-for-years/

It's in her book.

[Hutzpa]

33. I thought this are referred to as FLIP FLOP n/t

[karynnj]

34. written AFTER he was out of office - so telling her true position

wouldn't hurt him.

[rodeodance]

16. REC

[DJ13]

18. Bill is calling in favors to refute Hillarys past support

This isnt news.

[maximusveritas]

19. What's wrong with being sexy and racy?

That's what I love about America.

[Bad Thoughts]

21. I'm not sure this is a strong point

Gergen doesn't confirm Clinton as an opponent of NAFTA, merely unimpressed and uninvolved in the debate. Indeed, Gergen suggests that her attitude toward NAFTA was framed by her own eagerness to promote health care reform. If she remained outside that debate, it is questionable that she really learned anything about trade policy.

If Clinton wishes to claim some credit for the 1990s economy, she needs to embrace her husband's trade policies.

[Marie26]

22. That's consistent

with what other members of Clinton Ad. say, and what her own biographers say - Hillary opposed NAFTA while Bill Clinton was President.

[rox63]

24. So she was for it before she was against it?

:shrug:

[stahbrett]

56. No, she was against it before she was for it, and is now against it again

So, 2/3rds of the time she's against it. Got that?

[K Gardner]

26. Actually, I saw that last night too. And what the video cuts off

is that Hillary became a big supporter of NAFTA once she thought it had become politically popular.

[ProSense]

30. LOL!

It's the deception, stupid!

[JimGinPA]

32. Stop Trying To Confuse Them With The Facts nt

[ElsewheresDaughter]

how about some proof please.....link?

[Hutzpa]

44. You seem to live by link, can't you do your

own homework, always looking for link, what makes you think links are always genuine?

[SeaLyons]

53. Do you have proof of what you just said..

link???

[ElsewheresDaughter]

58. no he doesn't....just cicadas

[Hutzpa]

28. Gleeing over a 3 second comment

I watched it and he wasn't even sure of what HE was saying, because
he was asked the question again and he side step the question.

Stop fooling the people all the time.

Get over it, you candidate sucks, we have no idea
what her ranges are anymore, because she has so many
that she might turned up DERANGED.....:rofl:

[endarkenment]

50. I don't think gleeing is actually a word

Anyhow Gergen is a rightwing turdball. Why the Clintons invited him into their inner circle remains one of the mysteries that make me very wary of another Clinton presidency.

[Hutzpa]

52. Yup!!! I know, I made it up,

what happens to originality....

[ElsewheresDaughter]

64. AHAHAHA that's rich coming from a supporter of the man who channels The Gipper loves Repuke voters

[endarkenment]

66. Reuke?

"a supporter of the man who channels Raygun and loves Reuke voters"?

Your derangement over the demise of your candidate is getting to you. How many Republican consultants does Obama have on staff? The Clintons invited Gergen and Morris into their inner circle.

[hughee99]

35. So her "opposition" to NAFTA consisted of

being "externally unenthusiastic", "very unhappy about it" and wanting to move on to something else (Universal Health Care).

Yep, she's a real fighter, that one is. This is what we need in a candidate! Not just someone who SAYS they oppose something, but when given the opportunity to speak up DURING the decision making process, someone who fights against things she opposes by being unenthusiastic, unhappy and wanting to move on to something else. :sarcasm:

[emilyg]

39. There wasn't much she could do

she was not the President.

[hughee99]

43. It seems to me that she's been touting her influence within

her husband's administration for quite some time now. If Gergen said she was a big opponent of it, she argued strongly against it, and in the end, she was overruled, that would have meant something to me. I don't consider wanting to move on to something else the same as being opposed to it. Unlike most of us, she had an opportunity at the time to be a vocal opponent of it (at least internally at the WH, if not in the press) and it sounds like she let it pass, now people are trying to paint what can best be described as ambivalence as opposition. I'm not buying it.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

42. She was the First Lady NOT the President....there was nothing else she could do

[K Gardner]

46. Hillary on NAFTA: "All I Remember is a Bunch of Charts"..

Watch the video and see triangulation extraordinaire..

http://www.errachidia.org/sport/video-NAFTA-1-LRvJ-o30Sk8.html

[HeraldSquare212]

36. She was against it because she didn't want to piss off labor unions, etc. before her health care

proposal came out. That's what he meant by, she wanted to move on to health care.

