Sirotablog: The Most Insulting Moment of Tonight's Debate (HRC and NAFTA)

[antigop]

http://action.credomobile.com/sirota/2007/11/the_most_insulting_moment_of_t.html

I've been watching the Democratic presidential debate tonight, and by far the most insulting comment that was made came from Hillary Clinton when she laughed and said that she could barely remember the debate over the North American Free Trade Agreement - that it was just a blur of Ross Perot charts.

Really, what an offensive statement to the tens of millions of American and Mexican workers who lost their jobs and saw their wages destroyed thanks to NAFTA - a deal pushed by the Clinton administration. You want to talk about showing how utterly out of touch you are, that's how you do it - you laugh and say you barely remember the debate over the very trade deal that has destroyed the working class.

<edit to add> David, was it a laugh or a cackle?

[ddeclue]

1. She's gonna "evaluate" NAFTA...i.e. do nothing to reverse it.

Edwards and Kucinich want to dump it. She weasel worded with "evaluate".


:puke:

[earthlover]

7. just like she is going to evaluate social security, health care, iraq, iran....

[HughMoran]

2. I thought "Bill" was the Clinton who was President when NAFTA was signed

Am I making a wrong assumption here?

[babylonsister]

3. Then she gave the wrong answer, right? - - >

"she laughed and said that she could barely remember the debate over the North American Free Trade Agreement - that it was just a blur of Ross Perot charts."

[HughMoran]

6. I thought it was funny because I went to a Perot rally at UMass back then

I remember the charts. I also remember the kid who did a heil-hitler salute and was carried out of the auditorium looking like the statue of liberty. Perot was right of course, but I did chuckle when she said that as it reminded me of the general nuttiness that the Perot campaign descended into. :hi:

[Yael]

4. She wants it both ways

She wants to be the "candidate of experience" yet when that "experience" rears its uglier side, she knows nothing about it.

I use "experience" in rather questionable terms, BTW.

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

5. On edit, I've got some research to do

[antigop]

8. Hmmm....The link no longer works...where did it go?

[antigop]

9. Transcript from the NY Times website

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/us/politics/15debate-transcript.html?pagewanted=21&_r=1&adxnnlx=1195222113-N6lmMYWt2WYdxFDmXEptEw

MR. BLITZER: All right.

Senator Clinton, all of us remember the big NAFTA debate when your husband was president of the United States, and a lot of us remember the debate between Al Gore, who was then vice president, and Ross Perot. Ross Perot was fiercely against NAFTA.

Knowing what we know now, was Ross Perot right? (Laughter.)

SEN. CLINTON: All I can remember from that is a bunch of charts. (Laughter.) That sort of is a vague memory.

Look, NAFTA did not do what many had hoped, and so we do need to take a look at it and we do need to figure out how we're going to have trade relations that are smart, that give the American worker and the American consumer rights around the world.

And I want to go back to Campbell's question for a minute because it's really related to this. It is something that every parent should be worried about. It's not only the toys; it's the pet food, it's the medical components and prescription drugs. If we don't impose a third-party, independent investigative arm on our corporations that do business in China as well as the Chinese government, we should not permit any items to be imported into our country until we're sure they're safe. (Applause.) I mean, that to me is rule number one. (Applause.)

MR. BLITZER: All right. So let me rephrase the question. I'll rephrase the question. Was NAFTA a mistake?

REP. KUCINICH: It was passed in the Clinton administration.

MR. BLITZER: Was NAFTA a mistake?

SEN. CLINTON: NAFTA was a mistake to the extent that it did not deliver on what we had hoped it would, and that's why I call for a trade timeout when I am president. I'm going to evaluate every trade agreement. We do need to get back to enforcing the ones we have, which the Bush administration has not done. They have totally abdicated that. But I think we have to get broader than that. We've got to have enforceable labor and environmental standards. We've got the WTO that enforces financial and corporate rights; we need the International Labor Organization and other mechanisms that will be there to enforce labor rights and environmental rights, and that's what I intend to do as president. (Cheers, applause.)

[KoKo]

10. She 'goes all girly' when it suits her not to answer a question fully...

turns her gender to her advantage when it suits her.

[Doctor_J]

11. Seems like most of the masses are aligning against HRC

Do the Sirotas of the party/world REALLY want Kucinich to be the nominee?

[antigop]

12. Where has Sirota ever endorsed Kucinich? n/t