Clinton Hillary politics election campaign. US elections: Hillary Clinton's campaign was paid for by foreign oligarchs. Who supports Clinton

Vladimir Kornilov, RIA Novosti columnist

Hillary Clinton celebrates her 70th birthday. If it weren't for Donald Trump's sensational victory, there would be a general party in the White House today. The anniversary of the first woman in history to become president of the United States would certainly become one of the main news in the world media. The biography of the hero of the day would be presented as a long and triumphant success story. Ah, that “if only”... Now it’s worth considering this biography completely differently.

By and large, Hillary's story is a series of failures and defeats. And epic defeats! Which can be used to compile textbooks on the topic: how not to build your election campaigns.

Let's try to find in this biography at least something related to her personal political success. I warn you right away that this will be difficult to do.

The first political campaign in which Clinton took part (still as a 16-year-old volunteer) was associated with one of the most scandalous election races in US history. Rodham (Hillary's maiden name), being an ardent fan of the Republican Party, campaigned for one of the most shocking candidates of that period, Barry Goldwater. He was literally obsessed with the “Russian threat,” basing his aggressive campaign on whipping up fears around this insanity. It is possible that since then Hillary has been inflamed with special feelings for Russia. And by the way, it is also not surprising that the post of senator from Arizona in 1987 was inherited from Goldwater by the notorious John McCain. Continuity!

The 1964 campaign ended in a triumphant victory for the Democrats: Lyndon Johnson received 486 electoral votes, Goldwater only 52. ​​No Democrat in post-war US history received such support.

During the 1968 presidential race, 20-year-old Hillary supported the Democratic Party nominee Eugene McCarthy (a sort of Bernie Sanders of that era), who miserably lost the fight for the nomination to Hubert Humphrey. And he, in turn, could not resist Richard Nixon at presidential elections.

But this was only the volunteer activity of a young activist, rushing between parties and ideas, one more radical than the other. Hillary made her first professional attempt to join someone's campaign in 1970. Then she was hired by the campaign of the Democratic candidate Joseph Dudley, who was competing for the post of senator from Connecticut. Democrats were the clear favorites, having won the office consistently since 1958. But Dudley still managed to lose in some incredible way.

At the age of 24, Hillary, with her boyfriend Bill, took part in the campaign of US presidential candidate from the Democratic Party George McGovern, which went down in history as one of the most disastrous: Richard Nixon then received 520 electoral votes, McGovern received only 17 votes.

Amazing, right? No matter what campaign young Hillary took on, no matter what “horse” she bet on in different races, she always chose an absolutely losing option.

In the summer of 1975, Hillary married Bill. And, in fact, that’s all! After that her political career for many years was associated only with the success story of her husband. She served as First Lady of Arkansas for 12 years and then First Lady of the United States from 1993 to 2001.

© AP Photo/stf/Ron Frehm

© AP Photo/stf/Ron Frehm

This is not to say that Hillary did not contribute to her husband’s successful campaigns. In the end, she always took an active part in them, and more than once performed solo rallies, during which she developed her mechanical smile from ear to ear. It is now difficult to assess her contribution to Bill Clinton's ratings. Some spiteful critics said that she rather played to reduce them. But even if this is not the case, Clinton had no experience running independent campaigns until 2000.

In 2000, the Democrats began an operation to prepare Clinton for the future presidency. A senatorial seat from the state of New York was cleared especially for her, where Democrats simply could not lose - the last time a Republican won this seat was in 1958, when Clinton was still walking under the table.

A frankly weak, little-known Republican candidate, Rick Lazio, was nominated against her. At the start of the campaign, Clinton was ahead of him in the ratings by 33%. However, it was necessary to try so hard that by July Lazio managed to equalize the ratings. In the end, Clinton still won with a margin of 12%. But at what cost! At that time, the Clinton-Lazio campaign became the most expensive in the history of Senate elections. The Democratic establishment, which at the start of the campaign was confident that it would not have to pour significant funds into a state that was absolutely safe for them, eventually had to invest heavily in the Clinton campaign. By the way, sponsorship of her campaigns began at the same time.

