Three Pinnochios for Bernie

[kennetha]

Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire!

There’s a further problem with this calculation. Greenpeace counts all of the money raised or contributed by lobbyists as “oil/gas industry” funds, but these lobbyists have many other clients besides the oil industry. Ben Klein, one of the lobbyists highlighted in the Greenpeace report, also lobbies for American Airlines, Cigna, and Hearst, according to the lobbying disclosure database, so in theory his contributions to the Clinton campaign could also be labeled as funds for airline, insurance or media industry.
.....

The Sanders campaign is exaggerating the contributions that Clinton has received from the oil and gas industry. In the context of her overall campaign, the contributions are hardly significant. It’s especially misleading to count all of the funds raised by lobbyists with multiple clients as money “given” by the fossil-fuel industry.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2016/04/02/fact-checking-the-clinton-sanders-spat-over-big-oil-contributions/?hpid=hp_hp-cards_hp-card-politics%3Ahomepage%2Fcard

[Awknid]

1. So let me understand this-

Just because a lobbyist represents several different clients, his affiliation to the oil & gas industry doesn't matter? Wow.

[kennetha]

4. Lobbyists are hired guns that represent many clients.

[Armstead]

21. And they have no place being key figures in political campaigns

[Chasstev365]

5. Well Put My Friend!

[hobbit709]

2. Are there any unburnt remnants of your pants?

[rachacha]

3. Haven't seen Hillary's 2008 ad yet, have you?

I guess she has evolved since then.

[nc4bo]

6. #WhichHillary? nt

[firebrand80]

18. Your hashtags have no power here nt

[nc4bo]

30. So? nt

[Broward]

7. Ha, great find. Among other things, she's a freaking hypocrite.

[Armstead]

9. Perfect illustration of her ever-shifting principles and morality

[Bread and Circus]

11. This video should be used to start and original thread.

[Armstead]

8. So the campaign finance system in the US is all clean and is a non-issue

No corporate influence on politics. Not even for Republicans because of the specifics of one aspect of campaign finance laws.

Nothing else matters. So we can just put that issue to bed.

No need to change anything.

All to justify Clinton's claim that the fossil fuels industry have had no involvement or influence on her political career.


Hooooookay then.

[Skwmom]

10. From the Washinton Post, the tabloid owned by the Amazon Sweatshop King...

[riversedge]

17. oh, but when the Wpost has a glowing story about bernie you cheer.

[Motown_Johnny]

12. You say Greenpeace's report is wrong, therefore Bernie is a liar.

Nice try, but fail.

[Sancho]

15. If Bernie knows the Greenpeace report is wrong, then he is lying...

if he does not know it's wrong, then he is stupid.

Pick whichever you want.

[Surya Gayatri]

13. Quelle surprise...NOT!

The Sanders campaign is exaggerating the contributions that Clinton has received from the oil and gas industry.

[glowing]

14. LOL - shining a light on the cockroaches embedded into politics, sends them scattering for any cover

they can muster... Lobbyists, bundling donations to influence politicians. That's their damn jobs; buy politicians. The corporations that hire these firms do so because they influence policy, hell they write a ton of policy to be passed in favor of corporations, damn the little people.

It's funny how people are actually trying to justify campaign finance as it is today, as sane, just, or completely skewed toward the already wealthy and powerful. One of the reasons Bernie is doing so well is that he refuses to use a Super Pac. He refuses to be bought. Exactly when is anyone defending this broken, bought system of corruption? I guess other paid interests...

Probably the most shocking, and semi-amusing, items to see on DU yesterday and today, are posts that actually try to justify the current campaign finance funding AND that these little people in these little lobby's are just hard working, regular folk like your waitress or nurse... LOL. What an effing joke.

[polly7]

22. Of course!

Just like they really believe Clinton came up here 'just before she realized she'd be running' (cough) for president' to campaign for millions of dollars paid for backers of the Keystone XL because she had pipeline inspection creds.

I swear, some people on here believe others must be gullible children.

[Armstead]

23. It's not amusing. It's tragic to see people defending a system that even Clinton admits is wrong

They are now claiming that campaign finance is fine and the systenjm works perfectly.

“We have to end the flood of secret, unaccountable money that is distorting our elections, corrupting our political system, and drowning out the voices of too many everyday Americans. Our democracy should be about expanding the franchise, not charging an entrance fee.”

HILLARY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2015

Her supporters seem to disagree -- or are willfully ignoring that reality.

[glowing]

24. It's so tragic, one can only shake head or laugh crazily.

[riversedge]

16. **GREAT--YOUR OP was mentioned on msnbc just now. Thank you

[riversedge]

19. K and R

[cosmicone]

20. Only three? He is good for several dozen more. n/t

[kstewart33]

25. You mean, Bernie isn't a saint?

That's astonishing!

[BeyondGeography]

26. Jeff Weaver implied the other day that the only oil employees contributing to Sanders

work on rigs. I thought that was funny, in the whatever-it-takes-to-be-holier-than-thou manner.

[pinebox]

27. You mean this didn't happen?

[CalvinballPro]

28. Hasn't it been just glorious watching this attack blow up in Sanders' face?

Maybe his campaign should have checked for the same donations before deciding on this strategy. That might have given them a chance to refund or donate their own fossil fuel industry donations so they didn't come out looking like giant hypocrites for accepting the same kind of donations.

The Sanders campaign is pure amateur hour, and it's showing at every opportunity.

[itsrobert]

29. Well, he is as old as three Geppettos

so it makes sense to have 3 pinnochios