Democratic Strategist Bob Weiner Responds To Hillary Clinton's Critics On Emails, Clinton Foundation, Benghazi, 2016 Campaign

WASHINGTON, June 4, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Democratic strategist and former Clinton White House spokesman Bob Weiner was a guest on WDET Michigan Public Radio's "Redline" hosted by Michigan Chronicle Editor Bankole Thompson June 4. Here is some of what he said in response to Thompson's questions about Hillary Clinton's critics on emails, the Clinton Foundation, and Benghazi, as well as Republicans' attempts to make inroads into the minority community:

Private emails were not against the law until just last year, after her term, and all recent Secretaries of States had private emails they deleted. Secretaries of State have had private contacts of all sorts forever starting with those under George Washington right through FDR and World War II and since. That's what diplomacy is. By the way, where are the hearings and FOIA requests for the other recent Secretaries of State's deleted emails like Colin Powell's -- he deleted his in the buildup to the Iraq.  He was embarrassed over what turned out to be the false intelligence he used in what he said was his worst mistake: his UN presentation where he said the buildings he showed were sites for nuclear missiles but turned out to be for harmless aluminum vacuum tubes.  

As for the Clinton Foundation, as Bill Clinton just this week told the UN, that donor money does good things (worldwide health care, Haiti, AIDS drugs to millions around the world, infectious disease medical research, technology innovation etc.). This is pure hypocrisy about the Clinton's from the Republicans, who engineered Citizens United to get unlimited anonymous secret special interest money for their own campaigns into the billions -- and then help the casino people, pharmaceuticals, and oil companies who gave them the money. They are only attacking the Clinton Foundation to try to get at likely nominee Hillary -- Same for the Benghazi hearings and the latest committee. 

Benghazi is no more her fault than Lebanon's hundreds dead were Reagan's, or 9-11's Twin Towers and Pentagon 3000 dead were Bush's. And by the way, Republicans in Congress only a year AFTER Benghazi provided the full embassy security funding authorization Hillary has asked for six months BEFORE Benghazi, and Congress blocked it. I remember the press release from the Republican House Chair touting the "full embassy security funding"-- finally -- a year late!  

The Republicans candidates are also simply offering verbal hypocrisy when they say "jobs" and "end income disparity" because they are opposing a higher minimum wage and pushing tax breaks for the rich and deregulation as their economic plan instead of infrastructure jobs, higher min wage, and education support at all levels, while cutting Pell Grants, Food stamps, and Affirmative Action in education and business, and Voting Rights.

The Republican myth of appealing to minorities – as claimed by Rand Paul—will not happen because they are all talk/no action and cut programs to help minorities (who have disproportionate poverty) like housing, affordable health care, education/Pell grants, food, affirmative action, all while pushing voter suppression, opposing minimum wage increases, and giving tax breaks to the rich and big business. They can change their tune but they are not changing the quality of the music and until they do, while Democrats help minorities, Republicans do not deserve and will not get minority votes. (The only thing Rand Paul has a point on is changing disproportionate arrests and prison including for drug crime, but Clinton Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey and others have been way ahead of him on criminal justice reform, and Hillary gave a major speech on that too).

The other Democratic candidates also have a lot to say and Bernie Sanders' understanding of economic issues is superb. That will help Hillary, and if she moves to work even more on those issues, she will be an even stronger candidate.      

Link to show: http://wdet.org/posts/2015/06/04/80673-hillary-clintons-political-scandals-and-the-2016-presidential-race/

Robert Weiner is a former spokesman for the Clinton White House and senior staff for Reps. John Conyers, Charles Rangel, Claude Pepper, Ed Koch and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. He wrote the epilogue to Bankole Thompson's groundbreaking book, "Obama and Christian Loyalty." Autumn Kelly is senior policy analyst at Robert Weiner Associates.

Contact: Robert Weiner or Autumn Kelly 202-306-1200/202-329-1700

SOURCE Robert Weiner Associates