03/11/2016 08:17 pm ET | Updated
11 hours ago
What was Hillary thinking when
she supported Barry Goldwater -- a dyed-in-the-wool Republican
who voted against the Civil Rights Act -- for president in 1964?
What was she thinking when she
voted to authorize the war in Iraq despite having access
to confidential information from the intelligence community that clearly
stated that Iraq did not represent an imminent threat to the United States?
What was she thinking when she
supported NAFTA? A bad trade deal between the US, Mexico,
and Canada that cost American's over 700,000 good manufacturing jobs
because it made it easy, inexpensive, and cost effective for manufacturers and
big businesses to relocate or outsource their workforce.
Or when she called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) "the gold
standard in trade agreements"? The same trade agreement that would force
American workers to compete for jobs with South East Asia workers who earn
$0.56 per hour?
What was she thinking in 2009
when, as Secretary of State, she went to Switzerland to help UBS -- one of the
most powerful banks in the world - and cut a sweetheart deal with the IRS to protect tens of
thousands of US customers with secret bank accounts? Following her help, UBS
paid Bill Clinton $1.5 million in speaking fees.
And what was she thinking when
she retired from public service, walked right through the
revolving door to Wall Street (That would be the same guys she bailed out in
2008) and collected six figure speaking fees in addition to the whopping
donations that lined her super PAC in preparation for her presidential
campaign?
There is no single experience
that can prepare a person to be president of the United States. Instead, we
should look for a candidate with a proven record of good judgement in face of
pressure, adversity, and challenges.
Where was Bernie when Hillary
was busy making bad decisions?
For over 30 years, Senator
Bernie Sanders has fought against the despicable game of pay-to-play politics
that defines Washington where lawmakers sell access and influence to the
highest bidder. The same pay-to-play game that Hillary mastered in order to transform her life of public service into a multi-million
dollar fortune.
Bernie led the fight against NAFTA and the TPP because they hurt
American workers and would kill American jobs by encouraging multi-national
corporations to outsource jobs and production.
Bernie led the opposition to the Iraq War citing insufficient
evidence of weapons of mass destruction, the unintended consequences of
destabilizing the Middle East, and the astronomical cost of war - both in terms
of blood and treasure.
And in 2008, after Wall Street
lost big on series of bad bets, Bernie led the fight against a Wall Street
bailout that used tax payer dollars to float the big banks and even fund golden
parachutes for morally bankrupt CEOs -- some to the tune of 18 million dollars.
But let's rewind the clock
even further. What was Bernie doing in the 1960's? The same time that Hillary was
campaigning for Republican Barry Goldwater? In 1962, Bernie was arrested for
protesting segregation in Chicago public schools. The next year, he joined
Martin Luther King Jr. and millions of American's in the March on Washington.
We might excuse Hillary for a
youthful indiscretion (If ever there was a position she should have walked away
from this was it) but incredibly in 1996, in an interview
with NPR, Hillary reaffirmed that "I am very proud that I was a Goldwater
girl."
We cannot afford to elect a
president with a history bad judgement, inconsistent positions, and who has
used public service as a vehicle for private gain. In other words, we cannot
afford the status-quo.
The only candidate -- and I
emphasize only -- that meets the criteria of honesty, consistency, and good
judgement is Sen. Bernie Sanders. That's why I support Bernie for president.
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