Republicans Don't Have A Chance

Bill Clinton is offering Mr. Obama some advice on health care reform.

Former President Bill Clinton says those in his party should ignore any grief from Republicans on health care reform, because the GOP is just waiting for Democrats to "mess up."

Clinton told Esquire magazine that lawmakers should put together the best health care measure for President Barack Obama, even if it must be fixed later.

"All we have to worry about is getting things done and doing them as well as we can," Clinton said. "Don't even worry about the Republicans. Let them figure out what they're going to stand for. 'Cause as long as they're sitting around waiting for us to mess up, they don't have a chance."

I wonder if Mr. Clinton has forgotten the 1994 mid-term elections that gave Republicans control of the House.

Skocpol undertook the study just after President Clinton's failed health care reform effort of 1993–94, when Clinton and his fellow Democrats fared poorly in the 1994 elections and conservative Republicans won many seats in Congress. Taking advantage of a timely opportunity, Skocpol decided to examine this very specific case: how the 1993–94 conflicts over health care reform contributed to the larger political turnaround.

Skocpol's work resulted in Boomerang: Health Care Reform and the Turn against Government, published by W. W. Norton & Co. in 1996. Using the failed health care reform effort of 1993–94 as a case study, Skocpol gives an overview and an explanation of what happened — or failed to happen — during those policy debates about the role of the federal government in health care.

And what was the key to Clinton's failure?

Privileged middle-class Americans who already had some kind of health coverage began to fear that Clinton's Health Security plan might make their health care more costly and cumbersome. Skocpol says President Clinton assiduously avoided the tax-and-spend modalities of traditional New Deal liberalism — only to fall victim instead to the political pitfalls of substituting regulations for spending.

And the Obama Plan? Massive regulation AND massive spending. It is no wonder that people like this lady are up in arms.

Cross Posted at Classical Values

Friends Of Saudi Arabia

It looks like ole Billy Boy Clinton is doing real well for himself.

Now that Bill Clinton has released the list of his 205,000 donors who have given close to $500 million to his library and foundation, it is clear why he resisted releasing the list while his wife was running for president.

Compelled by the Obama transition team to make it public as a condition of his wife's appointment as secretary of state, it becomes clear that the list is a virtual encyclopedia of conflicts of interest for the husband of a senator, to say nothing of the husband of an incoming secretary of state.

Every one knows money doesn't buy influence in Washington. That kind of stuff only works in Illinois.

Specifically, Clinton got:

Between $10 million and $25 million from:

-- The government of Saudi Arabia

Between $1 million and $5 million from:

-- Friends of Saudi Arabia

-- The Dubai Foundation

-- Saudi businessman Nasser Al-Rashid

-- Saudi tycoon Sheikh Mohammed H. Al-Amoudi

-- Former Lebanon Deputy Prime Minister Issam Fares

-- The government of Kuwait

-- The government of Qatar

-- The government of Oman

-- The government of Brunei

-- The Zayed Family, rulers of Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates

He also received between $500,000 and $1 million from Saudi businessman Walid Juffali.

That kind of money can buy an awful lot of books. I wonder what Bill will be reading? Maybe he is studying to become a mining engineer.

The list reveals another key center of conflicts of interest in Kazakhstan, the former Soviet Republic, now home to some of the world's greatest mineral deposits and ruled by a corrupt dictator, Nursultan A. Nazarbayev, who according to The New York Times has all but quashed political dissent."

Clinton visited Kazakhstan and met with its president on Sept. 6, 2005, accompanied by Canadian mining financier Frank Giustra. Soon after, Giustra was awarded a highly lucrative contract to mine uranium there. Now, lo and behold, Giustra turns up having given the library and foundation $10 million to $25 million and the Clinton Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative-Canada gave $1 million to $5 million more. And Clinton got $1 million to $5 million from Laksmi Mittal, the fourth wealthiest person on the Forbes billionaire list and a member of the Foreign Investment Council in Kazakhstan.

In addition, Clinton further fished in troubled waters by taking $1 million to $5 million from Victor Pinchuk, the son-in-law of the controversial former president of Ukraine.

You know. I'm beginning to think Obama doesn't care a bit about being President. All he has to do is stick out the job for four or eight years without creating too much havoc. The real money is in being an ex-President. Especially if you can get your wife elected Senator. Dick Durbin can probably be induced to resign in 2014 if Obama loses in 2012. I wonder how much the seat will be worth then? And if Obama lasts until 2016 his old seat will be available. How fitting. Carol Mosely Braun II. Or III depending on who gets the seat next. Is Valerie Jarrett still in the running?

Clinton: The Democrats Did It

Bill Clinton Fires Up The Base

It appears that Bill Clinton has fired up the Democrat base. Not necessarily in a good way.

...the straw that really broke the leftwing camel's back was Clinton's statement today to Chris Cuomo on ABC's Good Morning America defending John McCain's request for a debate delay until after the financial bailout crises is resolved. Here are a couple of things that Bill Clinton said that drove the left absolutely bonkers:

We know he didn't do it because he's afraid because Sen. McCain wanted more debates.

...I presume he did that in good faith since I know he wanted -- I remember he asked for more debates to go all around the country and so I don't think we ought to overly parse that.

This caused a firestorm of anger at both the Daily Kos and the Democratic Underground. So just how angry is the leftwing blogosphere with Bill Clinton? You can get an idea by reading this sampling of comments posted at the Democratic Underground:

SHUT THE HELL UP BILL!!! I can't stand his ass anymore.

the reality is that his presidency was All About Bill, he screwed interns and progressive values with equal abandon, and he ushered in Republican control of all three brances of the government.

What "Jewish Holidays" was he talking about on Larry King,He said he would campaign for Obama after. The Jewish Holidays, WTF message is he trying to send. This is a man that knows exactly what his words are and mean.

Bill Clinton is a black hole that runs on egotism. I am so sick of tired, old act. Don't go away mad, Bill. Just go away.

The Daily Kos is also quite angry with Bill Clinton as you can see:

he has now put his legacy and his wife's future on the line with his comments this week...people will look back and place a lot of blame on him...otherwise Obama wins and Clinton is sent into the dust bowl of history...

now Bill clinton is hiding behind his freindship with McCain as cover for not attacking him. Would he be so charitable if Hillary were the nominee? i think not. The sooner we get both Clintons off the national stage, the better off we all are. I for one intend to rally New Yorkers to defeat Hillary in the next Senate race. Hers ad Bills type have seen their best days, and we should put them out to pasture. We all saw the real side of Bill Clinton during the primaries. He is a two faced little coward who once did some good things for the country, but that was then. What exactly has he done for anyonre lately besides side with Hillary in dragging down the Democratic party? besides, if he is the great all-knowing and powerful campaign person, why didnt Hillary win? Give me a break!!!!

If you are looking for more entertainment of a similar sort you can visit Daily KOS and/or Democratic Underground. I think Bill is a PUMA. You know the Party Unity My Ass brigade.

I think Barry made a big mistake when he got Bill to promise to campaign for him. Heh. Well the long knives are out and it looks like Bill has the longest and sharpest one. What can Obama do? Well nothing. He needs those PUMA votes.

Cross Posted at Classical Values