# Hillary to raise 2.5 billion dollars. **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 18, 2015, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962 "2015-04-18T03:24:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/1 "2015-04-18T03:24:17Z")
Nestled in [this](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/13/us/politics/hillary-clinton-2016-presidential-campaign.html?_r=0) New York Times article about the launch of Hillary’s campaign is this nugget of information: “Mrs. Clinton’s supporters and outside super PACs [are] looking to raise as much as $2.5 billion”. Hmmm, sounds like a fair amount of money. Mrs. Clinton said, “Everyday American need a champion, and I want to be that champion.” Somehow I doubt that everyday Americans are going to be the main group represented at her fundraisers. She said, “the deck is stacked in favor of those at the top.” Yet for some reason I have a suspicion that those at the top will probably end of giving her a sizable amount of money. Indeed, if Hillary keeps claiming to be a champion of the little people against those on top, one would think it would provide no end of fodder for her opponents, both in the Democratic primary and in the general election. The Clintons like to schmooze with rich people. Bill’s tight [friendship](http://www.thesmokinggun.com/buster/bill-clinton/bill-clinton-and-jeffrey-epstein-908671) with billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted pedophile, is hardly a secret, but that’s just one of many very rich people that they’ve hung out with. During Bill’s presidency, they sent their daughter to the illustrious Sidwell Friends School, a private school with an enormous price tag where you don’t find too many everyday Americans. When they bought a house in New York so that Hillary could run for Senate they chose Chappaqua, a neighborhood where the median income in several times the national average. Little in the Clintons’ past or present lifestyle suggests a deep and abiding identification with those of average means. Neither, for that matter, do Hillary’s positions. Take the notorious corn ethanol mandate, a prototypical example of a policy that benefits a few large corporations and hurts ordinary Americans by driving up the price of gasoline and food. Hillary herself acknowledged these facts when speaking on the matter as a Senator. Before the 2008 campaign, though, [she had a change of heart](http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/04/14/hillary-s-big-iowa-flip-flop.html) and decided to suddenly be in favor of the ethanol mandate. To some, this might suggest that the interests of everyday folk are somewhat subordinate to political expediency in her book. If Hillary really does value everyday Americans over those at the top, there’s a fine opportunity for her to prove it. [John Catsimatidis](http://freebeacon.com/issues/billionaire-trying-to-force-costly-green-mandate-on-new-york/) is a billionaire–funny how often that word comes up–who donated a large amount to Hillary in 2008 and will presumably do so again. He’s also donated a ton to other candidates, mostly Democrats, and skirted around campaign finance laws while doing so. Currently he’s fighting for his own biofuel mandate in New York State. He wants a law that would require all heating oil in the state to include 2% biofuels. This would raise heating costs for many average New Yorkers by hundreds of dollars. By sheer coincidence, the plant that would process most of the new fuel is owned by … John Catsimatidis. So how about Hillary Clinton speaking up to draw attention to this issue and explain that even though Catsimatidis gave her a big wad of money, she strongly opposes the New York biofuel bill? Obviously she doesn’t have any direct vote on the matter, but she’s capable of bringing public attention to it, and thus helping to defeat it. And it would demonstrate that she really does support “everyday Americans” against “those on top”. What’s not to like? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Joker_and_the_Thief)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/2 "2015-04-18T03:39:49Z")
Nah, I think you misunderstand. Hillary opposes the growth of big money in politics, and we know its true because she says so, and unlike all the other politicians she’s a paragon of truth-telling. I mean, [look here](http://www.npr.org/2015/04/17/400362239/hillary-clinton-supports-amendment-to-get-hidden-money-out-of-politics), she supports a constitutional amendment will never get passed that will overturn Citizens United, so obviously she’s against money in politics. [sarcasm off] If you expect politicians to actually abide themselves by the values they espouse for others, you’re decades late, at a minimum. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/3 "2015-04-18T03:47:37Z")
Holy shit–Hillary Clinton may just not be a quixotically idealist politician in the best tradition of Dennis Kucinich! STOP THE FUCKIN PRESSES! ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/4 "2015-04-18T03:54:37Z")