It would seem that even then the Democratic establishment would have thought about whether it was worth promoting the “Hillary for President” project with her special “luck” and inability to conduct independent campaigns?

But Clinton's re-election as a senator in 2006 appears to have calmed Democratic Party leaders somewhat. However, frankly speaking, these elections were rather symbolic in nature. Republicans did not invest in the “Democratic” state, nominating a completely unknown candidate, John Spencer, against Hillary. Clinton was initially out of competition, although she still spent $36 million on the election - this became the most expensive Senate campaign of 2006. Even then, it was clear to everyone that Hillary would become the main Democratic candidate in the 2008 presidential election.

The elites' decision to bet on Clinton in that race was not particularly controversial. Let's say, in December 2005, she was ahead of her closest competitor among potential candidates from the Democratic Party by 14%, and the dark horse Barack Obama was generally behind her by 19% and was not particularly perceived by her as a serious rival.

At the start of the party primaries, Clinton was out of competition and received full support from the establishment and party donors. But she still managed to lose to Obama, who ran a much more vibrant and creative campaign!

After Obama's epic defeat, Hillary began a four-year stint as head of the foreign policy establishment. I’m afraid to be subjective, but, in my opinion, we still have to look for a more failed Secretary of State in US history. Just look at the Libyan war and the murder of the US ambassador in Benghazi. And to top it all off, there are scandals over the improper storage of secret departmental information.

Despite all these incredible failures and defeats, by the 2008 presidential election Clinton was already considered almost the uncontested candidate from the Democratic Party. The Democrats found nothing better than, in a period of general disappointment with the elites, to elect as their banner a person who actually became the personification of these elites!

There is no point in describing its next epic “failure” any further - this campaign is still fresh in memory and well described. Leading Trump at times by double digits in ratings, spending record amounts on the campaign, and having an almost 100 percent chance of winning, Hillary managed to lose this election too...

Now Clinton travels around countries and continents, writing memoirs and articles, explaining her failure as “the machinations of the Russians,” blaming anyone for this, but not herself. Well, yes, it was “Russian hackers” who changed the campaign travel plan of the failed candidate so that she would never visit the state of Wisconsin, which ultimately turned out to be key to Trump’s victory? Right? Can't you think of any other explanation?

Or would it be more correct to explain Clinton’s latest defeat by the fact that she was simply created for it, paving the way for it with a series of her failures, studying the mistakes of campaigns not in order to learn from them, but in order to repeat them from election to election ?

Hillary received support mainly from middle-aged, older voters, Latin Americans, and African Americans. The support of the female half of the country played a big role. Clinton Campaign Key Issues: Raising wages, women's rights, LGBT rights and improving health care.

Clinton beat Republican candidate Donald Trump by nearly 2.9 million popular votes (65.84 million to 62.98 million), but won fewer electoral votes - 227 to 304, and as a result was unable to secure election to the presidency.

Background

2008 elections

On January 20, 2007, Clinton announced the start of her election campaign. She was the leading Democratic candidate until Senator Barack Obama beat her in the South Carolina primary. As a result, having gained more than 18 million votes, Clinton lost the election race, losing the nomination to Barack Obama. On November 4, 2008, Obama won the election, becoming the 44th president of the United States.

After the 2008 elections

Immediately after her defeat in the election race, rumors began to circulate about Clinton's plans to enter the race for the presidency in 2012 or 2016. After leaving the post of Secretary of State in 2013, speculation surrounding the nomination reached its peak. At the same time, Clinton earned approximately $11 million by giving 51 paid lectures to various organizations, including Goldman Sachs and other Wall Street banks. The lectures were perceived by the public as preparation for debates in future primaries and directly for the elections (Clinton did not deny the rumors).

In 2014, Clinton began preparing for the campaign, assembling a team and finding sponsors.

In September 2013, amid speculation about her candidacy, Clinton announced that she would not rule out her candidacy, but she had not seriously considered the issue. At the end of 2013, Clinton gave an interview to ABC, where, when asked by Barbara Walters about her nomination, she replied that she was closely monitoring the current situation and would likely make a final decision in 2014; in June 2014, in an interview with the same channel, she stated that she would make a decision by the end of 2014.