[emilyg]

37. k/r

[Windy]

40. Apparently Mr. Gergen hasn't read Hillary's book... n/t

[ElsewheresDaughter]

54. Mr. Gergen was present when in the WH during the NAFTA thing... he doesn't need to read anything

[scheming daemons]

65. So....once again I ask.... was Hillary lying in her book?

...

[Tennessee Gal]

73. What exactly did she say in her book?

[Az_lefty]

41. Bullshit! I'll believe it when Bill comes out and takes the blame for NAFTA...

but don't expect that to ever happen.

[killbotfactory]

47. So we shouldn't listen to her all the times she is on record supporting NAFTA

we should listen to her closest advisers who say she was just bullshitting us and really opposed NAFTA.

Awesome!

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

49. Gergen was on MSNBC this morn and said the same thing, essentially

I'm looking forward to tonights debate, maybe both sides will totally nail this one down.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

68. Gergen's truth out seems to have a bunch of Obamanite panties in a wad

[SeaLyons]

51. I saw that too....

I was so happy to see truthful reporting about Hillary for a change.

HILLARY FOR PRESIDENT!!

[oasis]

55. k and r

[KLee]

59. Her own words say otherwise....

2003: Hillary Clinton Expounded on Benefits of NAFTA, Calling it An Important Legislative Goal. "Creating a free trade zone in North America—the largest free trade zone in the world—would expand U.S. exports, create jobs and ensure that our economy was reaping the benefits, not the burdens, of globalization. Although unpopular with labor unions, expanding trade opportunities was an important administration goal. The question was whether the White House could focus its energies on two legislative campaigns at once . I argued that we could and that postponing health care would further weaken its chances."

2003: Clinton Called NAFTA a "Victory" For President Clinton. In her memoir, published in 2003, Clinton wrote, "Senator Dole was genuinely interested in health care reform but wanted to run for President in 1996. He couldn't hand incumbent Bill Clinton any more legislative victories, particularly after Bill's successes on the budget, the Brady bill and NAFTA."

1998: Clinton Praised Corporations for Their Efforts On Behalf of NAFTA. The Buffalo News reported, "As first lady, Hillary Clinton had nothing to do with either trade move. Nor has she repudiated them. In a 1998 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, she praised corporations for mounting "a very effective business effort in the U.S. on behalf of NAFTA."

1996: Clinton Said "I Think Everybody Is In Favor Of Free And Fair Trade. I Think NAFTA Is Proving Its Worth." A questioner pointed out that UNITE opposes the North American Free Trade Agreement, backed by the Clinton administration, on grounds it sends American jobs to Mexico. In March 1996, three years after President Clinton signed NAFTA into law, Hillary Clinton said, "I think everybody is in favor of free and fair trade. I think NAFTA is proving its worth," she said, adding that if American workers can compete fairly, they can match any competition. "That's what a free and fair trade agreement like NAFTA is all about," she said.

1996: Clinton "Vowed That Her Husband Would Continue To Support Economic Growth In South Texas Through Initiatives Such As The North American Free Trade Agreement." AP wrote, "Mrs. Clinton vowed that her husband would continue to support economic growth in South Texas through initiatives such as the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Rio Grande Valley empowerment zone, which allows tax breaks to businesses that relocate to the border."

1996: Hillary Clinton "Touted" President Clinton's Support for NAFTA, Saying it Would Reap Widespread Benefit. On a trip to Brownsville, Texas, Clinton "touted the president's support for the North American Free Trade Agreement, saying it would reap widespread benefits in the region."

[ElsewheresDaughter]

61. 2 out of context passages from her book i...that's what you got?...fail

[bunnies]

62. Nice work.

And welcome to DU. :hi:

[Bullet1987]

60. You can't run on your husbands record...then turn around and pick

and choose what not celebrate and what not to.

[bunnies]

63. So what you're saying is: Hillary is a liar. Noted. nt

[washingdem]

67. Crying sexism because she's losing... pathetic

[jackson_dem]

69. It's hypocritical. The guy in the Clinton WH aside from BC who gave us NAFTA is DU's biggest saint

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=385&topic_id=97926&mesg_id=97926

[ElsewheresDaughter]

71. shameless self kick

[ProSense]

72. I would have helped out, Here:

Hillary Clinton in support of NAFTA (video)