Here is the report that the Free Bacon links in reference to the costs: > **[Exclusive | Catsimatidis trying to slip pricey biofuels mandate into budget](https://nypost.com/2015/03/02/catsimatidis-trying-to-slip-pricey-biofuels-mandate-into-budget/)** > > With a bitter-cold winter and skyrocketing heating oil use, the GOP’s timing couldn’t be worse. Senate Republicans, under pressure from maverick supermarket billionaire John Catsimatidis, are tryin… > [@](#): > > With a bitter-cold winter and skyrocketing heating oil use, the GOP’s timing couldn’t be worse. > > Senate Republicans, under pressure from maverick supermarket billionaire John Catsimatidis, are trying to slip a “green biofuels” mandate into Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s new budget that could add $150 million a year to heating costs in New York, business sources have told The Post. > > Catsimatidis, a Republican mayoral hopeful in 2013 and a heavy campaign contributor to Senate Republicans as well as Cuomo, is well known in the city for owning the Gristedes supermarket chain. > > But he’s also the owner of United Metro Energy Corp., a large company that is putting the finishing touches on a massive Brooklyn biofuel-processing plant that will be the largest in the Northeast when it opens this fall. > > Catsimatidis told The Post that his lobbyists, including the well-connected firm Connelly McLaughlin & Woloz, “are trying to get it done’’ and that he’s “hopeful’’ the biofuel mandate — forcing homeowners and businesses to use a mix of traditional petroleum heating oil with soybean- and other vegetable-based oils — will be approved this year. > > He stands to make a windfall profit, both in terms of the increased value of United Metro and from the opening of a massive new market for biofuel sales, energy industry insiders said. > > Senate Republicans were described by nervous business groups as moving to put the mandate into Cuomo’s budget because of Catsimatidis’ influence and heavy lobbying from Senate-connected biofuel interests, including the National Biodiesel Board, a producers’ umbrella group that includes United Metro and Midwestern soybean farmers. I would not be surprised that there are Democrats in the mix, but this does not match what the Bacon is claiming. Seems that Catsimatidis is just an opportunist that cuddles to both Republicans and Democrats. > **[Catsimatidis Wants to Fund-Raise for Daniel Donovan](https://observer.com/2015/03/catsimatidis-wants-to-fund-raise-for-eric-garner-prosecutor/)** > > John Catsimatidis told the Observer he is financially backing Daniel Donovan, despite his support for Domenic Recchia Jr. last year. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/5 "2015-04-18T04:18:01Z")
I think most people will concede that Hillary Clinton is not their dream candidate. They’ll be voting for her as the lesser of two evils. Republicans need to stop telling people why they shouldn’t vote for a Democrat and start giving reasons why they should vote for a Republican. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/6 "2015-04-18T05:32:25Z")
Unlike Hillary, Ted Cruz will not force Eagle Scouts into gay marriages. And, oh, just by the bye, **ITR.** …what is the source for the “$2.5 billion” number? Is it the reporter herself? Has she some special expertise we are obliged to respect? Didn’t you think to check on that? ---
**Author:** ![Pashnish\_Ewing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8797f3/32.png) [@Pashnish\_Ewing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pashnish_Ewing)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/7 "2015-04-18T06:47:32Z")
Even if everything the OP says is true, I’m quite sure she’ll still be light years ahead of the GOP candidate when it comes to ‘everyday Americans’ ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/8 "2015-04-18T11:55:47Z")
What a towering edifice of innuendo by the OP. Bravo sir, bravo. Extra style points for hanging Jeffrey Epstein around Mrs. Clinton’s neck; that’s practically a work of art on its own. > [@](#): > > Little in Clintons’ past or present lifestyle suggests a deep and abiding identification with those of average means. Really? Right back to their respective births? And you were equally scathing about Mitt Romney during the last election cycle, right? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/9 "2015-04-18T12:33:24Z")
I’m sure the Republicans will counter Hillary and prove their dedication to the common man by not raising big money for their campaigns and refusing to accept soft money or PACs. Right? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/10 "2015-04-18T13:25:37Z")
That kind of money is like having 10,000 ICBMs vs. the other side, who has a mere 5000 ICBMs. It just doesn’t matter once you get past a couple hundred million. In a Presidential race it probably doesn’t matter even then, since 95% of what people learn about the candidates will be in the media. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/11 "2015-04-18T13:38:38Z")
Hate to agree with adaher but he is mostly right. Also, just because she hopes to raise that much doesn’t mean she will. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/12 "2015-04-18T13:57:03Z")
_:waves hand airily:_ Since this is not the Koch brothers, it doesn’t count. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/13 "2015-04-18T14:40:10Z")
To quote Evita, “So what are my chances of honest advances? I’d say low. Better to win by admitting my sin than to lose with a halo.” You want to run for president, it costs money. Unless that changes, it means that every candidate for president has to do stuff like that, rhetoric aside. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/14 "2015-04-18T15:23:59Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > _:waves hand airily:_ > > Since this is not the Koch brothers, it doesn’t count. > > Regards, > Shodan Since it isn’t George Soros either, \*that \*doesn’t count. Better luck next time. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/15 "2015-04-18T15:34:46Z")