Decision-making

Although many political analysts were confident that Clinton would run in the 2016 election, it took her a long time to make her final decision. Despite long doubts, at the end of 2014 Hillary Clinton decided to run for president.

Expectations

According to surveys public opinion in early 2015, Clinton was considered the favorite in the 2016 presidential race. Her 2016 campaign gained more momentum than in 2008, despite the fact that she again had to face strong candidates. In August 2015, then-Vice President Joe Biden said he was seriously considering Clinton for president.

According to polls, 99% of people knew who Clinton was (and only 11% of respondents said they did not know her well enough to speak about her).

Clinton named one of the magazine's 100 Most Influential People Time .

Announcement

It was originally planned to delay the announcement of the campaign, possibly until late July 2015.

On April 3, 2015, it was reported that Clinton had leased a small office in Brooklyn, New York. This fueled speculation that the office would become her campaign headquarters.

On April 12, 2015, Clinton released a YouTube video announcing the launch of her campaign. She stated that "Americans need a leader" and she is "ready to be that leader." After the campaign was announced, she traveled to small states such as Iowa and New Hampshire. She became the third candidate to announce a presidential campaign, following Ted Cruz of Texas and Paul Rand of Kentucky. Many Democrats saw benefit for Clinton in the proximity of the launch dates of Hillary Clinton's and Mark Rubio's campaigns, since the announcement of Clinton's campaign could overshadow the launch of Rubio's presidential campaign.

The campaign logo was unveiled on April 12, 2016. It featured the letter "H" of the Latin alphabet with a red arrow in the middle, which drew criticism because red is the color of the Republican Party.

Start of the campaign

Clinton began the campaign with short trips to small states before the primary primaries began. Immediately after the campaign was announced, she took a two-day road trip in a stylized Chevrolet Express, nicknamed "Scooby-Doo". The trip started in New York and ended in Iowa. Throughout the tour, stops were made in various cities. The trip received wide coverage in the media mass media.

Clinton took few questions from reporters or gave interviews during the first month of the campaign. In particular, during the tour within the framework of the initial primaries and caucuses, she also did not answer questions from journalists. However, on May 19, 2015, Clinton answered questions from reporters at an event in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was announced that she would make additional stops in Florida, Texas and Missouri in May and June 2015.

First political steps

In her speech, the candidate drew attention to income inequality in the United States, in particular, she called for the introduction of paid family support, campaigned for equal pay for women, access to college tuition and encouraging companies to distribute profits among employees.

The organizers of the rally announced that 5,500 people had gathered, but according to press reports this number was exaggerated.

According to John Cassidy, a reporter for The New Yorker magazine, up to a certain point the candidate's speech had populist notes:

While many of you work multiple jobs to make ends meet, you see that twenty-five hedge fund managers make more than all of America's kindergarten teachers combined. And they often pay a lower tax rate. So, you have to wonder when will your hard work pay off? When will your family become more prosperous? When?

Original text (English)

While many of you are working multiple jobs to make ends meet, you see the top twenty-five hedge-fund managers making more than all of America's kindergarten teachers combined. And often paying a lower tax rate. So, you have to wonder , 'When does my hard work pay off? When does my family get ahead? When?'

Prosperity shouldn't just be for CEOs and hedge fund managers. Democracy should not only work for billionaires and corporations. Prosperity and democracy are part of your job too. You brought them to our country. Now it's time - your time - to build on your gains and move forward.

Original text (English)

Prosperity can’t be just for C.E.O.s and hedge-fund managers. Democracy can’t be just for billionaires and corporations. Prosperity and democracy are part of your basic bargain, too. You brought our country back. Now it's time-your time-to secure the gains and move ahead.

Advertising

In August 2015, Clinton spent $2 million to buy airtime in Iowa and New Hampshire. The ad featured pictures of Clinton and her late mother, which was supposed to symbolize family, women and children.

In a review of thirty-two Clinton campaign videos, the Associated Press found that 24 of them mentioned Donald Trump in some way. Most of these 24 videos are about Trump himself, and only a few are about his words and actions.

