# In Praise of the Obamessiah, and other developments of the Sally Yates testimony **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 9, 2017, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179 "2017-05-09T03:55:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2017, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/141 "2017-05-12T21:19:08Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Sure, Hillary is an amateur, neither her nor anybody on her staff could possibly expect a question about Flint’s lead water problem if Donna B. hadn’t given them a sooper-seekrit clue. Uh-huh. Sure. Hugh Betcha! Hell, anyone with half a brain (barring that, anyone on this board) could have come up with a list of questions Hillary would likely have been asked. It wasn’t rocket surgery. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2017, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/142 "2017-05-12T21:34:07Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > My opinion on this issue is evolving as the facts evolve, I don’t thin there is anything undignified about that. Do your opinions ever evolve with the facts? > > Like I said, the Russia probe was a fishing expedition, blaming Hilary’s loss on Russian tampering was and still is retarded. There is nothing about what the Russians did that changes the fact that Hillary cheated during the primary and the DNC wanted to undermine the Bernie campaign. > > Yep. That’s about it. > > Let’s see what comes of this. It looks bad for Trump, this is just the break the Hillary campaign was waiting for. :rolleyes: [https://www.google.com/search?q=trump+home+sale+florida+russian&oq=trump+home+sale+florida+russian&aqs=chrome..69i57.25655j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#q=rybolovlev+trump+plane](https://www.google.com/search?q=trump+home+sale+florida+russian&oq=trump+home+sale+florida+russian&aqs=chrome..69i57.25655j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#q=rybolovlev+trump+plane) The articles coming up in the search seem to be mainly from March 2017. But Rachel maddow covered this stuff months before that. (You know, that retard with the vagina.) So basically you tend to call people retarded because they figured something out before you did. I understand but it’s not a path to wisdom. ---
**Author:** ![Beren\_Erchamion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/90ced4/32.png) [@Beren\_Erchamion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beren_Erchamion)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2017, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/143 "2017-05-12T21:39:00Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Cheating is untoward. And those emails show no evidence of cheating. > [@](#): > > The DNC conspiring to undermine the Bernie campaign is untoward. Good thing that didn’t happen, then. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2017, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/144 "2017-05-13T03:29:06Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > I was responding to a post that claimed: > > “Hillary won 3,000,000 popular votes _more_ than Trump. That’s not a crushing, that’s a dominant performance which lost on a cheap, outdated technicality.” > > This was in response to a post by the OP making fun of the fact that the Russian probe is largely about hacks that revealed embarrassing facts about Hillary. One. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Once again, in what way is the feeding of debate questions to the Hillary campaign, “fake news”? > > In what way was the DNC scheming to undermine Bernie “fake news”? > > In what way was Hillary’s speech to the Bank of Brazil that was in direct contravention to what she was claiming on the campaign tail “fake news”? > > So, I will ask again, what vagina-phobia driven disinformation campaign are you talking about? Because AFAICT the stuff that really hurt Hillary were facts. Like the fact that she is a horrible candidate, could be a great person, still a horrible candidate. Two. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Since when did truth become the enemy of this board? Oh that’s right, when it tilts against the liberals. > > If the primary impact of the revelation of facts about Hillary and her campaign widened the rift between Bernie and Hillary supporters (those fucking Bernie whiners complaining that Hillary cheated just because they have proof that she cheated), then the primary impact of the access Hollywood story was to widen the perceived rift between Trump and a decent human being. It was a truth with similarly malign intent, no? > > You either go where the facts take you or you pick and choose facts that will take you where you want to go. Three. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > The Russia probe was a fishing expedition but it sure looks like it caught something. It was a lot of hot air until now, but now the smoke is visible and prudence dictates that we investigate for fire. Four. