I'm hearing Hillary has a war room to smear and distort other

[itsrobert]

Democrats. If another candidate points out Hillary's weaknesses, than they are supposedly working with the GOP according to the Hillary war room at HillaryIs44.com.

[MonkeyFunk]

1. You seem to hear a lot of things

but if you're surprised that a political candidate has an operation set up to respond to attacks, welcome to politics!

[JackORoses]

55. this is an operation to make attacks

I guess you think the Defense Dept is only operating in defense of this country, too.

Hillary will defend us against Iran, by bombing them.

Do you see the disconnect?

[MonkeyFunk]

57. What operation?

what the OP "heard"?

This is sophomoric attempt at a smear.

[ccpup]

2. and so does everyone else!

did you just hatch out of an egg or something? :shrug:

[Jade Fox]

3. Yes, and "Some people say......"

[ChairmanAgnostic]

37. well? Don't leave us hanging, Jade!

puh - - - lease?

I think there is a big difference between having a response team and deliberately digging up dirt, and the latter is what Hillary is doing and sharing with the media.

[cali]

4. yawn.

looks like YOU have your own little smear campaign going. Pretty funny.

[itsrobert]

5. Well, that didn't take long for the Hillary

defenders to attack. But are they "Defenders"? or "Offenders"?

[kenfrequed]

42. Uhm

I think the word ought to be "De-tackers"
Or maybe just "Bash the lefters"

Either one will do.

[ruggerson]

6. She also has a "WebGoon" squad

that will seek out college age internet posters who write drivel on message boards and pulverize them into submission. If I were you, I'd LOCK your dorm door, dude.

[populistdriven]

36. lol! funny!

I can't wait for this machine to get turnedx10 on the repukes!

[kenfrequed]

45. Dream

It will be a business as usual DLC-safe Kerryesque run. Or Clintonian blur the line, bleed the differences, screw the actual distinctions thing.

You should know all DLC scum save their hardball campaigning for going after their own. Just like Rahm Emmanual.

[populistdriven]

58. this is deeply troubling - especially after watching these new videos

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x3685560

[OKNancy]

7. He's talking about an article

posted earlier here at DU.
From the London Times.. personally any Democratic candidate would be wise to use her techniques. No more wishy-washy responses like Kerry.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article2801000.ece

As Clinton herself has said, “When you are attacked, you have to deck your opponent.”

[Tellurian]

33. Me thinks, "itsrobert" gets decked at least once a week!

[Frances]

8. I think all of the candidates would do better to focus

their attacks on Repubs.

I think that is the best way to get poll numbers up.

[Yael]

13. Its primary season

They HAVE to focus on why they should be the nom and not the others.

[Frances]

32. I used to think that

but Biden has increased his standing by his successful, in my opinion, attacks on Rudy. Plus, he is making points by ctiticizing the Bush adminstration on Pakistan.

I think Biden is making more points than either Edwards or Obama are by criticizing Hillary. Those criticisms make them look small. If Hillary spends much time engaging with either Edwards or Obama, she will lose points.

The world is in too much trouble for the candidate to do anything other than look like he/she knows how to solve Pakistan, Iraq, and the whole Middle East plus solve our economic woes here at home.

[Yael]

39. Different circumstance

He is running for Secretary of State. :P

[Frances]

43. You may be right.

[Adelante]

9. Heh

You are a most amusing poster :D

If they don't have a war room, they're not running.

[Fridays Child]

10. But your OP is not an attempt to smear Hillary.

No, siree!

[Debi]

11. A supporter of Dick Gephardt put up an anti-Dean site (or was it the Gephardt camaign)? in 2004

about Dean's position on Social Security, and the Kerry campaign linked (from his official campaign site) to a site created by a supporter called "Howard's House of Waffles) which prompted Kerry staff to hand out frozen waffles outside of Howard Dean events here in Iowa.

This is nothing new.

[karynnj]

21. The Kerry waffles - which attacked Dean and the Dean flip/flops -which attacked Kerry

were standard politics. I don't even know which came first. As long as the information was accurate, isn't it fair?