Dossier on Trump's ties to Russia

At the beginning of January 2017, the dossier collected by the company was made public former employee British intelligence Christopher Steele Orbis Business Intelligence and containing material about Clinton's Republican rival Donald Trump's ties to prostitutes during a long-ago trip to Russia, his corrupt real estate deals in Russia, and his coordination with Russian intelligence to hack Democratic Party computers. The New York Times immediately called this data unverified, and on October 24 of the same year reported the official recognition of the Washington law firm Fusion GPS of the fact that Steele carried out her order, paid for by the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

Notes

1. Getting Started.
2. AP count: Clinton has delegates to win Democratic nomination (undefined) . ap.org(June 6, 2016). Retrieved November 22, 2016.
3. Bernie Sanders Endorses Hillary Clinton, Hoping to Unify Democrats (July 12, 2016).
4. Hillary Clinton Selects Tim Kaine, a Popular Senator From a Swing State, as Running Mate, The New York Times(July 23, 2016).
5. McCaskill, Nolan D.. Hillary Clinton breaks the glass ceiling, Politico (July 26, 2016).
6. Hillary Clinton concedes (undefined) . CNN. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
7. Goddard, Taegan Did Hillary Clinton ever stop running for president? (undefined) . The Week(February 21, 2014).
8. Hillary Clinton's Paid Speeches to Wall Street Animate Her Opponents, New York Times (January 21, 2016).
9. Leaked Speech Excerpts Show a Hillary Clinton at Ease With Wall Street, New York Times (October 7, 2016).
10. Von Drehle, David. Can Anyone Stop Hillary? , Time(January 27, 2014).
11. Carter, Chelsea J.. Hillary Clinton on possible tenure: “I’m realistic”, CNN (September 23, 2013).
12. Chumley, Cheryl K.. Hillary Clinton: I’ll announce in 2014 if I’m running , The Washington Times(December 19, 2013).
13. A. B. C. News. Hillary Clinton Reveals 2016 Timetable (undefined) . ABC News (June 9, 2014)
14. Pace, Julie. Clinton's second act: Her long road to 2016 decision, The Big Story(April 13, 2015).
15. Martin, Jonathan. Joe Biden Wades Further Into 2016 Bid, The New York Times(August 13, 2015). Retrieved November 25, 2017.
16. Hillary Clinton's slow walk to "yes" , POLITICO. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
17. Miller, Jake. Is Hillary Clinton closing the door on politics? , CBS News(January 29, 2013).
18. Holland, Steve. Hillary Clinton leaving the world stage, but for how long? , Reuters (January 16, 2013).
19. Caldwell, Patrick Future Superdelegates Are Already Kissing Up to Hillary 2016 (undefined) . Mother Jones(November 8, 2013).
20. 60 Dems endorse Hillary for 2016 (undefined) . The Hill(January 28, 2014).
21. 2016 Polls Show Clinton Leads in Key States, GOP Field Wide Open - NBC News, NBC News. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
22. Despite Sustaining Hits, Hillary Clinton Remains "Formidable" in 2016 NBC/WSJ Poll (English), NBC News. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
23. Joe Biden Wades Further Into ’16 Bid, The New York Times(August 13, 2015).
24. Chozick, Amy. Hillary Clinton will Need a Second Chance to Make an Impression, The New York Times(May 19, 2015).
25. Clinton, Hillary. Elizabeth Warren Time(April 16, 2015).
26. .
27. Why Hillary Clinton will make 2016 announcement in July .
28. Elkin, Alison. , Bloomberg News (January 29, 2015).
29. Clinton Said to Rent Brooklyn Space for Campaign Headquarters, The New York Times(April 3, 2015).
30. Hillary Clinton's Brooklyn, Politico (April 3, 2015).
31. Chozick, Amy. Hillary Clinton Announcements 2016 Presidential Bid, The New York Times(April 12, 2015).
32. Hillary Clinton "to announce 2016 presidential campaign", BBC News(April 10, 2015).
33. Hillary Clinton to Announce 2016 Run for President on Sunday, The New York Times(April 10, 2015).
34. Hillary Clinton Expected To Go Small With Big Announcement, It's All Politics, NPR (April 10, 2015).
35. Hillary Clinton launches 2016 presidential bid, USA Today(April 12, 2015).
36. Kane, Colleen. What the critics say about Jeb Bush's and Hillary Clinton's campaign logos (undefined) .