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > How exactly did pizzagate affect the election? > > Brain injury? I’ve never heard this on NPR or CSPAN. Perhaps I should start watching the trashy Kim Kardashian stations you do. But for every news story claiming Hillary had a brain injury that you can produce, I can produce 5 news stories talking about the DNC email hack. Whatever story there might have been about Hillary’s brain injury, it was not driving votes anywhere near as much as her cheating. > > Paid protesters, never heard the story. I doubt it was convincing to anyone that wasn’t already inclined to vote for Trump. Do you really think that this story had anything close to the effect on the election that getting debate questions ahead of the debate had? Five. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > AFAICT, pizzagate didn’t enter the public consciousness until after the election when that crazy guy drove to New Jersey with a bunch of guns and found out the pizza parlor in question didn’t have a basement. Six. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Another fucking snowflake who prefers an echo chamber to inconvenient truths. Seven. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > I provided links. What news source would you trust because I’m pretty sure every fucking news organization in America covered this story. > > What am I making up? Am I making up the story about the emails? > > I suspect that if a similar story about cheating by the Trump campaign with the exact same amount of proof surfaced about Trump, you would be screaming bloody fucking murder. Facts are stubborn things. Hillary cheated, if this fact had been revealed early in the primary process, I bet it would have had an effect on the primary. Bernie might still have lost but Hillary would still be a cheater. Maybe Biden would have taken the opportunity to step into the race. Eight. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Only in a liberal echo chamber would anyone mistake me for a “rightie” Nine. > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Is liberal hypocrisy a defensible thing? > > If liberals are mad about the conservative’s casual relationship with the truth, they really should have a closer relationship with the truth themselves. Ten. Ten posts in a row. Jesus Christ, dude. _Learn how to fucking multi-quote!_ ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2017, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/145 "2017-05-13T03:37:58Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > One. > > Two. > > Three. > > Four. > > Five. > > Six. > > Seven. > > Eight. > > Nine. > > Ten. > > Ten posts in a row. Thank you, Count von Count. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2017, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/146 "2017-05-13T04:25:52Z")
I was betting he wouldn’t make it. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2017, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/147 "2017-05-13T11:09:18Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > I was responding to a post that claimed: > > “Hillary won 3,000,000 popular votes _more_ than Trump. That’s not a crushing, that’s a dominant performance which lost on a cheap, outdated technicality.” > > This was in response to a post by the OP making fun of the fact that the Russian probe is largely about hacks that revealed embarrassing facts about Hillary. This is false. I am the OP. I never once mentioned Hillary, except to you, [here,](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=20195086&postcount=48) pointing out that this is not actually a thread about Hillary. I have also never made a post that makes fun of the fact that the Russian probe is about hacks that revealed embarrassing facts about Hillary - largely because I don’t believe that. 1. The Russian hack is an embarrassment to all Americans 2. The Russian hack is a devastating assault upon the American Electoral system which is the bedrock of our success as a nation. 3. The Russian hack was carried out in support of a man with longstand shady ties to Russian power and money 4. The Russian hack was about putting a Russian agent in the Whitehouse - a fact which led to Donald Trump putting Russian agents in the actual Oval Office because he’s afraid to say no to Vladimir Putin: > **[Controversial Oval Office meeting was held at Putin's request](https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/controversial-oval-office-meeting-was-held-putins-request-msna988306)** > > Why in the world did Donald Trump welcome Russian officials into the Oval Office this week? Because Vladimir Putin wanted the meeting to happen. > [@Steven Benen](#): > > In his interview with NBC News’ Lester Holt yesterday, Trump elaborated on the subject. > > ``` > *“When I spoke with Putin, he asked me whether or not I would see [Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov]. Now what do I, should I say, ‘No, I’m not gonna see him’? I said I will see him.”