Will Hillary Clinton be the next U.S. President?

[ElvisL1ves]

She wouldn’t have taken quite as long to finish reading about that pet goat first, though.

[RTFirefly]

@adaher

If 9/11 had happened on her watch, the first meeting would be about, “How do we spin this to our best advantage?”

Not to mention, this beats the living daylights out of “How do we use this to go to war in Iraq?” which was the first thought of Bush, Cheney, & Co.

ETA: Ninja’d!

[Donald_Rump]

This debunks the controversy around the Egyptian PM that has lit up the right wing media.

Benghazi: Guide to a Fake Scandal

By that afternoon, Clinton had heard the same thing. Notes she received for a 4:30 p.m. meeting said a militant group called Ansar al-Sharia was responsible for the attack. The embassy in Tripoli reported that the assault appeared to be pre-planned. Later, Clinton spoke by phone with the prime minister of Egypt, telling him they knew the events in Benghazi had nothing to do with the controversial video.

Then that intelligence began to fall apart. Ansar al-Sharia disavowed any role in the attack, and the American intelligence analysts who covered Libya, who had been complaining about the sentence added by the senior CIA editor, began assembling a thorough review that was fully coordinated between the relevant intelligence officers in multiple agencies. That report, titled “Extremists Capitalized on Benghazi Protests” and completed on September 13, stated, “We assess the attacks on Tuesday against the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi began spontaneously.’’ It continued, “The attacks began spontaneously following the protests at the U.S. embassy in Cairo.” It also stated that extremists connected to Al-Qaeda were involved in the attacks, although there are no known operational connections between Ansar al-Sharia and Al-Qaeda. The statement about Al-Qaeda would prove to be wrong.

[RTFirefly]

In other news related to the thread topic, looks like the Dem field continues to uncrowd itself with Linc Chafee’s withdrawal. So we’re down to Hillary, Bernie, and Martin O’Malley. No Webb, no Chafee, no phantom Biden.

And any one of them could kick the collective asses of the GOP field. Seven or eight months ago, I was still of the opinion that this year’s GOP field would demonstrate that the 2012 primary season clown car was a fluke. Gotta say I totally blew that one.

[Urbanredneck]

Yes, I think Hillary will win. But only because I dont think the reps have a good challenger. All the democrats, even those that dont like her, will hold their noses and vote for her.

[jayjay]

@D_Anconia

Now, now, don’t confuse people with the facts.

We need a middle finger smiley…

[DSeid]

Since this is not a Benghazi thread but one about the Presidential election and whether or not Clinton will win … how does the performance of the witch hunt yesterday, and Hillary’s handling of it, impact her prospects in the primary and the general election?

Many hours of video for them to review and the worst the hunter’s will be able to glean apparently is:

A friend could reach her by e-mail and offer opinions but the diplomats had to make do with calling her on the phone and dealing with proper channels of security experts and all.

A (distortion in my mind but assume the sale can be made to the public) spin that the cause of the attack was not what she initially said it was and that she knew it.

And I am sure a few still frames catching her yawning or annoyed or looking bad coughing out of many hours of being grilled that will be sold as her “not caring” … they’ll be passed along FaceBook.

Not too much gold for all the hours pan sifting. Really nothing that will change any minds other than maybe convincing some in the middle more of how dysfunctional GOP leadership is. Which plays well to those in their party who see dysfunction as the goal but not to the rest.

Impact on the odds of her being the next President? I think zero.

[BobLibDem]

@adaher

It goes to show that Clinton always thinks of the politics and especially her career first and foremost.

If 9/11 had happened on her watch, the first meeting would be about, “How do we spin this to our best advantage?” Once they’d decided that, then they could find out how best to aid rescue efforts.

You’re going to strain your shoulder by these long reaches. Admit it, the Republicans on the panel looked like the Keystone Kops. They formed the committee for the sole purpose of derailing Hillary’s campaign and when they finally got her in the witness chair, only then did they figure out that they had nothing. In all those months of preparation, they had no line of questioning that was going to lead to the result they wanted. They only succeeded in making her look presidential and themselves looking like a pack of blind dogs in a butcher shop.

[RTFirefly]

@Urbanredneck

Yes, I think Hillary will win. But only because I dont think the reps have a good challenger.

@RTFirefly

Seven or eight months ago, I was still of the opinion that this year’s GOP field would demonstrate that the 2012 primary season clown car was a fluke. Gotta say I totally blew that one.

They had people who looked like they ought to be stronger than they’ve turned out to be.

But when two GOP primary fields in a row turn out to be clown cars, you’ve got to ask yourself: now that 2012 wasn’t merely happenstance, is 2016 just coincidence, or do we need to wait until 2020 to conclude that it’s idiots in action?

[RTFirefly]

@DSeid

Since this is not a Benghazi thread but one about the Presidential election and whether or not Clinton will win … how does the performance of the witch hunt yesterday, and Hillary’s handling of it, impact her prospects in the primary and the general election?

<snip>

Impact on the odds of her being the next President? I think zero.

I think this helps her significantly.

I think practically everybody on the Dem side of things is looking at yesterday and thinking, “could Bernie or Martin have handled this half as well?” I’d say her chances of winning the nomination are now converging on certainty.