Kerry, for instance, needed to explain any shifts he made in a 3 decade public life. (As did Dean for a public life of at least 1 dozen years, when he was governor.) Unless the content was malicious these were not slash and burn attacks. In mentioning Kerry's staff handing out frozen waffles, mentioning that Dean people did a very parallel thing backs your contention that this is normal.

What seems different - is that the attacks seem nastier this year. Some campaigns seem to be attacking the character and integrity of the other candidates. I was not in Iowa - as you are, but at least comparing what was seen from NJ, 2004 was not as all out nasty as 2008 seems to be. As I strongly liked both Kerry and Dean at this point in 2004 and really am not for anyone in 2008, it is not because it was my candidate being attacked.

It might be that in 2004 the nastiness was harder to see from afar. I have heard that someone even did push polls asking if the "fact" that Kerry's cancer was back (which was untrue)made a difference. The diffence this year is that the nastiness is public - even in the debates.

[sandnsea]

24. You didn't see the ghoul and tree trunk references

You didn't see the attacks on Kerry for shooting a kid in the back in Vietnam. Skull and Bones. Gigolo. On and on. The attacks against Kerry were horrible during the primary, worse than anything I've seen this year.

[Debi]

27. The attacks were not solely on Kerry, each campaign got attacked

by some other campaign.

[sandnsea]

35. Personal attacks

I don't recall the kind of personal assault on any other candidate that there was on Kerry.

[Debi]

48. Okay, I don't want to argue.

I'm sorry that's how you remember what happened out here in Iowa.

[sandnsea]

49. campaign shenanigans

are not personal attacks. Madelaine Albright tells a story about a campaign disrupting one of her fundraisers back in the 60's or 70's. Campaign stuff happens. I'm referring to *personal* attacks.

[Debi]

51. I understand what you were referring to.

And I'm not going to go into detail about what was said about which candiate or their familes here in Iowa. You seem to already know more than I do about what went on. We don't need to continue the 2004 primary conversation. You already have all the answers you want.

[Debi]

25. The attacks were just as sharp in 2003-4 were just as sharp as they are

this year. I give it to Kerry, his campaign didn't actually build the site whereas the Gephardt campaign did (and attempted to disguise the fact).

It wasn't just between Kerry and Dean or Gephardt and Dean. One of the campaigns had a bunch of flip-flops delivered to Clark's headquarters and supporters or staff of different camps would stand outside other campaign events and hand out flyers attacking the records of whoever was speaking.

Kucinich supporters would just pass out invites to his events, I don't remember if they attacked the others or just wanted to get exposure for their candidate.

I can't tell you if all of these antics were organized or authorized by the official campaigns or if people just took it too far.

The Dean and Kerry campaigns had their offices in our building (as well as our local Dem headquarters). Our landlord was receiving complaints that somebody was using stickers to keep the security door from locking after hours (the complaints were directed at the Dean campaign b/c it was their stickers being used...guess which campaign was actually doing it??). Okay that's not really one campaign trashing another, but that's the extent of dislike even the staffs had toward the other candidates.

Funny thing is, I'm not seeing the animosity between the staff members this year. At least not where I live. They all seem to get along and are cordial toward each other. Hope that continues in the next 60 days.

[karynnj]

41. Fascinating - I love your posts on Iowa

because you see things up close that those of us elsewhere miss. It is interesting that the staff seem more cordial towards each other than in 2004. I wonder if it is that with Dean, Clark and Kerry, you had many of their people seeing each of them as very unique. On DU, there once was a post that asked people to list their lifetime favorite candidate - there were a large number for each of these 3 men. I'm sure there are some for each of the 2008 candidates, but it might be less.

[Debi]

47. Staff members here this year are older (not all but most) and this is

not their first caucus experience - or campaign experience. The DFA trainings and other organizing schools that came out of the 2004 election have provided quite a professional group of people. We attended a county fund raising event last night and the staffers of Biden/Clinton/Dodd/Edwards/Obama/Richardson all talked with each other (they probably don't go out for pizza or anything, but they get along well enough) just didn't see that interaction in 2003-4.