* > > ``` > > It’s worth noting that Trump very easily could’ve said, “No, I’m not gonna see him.” Russia did, after all, attack our democracy last year with an illegal espionage operation. The American president certainly has no obligation to accept requests from the Russian president. > > Indeed, David Cohen, the former deputy director of the CIA, noted to MNSBC’s Andrea Mitchell yesterday how striking it was to see the president having a grand old time in the Oval Office with a Russian who’s a potential figure in an FBI investigation. This is not about Hillary. It has never been about Hillary. Hillary herself has been completely irrelevant since the moment that Obama told her to concede. Your repeated insistence that it’s the _liberals_ who can’t let go of Hillary is a lie, and it’s one your repeat ad nauseum - just like all the various Russian propaganda agents who’ve been spreading fake news for a year now. What a funny coincidence. Also, just so we’re clear, this post is not about Hillary. The Russian investigation is not about Hillary. This forum is not about Hillary. This board is not about Hillary. My accusation that you are repeating Russian agitprop is not about Hillary. My opinion of you, that you are, at best, a danger to yourself and others, is not about Hillary. Your Mom is not about Hillary. My toejam is not about Hillary. My dog, who is waiting to be walked, is not about Hillary. The shit that will momentarily issue forth from his bowels is, wait for it - not about Hillary. You, Damuri Ajashi, on the other, you are ALL ABOUT Hillary. Funny. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2017, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/148 "2017-05-13T13:52:22Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > You misread that. It was: ““Pope” “endorses” trump”" Which one - Olivia or Eli? > [@Merneith](#): > > You, Damuri Ajashi, on the other, you are ALL ABOUT Hillary. Funny. When he’s not all about his gun fetish and being traumatized by the sight of black people. His psychopathies are multiple; his inability to grasp the multi-quote feature singular. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2017, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/149 "2017-05-13T16:12:47Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > Your repeated insistence that it’s the _liberals_ who can’t let go of Hillary … > > Also, just so we’re clear, this post is not about Hillary. The Russian investigation is not about Hillary. This forum is not about Hillary. This board is not about Hillary. My accusation that you are repeating Russian agitprop is not about Hillary. My opinion of you, that you are, at best, a danger to yourself and others, is not about Hillary. Your Mom is not about Hillary. My toejam is not about Hillary. My dog, who is waiting to be walked, is not about Hillary. The shit that will momentarily issue forth from his bowels is, wait for it - not about Hillary. > > You, Damuri Ajashi, on the other, you are ALL ABOUT Hillary. Funny. Gee. Which Orange Fascist Loofah Faced Shit Gibbon is it, that keeps bringing her up and keeps ranting about “electoral landslides” - with stupid fucking maps and everydamnfuckingthing? Here’s some words to the Repubs about Hillary and the popular vote loss, in the words of Dumb Ass Chuck Grassely, “suck it up and move on” ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2017, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/150 "2017-05-13T18:37:46Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > This is false. I am the OP. I never once mentioned Hillary, except to you, [here,](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=20195086&postcount=48) pointing out that this is not actually a thread about Hillary. > > I have also never made a post that makes fun of the fact that the Russian probe is about hacks that revealed embarrassing facts about Hillary - largely because I don’t believe that. > > 1. The Russian hack is an embarrassment to all Americans > > 2. The Russian hack is a devastating assault upon the American Electoral system which is the bedrock of our success as a nation. > > 3. The Russian hack was carried out in support of a man with longstand shady ties to Russian power and money > > 4. The Russian hack was about putting a Russian agent in the Whitehouse - a fact which led to Donald Trump putting Russian agents in the actual Oval Office because he’s afraid to say no to Vladimir Putin: > > [Controversial Oval Office meeting was held at Putin's request](http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/controversial-oval-office-meeting-was-held-putins-request) > > This is not about Hillary. It has never been about Hillary. Hillary herself has been completely irrelevant since the moment that Obama told her to concede. > > Your repeated insistence that it’s the _liberals_ who can’t let go of Hillary is a lie, and it’s one your repeat ad nauseum - just like all the various Russian propaganda agents who’ve been spreading fake news for a year now. What a funny coincidence. > > Also, just so we’re clear, this post is not about Hillary. The Russian investigation is not about Hillary. This forum is not about Hillary. This board is not about Hillary. My accusation that you are repeating Russian agitprop is not about Hillary. My opinion of you, that you are, at best, a danger to yourself and others, is not about Hillary. Your Mom is not about Hillary. My toejam is not about Hillary. My dog, who is waiting to be walked, is not about Hillary. The shit that will momentarily issue forth from his bowels is, wait for it - not about Hillary. > > You, Damuri Ajashi, on the other, you are ALL ABOUT Hillary. Funny. Oh, be nice to DA. This is an internet message board and clinton has a vagina. That’s supposed to be sure-fire. It’s not his fault that that shit don’t flush no more. ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2017, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/151 "2017-05-14T18:26:39Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Question, posed in a different thread. How many more silly old “popular” votes might she have gotten and still lost? Another three million? Five, ten? Trump’s new voting commission will make sure it never happens again, with good old “Voter Suppression” Kobach running it. [http://www.slate.com/articles/news\_and\_politics/politics/2017/05/kris\_kobach\_is\_leading\_trump\_s\_vote\_fraud\_commission\_that\_s\_terrifying](http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2017/05/kris_kobach_is_leading_trump_s_vote_fraud_commission_that_s_terrifying). > [@Slate](#): > > “The president’s new “election integrity” group will find fraud where it doesn’t exist and make it harder for Americans to cast their ballots > As Donald Trump is fond of reminding his various interlocutors, he won the Electoral College, thus giving him the presidency. He lost the popular vote, however, by nearly 3 million votes, tainting his win with the stain of illegitimacy and suggesting that, even in victory, he isn’t the “winner” he imagines. But Trump had an explanation: voter fraud. “In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally,” ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2017, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/152 "2017-05-14T22:36:59Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Don’t fuck over the country twice! Condemn Hillary for the shitty candidate she was and vow on your children’s eyes never to nominate another shitty candidate like her again. She’s not a shitty person but she is a shitty candidate and no amount of vagina was going to make her a good one. As a person who at least aspires to being a fan of precise and accurate speech, I respectfully request that you refrain from referring to Mrs. Clinton as a “shitty candidate.” A “shitty candidate” is a candidate who would, if successful at achieving the position (s)he seeks, would likely do a shitty job of performing the functions of the position (_see, for instance, the candidate, who, despite being shitty, actually attained the position under discussion_). There is every reason to expect that, had Mrs. Clinton won the presidency, she would have done an excellent job at it. Just as President Obama did. Therefore, whatever her flaws as a campaigner, Hillary Clinton was an _excellent_ candidate. Feel free to conclude that we had a shitty electorate, considering the result. ---
**Author:** ![ganthet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de0a6/32.png) [@ganthet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ganthet)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/153 "2017-05-15T02:57:08Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > There is every reason to expect that, had Mrs. Clinton won the presidency, she would have done an excellent job at it. Just as President Obama did. Therefore, whatever her flaws as a campaigner, Hillary Clinton was an _excellent_ candidate. On paper, she is an excellent candidate. But when people describe her as a shitty or otherwise less than optimal candidate, they usually seem to be taking into account the lack of a truly enthusiastic support base for her outside of a small core of fans (particularly as compared to Obama or Bernie), her relatively wooden speech delivery, and her difficulties appealing to working class voters given her more centrist positions and Wall Street speech issues/lack of transparency. The biggest problem was the pre-established negative views of her among a decent sized portion of the electorate and how ongoing controversies fed into some of those negative perceptions of her - like she was ethically unmoored, lacked a strong set of policy convictions, and most importantly had something to hide. Whether any of these were true or not was besides the point, since past Bill Clinton scandals, Benghazi, Wall Street speech secrecy, and later the email controversy all helped reinforce some of these perceptions in those groups to varying degrees. Yes, there isn’t any real question that Trump suffers from all of these issues to a much greater degree, but it seems like Hillary’s issues and how they fed into existing preconceptions and opinions put them on a more even playing field with some voters. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/154 "2017-05-15T04:30:29Z")
> [@ganthet](#): > > On paper, she is an excellent candidate. But when people describe her as a shitty or otherwise less than optimal candidate, they usually seem to be taking into account the lack of a truly enthusiastic support base for her outside of a small core of fans (particularly as compared to Obama or Bernie), her relatively wooden speech delivery, and her difficulties appealing to working class voters given her more centrist positions and Wall Street speech issues/lack of transparency. The biggest problem was the pre-established negative views of her among a decent sized portion of the electorate and how ongoing controversies fed into some of those negative perceptions of her - like she was ethically unmoored, lacked a strong set of policy convictions, and most importantly had something to hide. Whether any of these were true or not was besides the point, since past Bill Clinton scandals, Benghazi, Wall Street speech secrecy, and later the email controversy all helped reinforce some of these perceptions in those groups to varying degrees. > > Yes, there isn’t any real question that Trump suffers from all of these issues to a much greater degree, but it seems like Hillary’s issues and how they fed into existing preconceptions and opinions put them on a more even playing field with some voters. She was/is also handicapped by being a woman. Women are held to a higher standard than men. People forgave Bill, but they still hated her. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/155 "2017-05-15T05:12:58Z")
> [@ganthet](#): > > Yes, there isn’t any real question that Trump suffers from all of these issues to a much greater degree, but it seems like Hillary’s issues and how they fed into existing preconceptions and opinions put them on a more even playing field with some voters. Only with the imbecilic, and the voters who actively hate the principles and shared values that supposedly make America a worthwhile country to support. So, like I said, a shitty electorate. ---
**Author:** ![ganthet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de0a6/32.png) [@ganthet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ganthet)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/156 "2017-05-15T06:59:35Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Only with the imbecilic, and the voters who actively hate the principles and shared values that supposedly make America a worthwhile country to support. So, like I said, a shitty electorate. Plenty of Democrats and independents (the latter including myself) held their noses and voted for Hillary while agreeing to some degree with a few of the perceptions of her negative qualities. Plenty of others held their noses and voted for Trump while also agreeing to some degree of the perceptions of her negative qualities but may have been tipped onto the other side by single issues that they are particularly passionate about (abortion rights, anti-free trade issues and the accurate perception that Hillary was perfectly fine with free trade before making a swift 180 change when in the middle of the primary campaign with Bernie, naively believed that Trump would be immune from Wall Street influence because he was already rich as compared to cosy and compromised like Hillary, etc.). Regardless of her impressive credentials and experience, she has a lot of perceived personality flaws and political limitations as a candidate that would also affect her performance in office and ability to get things done. I certainly don’t think everyone who didn’t vote for Hillary, for whatever reason, is an imbecile. It’s just that a not insignificant number of people who voted for Trump were likely naive suckers or were openly willing to sacrifice their overall convictions on single issue items. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/157 "2017-05-15T14:11:02Z")
> [@ganthet](#): > > … > > Regardless of her impressive credentials and experience, she has a lot of perceived personality flaws and political limitations as a candidate that would also affect her performance in office and ability to get things done. I certainly don’t think everyone who didn’t vote for Hillary, for whatever reason, is an imbecile. It’s just that a not insignificant number of people who voted for Trump were likely naive suckers or were openly willing to sacrifice their overall convictions on single issue items. But she still got 3 million more votes than Trump. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/158 "2017-05-15T15:31:16Z")
Cue the condescending and avuncular explanation of the Electoral College. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/159 "2017-05-15T15:38:05Z")
Condescending it may be, but 1) it’s true, and 2) Trump is OBSESSED with it. ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2017, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179/160 "2017-05-15T16:28:10Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > But she still got 3 million more votes than Trump. By wasting campaign funds and efforts to hold rallies in states that there was no question she would take instead of campaigning in states that she actually needed to work to win. She made multiple stops in safe areas like NY and CA, and was the first candidate since 1972 to not even bother showing up to Wisconsin (a supposedly blue state she lost). She chose to lose the actual election to boost her popular vote margin, and her supporters seem unable to explain why that’s a good trade-off. And no, the actual election mechanism explicitly spelled out in the constitution, in use for centuries, and talked about a lot in an election less than two decades ago is not a ‘technicality’ that she somehow overlooked. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-praise-of-the-obamessiah-and-other-developments-of-the-sally-yates-testimony/786179.md?page=9)