Former US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is a “generator of errors” who is worsening the chances of her colleagues in the congressional elections, Fox News host Lisa Kennedy Montgomery believes. According to her, the current Democratic Party is a bunch of mediocre clowns, and this plays into the hands of Donald Trump, who has turned the White House into a “circus tent.”

There are already many Democrats who want to participate in the 2020 election race. And while the early primaries will be teeming with candidates—there could be as many as three dozen of them—the once-unified left-wing media will turn up its nose at the baked Hillary. New York Times editorial board member Michelle Cottle writes that, having once again blundered, Hillary greatly confused everyone just before the midterm elections. In her (Cottle - InoTV) words, Clinton's double blow on politeness and statements that Monica Lewinsky, in fact, “asked for it” because she was an adult, became a gift for rabid Republicans eager to tie this anvil to the donkey’s neck* so that they (the democrats - InoTV) have nowhere to escape from this woman - a generator of errors. Every time a potential 2020 breakout candidate like Joe Biden hints at another try, out of nowhere, like Dickens's ghost, Hillary appears to once again instill fear and sanity in the Democrats. Even though Elizabeth Warren shot herself with an arrow**, Hillary still holds the party hostage, and her ego will not allow any other seasoned septuagenarian politician to take the crown that is rightfully hers. If you thought the 2016 Republican debate was an internecine affair, just wait until 2020, when they dust off Michael Bloomberg, Bernie Sanders, Martin O'Malley, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, Gavin Newsom, Eric Garcetti, Michael Avenatti, Eric Holder, Tim Ryan and Tom Steyer. And these are only those who passed the selection! No intellectual depth, which, however, will not prevent these mediocrities from casting an appraising glance at their competitors and declaring themselves the tallest gnome. Despite all the numerous clowns, the party still has neither a leader nor an ideological message. And if this chaos will be a holiday for anyone, it will be for the man who got his job by turning the White House into a circus tent. Hillary won't even be the party's official nominee this time, but it will be fun to watch her fall from the tightrope. Oh, poor thing! That's all I wanted to say. Air date: October 18, 2018. * The donkey is a traditional symbol of the US Democratic Party. Michelle Cottle's article in The New York Times was accompanied by an illustration: a donkey to which a rock with a Hillary Clinton campaign flag was tied (approx. InoTV). ** US Senator Elizabeth Warren, who previously called herself a representative of the indigenous peoples of America, on October 15, 2018, published the results of her genetic test, which showed that the percentage of “Indian” blood in her is even lower than that of the average white American (approx. InoTV).

Elections in America are closely related to the efforts of lobbyists. The budgets of presidential campaigns are simply huge, but many companies and even just wealthy Americans allocate money for these purposes.

When Barack Obama ran for president in 2008 and later in 2012, he promised that he would not take money from registered lobbyists, or from special interests who seek money for politicians, and not always through legal means ( bundlers).

But his eventual successor, Hillary Clinton, has no intention of following in the incumbent president's footsteps.

The former secretary of state received more than $2 million from 40 bundlers, records disclosed by the Federal Election Commission show.

Overall, Clinton's campaign raised $46.7 million from early April to late June.

The list of people who brought money to Clinton includes several famous names. For example, Jerry Crawford, a well-known Monsanto lobbyist and influential person in Iowa, gave about $35 thousand to the election campaign, Tony Podesta, a megalobbyist who became one of the founders of the Podesta Group, and his brother John brought in almost $75 thousand.

Other bundlers also represented major companies, including Microsoft (Fred Humphreys) and Exxon Mobil (Teresa Fariello), and industry groups, including the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (Daphne Peled).

Another group includes former staffers from the team of prominent Democratic politicians (including Bill Clinton) and politicians themselves, such as former South Carolina Gov. Jim Hodges.