And yesterday’s hearings, if the Dems have any clue at all, are an abundant source of clips to demonstrate why the GOP shouldn’t be left to run a two-car funeral, let alone the House of Representatives.

Yesterday should be Ground Zero for a “Take Back the House for Hillary!” campaign.

[Gyrate]

@DSeid

Impact on the odds of her being the next President? I think zero.

I’m inclined to disagree - I think it will improve them.

[RTFirefly]

GOP: Well, we did do the nose.
Voters: The nose?
GOP: And the hat. But she is a witch!

[Gyrate]

From the little I bothered to watch, I was reminded of the first panel of this Order of the Stick comicwhere a Gowdyesque Tarquin says:

@General Tarquin

Hrrmph. This was supposed to be a tragic execution scene, not a climactic battle. I think I’m just making Greenhilt look badass.

Substitute “Clinton” for “Greenhilt” and that’s pretty much how the day went.

[DSeid]

@RTFirefly

I think this helps her significantly.

I think practically everybody on the Dem side of things is looking at yesterday and thinking, “could Bernie or Martin have handled this half as well?” I’d say her chances of winning the nomination are now converging on certainty. …

Well see I had thought those odds were near certainty already.

And those who dislike her, and there is a sizable chunk, will see in select clips what they want to see.

The swingy voters? Didn’t watch. Will hear a few spins and move along. Will vote on other items when the general election comes, which remains hers until further notice.

[Bridget_Burke]

@Urbanredneck

Yes, I think Hillary will win. But only because I dont think the reps have a good challenger. All the democrats, even those that dont like her, will hold their noses and vote for her.

Is Hilary Clinton the Perfect Candidate of My Dreams? Nope.

But I’ll gladly vote for Our First Woman President. With a secondary Fuck You to the Republican Clown I’m voting against…

From Politico:

Clinton — who famously fumed last time she testified on Benghazi — didn’t lose her cool this time. But she didn’t look happy either, passing much of the marathon session with an impatient hand on puckered chin, as Republicans droned on like a traffic court judge with a pending dinner reservation. Anti-Clinton conservatives outside the room fumed at how upstanding Clinton looked in comparison to her inquisitors. “Why doesn’t Pompeo just go over and swear her in for president now—if he goes on like this, he’ll practically get her elected,” tweeted John Podhoretz, editor of Commentary magazine.

[Lobohan]

@D_Anconia

Press Secretary Nuland said there was no connection between the protests over the video and the Benghazi attack.

Here is Clinton’s own contemporaneous statement to the Prime Minister of Egypt:

“We know the attack in Libya had nothing to do with film.”

Neither of those statements (and there were others) square with what they were telling the American people at the time.

@Donald_Rump

This debunks the controversy around the Egyptian PM that has lit up the right wing media.

Benghazi Biopsy: A Comprehensive Guide to One of America's Worst Political Outrages - Newsweek

So, D’Anconia, will you please retract your assertion in light of the new information?

[jayjay]

@Lobohan

So, D’Anconia, will you please retract your assertion in light of the new information?

o/ But I'm only a cockeyed optimist... o/

[YogSothoth]

@jayjay

o/ But I'm only a cockeyed optimist... o/

Who got himself mixed up in the high stakes game of world diplomacy and international intrigue.

[septimus]

She spent eleven hours in the hearing? Are there legal limits to that? Could they call her for 11 hours every day throughout a month? Could they keep her for a marathon 40-hour session? What is the law? (I’m asking about the law, not about ethical or political limits – anyone who think they apply to the GOP is living in an alternate universe.)

In an informative summary of the latest hearing one of the Congresscritters admits she knows little about Libya. The same Congresscritter had a big McCarthy-like Gotcha-moment when she confronted Hillary with two stacks of printed e-mails. One stack was much bigger than the other. (“We counted them!”)

@BobLibDem

Admit it, the Republicans on the panel looked like the Keystone Kops. They formed the committee for the sole purpose of derailing Hillary’s campaign and when they finally got her in the witness chair, only then did they figure out that they had nothing. In all those months of preparation, they had no line of questioning that was going to lead to the result they wanted. They only succeeded in making her look presidential and themselves looking like a pack of blind dogs in a butcher shop.

The only purpose of the hearing was to hope for a soundbite or facial expression that could be turned into propaganda. That much is completely obvious to everyone but the average voter. Keeping a pleasant poker face for a full hour would be quite a feat (and far more than I could do! :o ); that Hillary could keep it up for ELEVEN hours is tremendous. Wow!!

If anyone doubts the truth in the preceding paragraph, look at a lead story on one right-wing site. The article begins with a VERY large photo of Hillary’s face, allegedly showing “How Hillary Reacts When Congresswoman Unexpectedly Pulls out Two Stacks of Email.” I find Hillary’s expression there rather blasé. To me the most noticeable thing, given the resolution of the huge image, is that Hillary’s wrinkled skin no longer resembles that of a 20-year old beauty queen. I’ll guess that was the real purpose for posting the photo.

[yawuntz]

She looked great throughout the whole farce. I’ve never cared for her much really, one way or the other, though I would vote for her given the choice (canuckistani), but she came up smelling like a rose while the pugs puked all over themselves. Yesterday was the first time I’ve ever appreciated her laugh, when that cow Roby asked her “Who elts was with yew? Were you all aleaune in your heaume?”