I don’t think Romney ever pretended to be anything but a corporate stooge, so you can’t really call him a hypocrite on that front. Then again, I’m having trouble remembering much about Romney. Guy was basically human shaped ambien. [This](http://www.politico.com/story/2015/04/hillary-clintons-wall-street-backers-we-get-it-117017.html) Politico article quotes some of the Dem Wall St. backers and is a fun one, basically them admitting they ain’t worried and they know she’s gotta do what she’s gotta do to keep up appearances. It’s generally recognized by most people that our democracy is bought and paid for and the candidates are served up by slick PR firms looking to tap into the collective id of America. They’re sent through ridiculous hoops trying to prove how down to earth and relatable they are, usually by driving to some hick town in a truck and eating their disgusting food and crowing about how they come from a long line of turd farmers, or whatever that old Colbert joke was. Bush changed his whole accent, Kerry pretended to be a great white hunter, and now Hillary wants you to think she’s a champion of the proletariat. But it’s all worth it to serve Goldman Sachs and be on TV whenever you want. You know Republicans have a problem when a reptilian baby eater like Hillary comes off as warm and caring in comparison. I think in drug rehab they say you have to hit rock bottom before you make real change. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/16 "2015-04-18T16:06:30Z")
> [@ITRC](#): > > The Clintons like to schmooze with rich people. Wow, you really scooped the press with that one. This little known fact will be a huge hurdle for HRC to overcome! > [@](#): > > Bill’s tight [friendship](http://www.thesmokinggun.com/buster/bill-clinton/bill-clinton-and-jeffrey-epstein-908671) with billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted pedophile, is hardly a secret, It is to laugh. I’m always wary of cites without quotes, and this is a perfect example of why. The evidence that Bill is “tight” with a convicted pedophile is that: > [@](#): > > According to court records, Clinton “frequently flew” with Epstein aboard the investor’s private jet from 2002 to 2005, the year news of the police investigation of Epstein was first reported. Further up the article it explains that he pled guilty in 2008, which is 3 years after he “frequently flew” with this guy, who is NOT a pedophile even now. And, if you go to the source of this factoid (just click on the link in your link), it says that the flights “abruptly stopped” and notes that it was likely because of the criminal charges pending against him. So, Bill hung out with this rich guy, and stopped hanging out with him when charges of lewd acts with teenage girls surfaced. Oh, the horrors!!! > [@ITRC](#): > > but that’s just one of many very rich people that they’ve hung out with. During Bill’s presidency, they sent their daughter to the illustrious Sidwell Friends School, a private school with an enormous price tag where you don’t find too many everyday Americans. When they bought a house in New York so that Hillary could run for Senate they chose Chappaqua, a neighborhood where the median income in several times the national average. Little in the Clintons’ past or present lifestyle suggests a deep and abiding identification with those of average means. These new things you’ve dug up are truly exciting and newsworthy. Have you called the NYT to do an exposé yet? ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/17 "2015-04-18T17:33:55Z")
> [@](#): > > John Catsimatidis is a billionaire–funny how often that word comes up Then you should have made it come up a few more times so that the OP would be even funnier. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/18 "2015-04-18T17:36:41Z")
I think the least effective attacks on candidates are the ones where the other party just transparently tries to use the stuff that was effective against there guy last time. There’s no shortage of stuff to criticize about Hillary, trying to shoehorn her into some warmed over Mitt Romney narrative is just going to dilute the more effective attacks. (In anycase, I thought we’d at least get to the summer before we reached the point of people hinting that Clinton is a pedophile. Guess we’re ahead of schedule. Feels sort of like when I see stores putting up Christmas lights right after Holloween) ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/19 "2015-04-18T18:27:04Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > I think the least effective attacks on candidates are the ones where the other party just transparently tries to use the stuff that was effective against there guy last time. There’s no shortage of stuff to criticize about Hillary, trying to shoehorn her into some warmed over Mitt Romney narrative is just going to dilute the more effective attacks. > > (In anycase, I thought we’d at least get to the summer before we reached the point of people hinting that Clinton is a pedophile. Guess we’re ahead of schedule. Feels sort of like when I see stores putting up Christmas lights right after Holloween) You misspelled Labor Day! ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2015, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962/20 "2015-04-18T18:56:58Z")
I think OP is to be applauded for restraint. No mention of Benghazi, let alone the claim that Willie Horton exaggerated Hillary’s service on Patrol Craft Fast in Vietnam. **Champion** and others: Whom do you see as possible GOP candidates that, unlike Hillary, have all the qualities we’d admire in a President? (I still think the likeliest of the bunch is Romney! When are we going to have the the Thread Game Auction to choose odds for bets on Presidential candidates?) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hillary-to-raise-2-5-billion-dollars/717962.md?page=2)