People seeking money for politicians are not required to disclose their sources, but that becomes clear when you look at Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign funding and lobbyist registrations in 2015.

Clinton has so far become the only Democrat running for president to disclose information about lobbyists. Two Republican candidates, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, also disclosed the data. According to this information, Bush received more than $228 thousand from eight bundlers, and Rubio received $133 thousand from three bundlers.

The participation of lobbying campaigns in elections is very difficult to avoid. Despite Obama's promises, in 2011 the New York Times found that the president's campaign included at least 15 bundlers who were closely tied to lobbyists.

Who supports Clinton?

CNBC Millionaires Poll Results

In May, a CNBC survey of 750 people with a net worth of more than $1 million found that about 53% would vote for former Secretary of State and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, while only 47% would vote for former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

Clinton is supported by about 91% of Democratic millionaires, 13% of Republican millionaires and 57% of millionaires who do not align their views with the two key US parties.

Moreover, Clinton is especially popular among young millionaires: 70% of them are ready to vote for her.

In fact, Clinton beats her main competitor among all demographic cross-sections of US millionaires. However, experts note that the situation may change quite quickly, given that this category of voters reacts extremely negatively to populist slogans. Moreover, Clinton’s “team” may soon reorient its election program towards a more mainstream voter, which will also scare away millionaires.

Hillary Clinton's election campaign

However, soon Hillary and her husband Bill, ex-president The United States found itself at the epicenter of a scandal surrounding donations to the Clinton Foundation and decisions that the Clintons made during their service in senior US government positions.

In April, Senator Rand Paul, one of the potential Republican candidates for the 2016 US presidential election, made the following statement:

“Leading American publications – the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post – almost simultaneously published articles devoted to individual parts of Peter Schweitzer’s book, published in May 2015.

Schweitzer shed light on the Clintons' dubious dealings in Haiti, Kazakhstan, Colombia and other places in the "wild backwaters" of the world economy. With carefully sourced sources and powerful revelations, "Clinton Money" asks serious questions about objectivity of judgment, the possible dependence of decision-making on foreign interests and, most importantly, whether the Clintons are fit to hold high public office."

Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich

"In 2000, Bill and Hillary Clinton were owed millions of dollars. Since then, they have earned more than $130 million. Where did this money come from? Many believe that the Clintons amassed their wealth through lucrative book deals and hefty speaking bills. Peter Schweitzer found the sources that actually made the Clintons rich: In his book Clinton Cash, he traced the path through which the money came to the Clintons, drawing connections between their personal fortunes, the fortunes of their "close personal friends," Clinton Foundation, foreign countries, as well as a number of the most senior US officials.

Schweitzer shed light on the Clintons' dubious dealings in Haiti, Kazakhstan, Colombia and other places in the "wild backwaters" of the world economy. "With its carefully sourced sources and powerful revelations, The Clinton Money asks serious questions about the objectivity of judgment, the possible dependence of decision-making on foreign interests and, most importantly, whether the Clintons are fit to hold high public office."

One of the potentially most serious blows to Hillary Clinton's position came from the New York Times (NYT). Against the backdrop of the anti-Russian hysteria that erupted in the Western media after the crisis in Ukraine, the topic of indulging Russia’s interests will most likely continue to be actively discussed for a long time. The NYT investigation, based on an upcoming book by Peter Schweitzer, actually claims that the Clinton Foundation helped the Russian corporation Rosatom gain access to 20% of US uranium mines.

Additionally, the Clinton Foundation promised not to accept donations from foreign governments while Hillary Clinton served as Secretary of State. But that hasn't stopped it from raising millions of dollars from foreigners linked to local governments.

Since Clinton became secretary of state in 2009, more than a dozen foreign citizens and their foundations and companies donated between $34 million and $68 million. Some also provided direct funding for $60 million worth of Clinton Foundation philanthropic projects.

The Wall Street Journal tried to interview these foreigners, but they all reported that the money was sent to charity and was not related to political reasons.

But this hardly seems true. Now the foundation has promised to prevent conflicts of interest while Hillary is in the presidential race, but, apparently, no one is going to keep these promises.