[karynnj]

50. That should be really helpful when the nomination is settled

I think the passions of 2004 really ended up with so much hard feelings that some of the most committed Democrats didn't genuinely give Kerry a chance to make them like or respect him - even as they worked very hard to defeat Bush.

[Enrique]

12. this thread itself is classic smearing

prove it or retract it.

[wndycty]

14. I envy the Clinton war room and hope that Obama's war room can be just as good. . .

. . .its called politics.

[CyberPieHole]

15. Got a link for that "Huggy Bear"?

Or are you "hearing" things?

[Forkboy]

18. LOL

[Debi]

20. Pssst. the link is in the OP

:hi:

[CyberPieHole]

22. Is that a link? I thought that was an addy?

My fault. I have gotten so used to supplying links, I (mistakenly) expect others to do the same. My apologies to the OP, and my gratitude to you.

*hangs head in shame*

[Debi]

28. knock it off!

:rofl:

I just didn't want to rewrite the address with the www in front of it and have someone acuse me of supplying that evil link :hi:

[Bitwit1234]

16. I guess after Obama started his attacks she figured

it gave her leave to start. After all for the last two or three months Obama is spewing the crap almost as bad as his supporters.

I don't blame Hillary for fighting back..

GO HILLARY KICK ASS SHOW THEM YOU AREN'T GOING TO TAKE THEIR SHIT ANY MORE.

[JohnnyLib2]

17. Easy everybody, the smear room story is true and that room

is next to the hit-men room used by the Clintons since the 1990s. And they are down the hall from the drug-running operation.

:sarcasm: :evilgrin:

[pnwmom]

19. I heard she has it to defend herself when she is attacked by others. Good idea. n/t

[LSdemocrat]

23. Shouldn't every competent campaign have one of these?

[CyberPieHole]

26. Clinton's "...working with the GOP"?

Can you please show me where Clinton is doing that? You are making a serious (and alerting) accusation. Will you please show your proof?

[itsrobert]

29. No, that's what Clinton's war room says: the other Democrats are working with the GOP

n/t

[polichick]

34. Gosh, I hope it's just a rumor...

If they're really making that claim about other Dems, it's pitiful.

[sniffa]

30. what do you expect from her?

win at aLL costs, scorched earth.

she sure Loves power. :puke:

[Catherine Vincent]

31. I would guess all the candidates have some sort of war room.

Use your brain next time.

[creeksneakers2]

38. Want to see a real slime job put out by a candidate war room?

Check out this Edwards piece picked up by rushlimbaugh.com:

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html

Edwards had the nerve to demand that Hillary answer questions yes or no. The ad slings - IT WAS A YES OR NO QUESTION. Then Edwards gets the same question today and he spins at least four different ways on it.

Lots of other bogus crap in the ad too.

[itsrobert]

40. No he didn't

But keep saying it.

[Cameron27]

59. He actually did say Clinton should have answered with a yes or no

and when it was time for him to answer the same question, he couldn't manage a simple yes or no either. Hypocrite.

[zulchzulu]

44. Every campaign has an opposition research group...

...if they are running for office. Whether they use the stuff is another thing.

[illinoisprogressive]

46. Oh ItisRobert, you mean Hillary's campaign blog?

amazing when you compare it to other candidates blogs. but, following that Bush 2000 book is very telling....

[Perry Logan]

52. Not necessary. The other candidates are screwing up on a daily basis.

[Terri S]

53. Did anyone actually read the Salon.com article?

link

Her campaign smears behind the scenes then acts innocent in the light of day. Karl Rove 101.

[opihimoimoi]

54. SMEAR MACHINE at work.....lotta crap on the internet these days smearing

Started long ago but is escalating these past 6 years

[Apollo11]

56. Responding to criticism is NOT the same as smearing your opponents.

When Edwards or Obama says something about Hillary, I would expect her campaign to respond.

It does not mean that Clinton's campaign in smearing the other Democratic candidates.