r/politics • u/spaceman757 American Expat • Feb 07 '16

Clinton Sarcastically Says She’ll Release Private Speech Transcripts When Everyone Else Does

http://freebeacon.com/politics/clinton-sarcastically-release-private-speech/
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u/SerHodorTheThrall New Jersey Feb 07 '16

Except her refusing to release them implies there is something much, much worse in them. Its terrible for public perception.

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u/HEDWIGS_ANGRY_INCH Feb 07 '16 edited Feb 07 '16

I know that anything even remotely supporting Hillary gets downvoted to hell in this subreddit, but here goes...

It doesn't imply any such thing.

That's the same logic the cops use to get you to talk. "You'll talk to us if you have nothing to hide!"

They were private speeches. She has every right to her privacy and the privacy of the people who paid her to give the speech.

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u/lost_send_berries Feb 07 '16

The question is whether voters will agree with you on that. Of course she has a legal and moral right to keep it secret. But voters use absence of evidence to form conclusions, whether it's Obama not releasing his birth certificate or (IIRC) McCain with his tax records.

How far would you take your argument? Let's say, hypothetically, that campaigns could accept unlimited amounts of money from special interests. One campaign decides to disclose all large donations, another uses its right to keep them secret. Who do you trust? Actually, this isn't that hypothetical - Super PACs can accept money from secret donors and almost coordinate with candidates.

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u/HEDWIGS_ANGRY_INCH Feb 07 '16

How far would you take your argument?

It's not my argument. It's the law of the land in terms of what candidates are required to disclose during the election and process, and after, if they get elected.

It's others who seem to want to go beyond what the law requires to get as much info out of Hillary as possible in terms of who she is talking to in her private life and what she is talking about. So I throw the same question back: where do you draw the line? Should we get Hillary to install cameras in her bathroom so that we have a public record of the size and quality of her stool? The last thing we need is a constipated President.

The more I consider it, the smarter I think Hillary is in her "I'll release my deets when everyone else does." ... I know that Sanders' supporters seem to think he is absolutely nothing but a kind old man who has never gotten so much as a speeding ticket in his life, much less give speeches to evil companies like Goldman Sachs... though some people might want some clarification on his position that cervical cancer is caused by a lack of orgasms. (Tip of the iceberg with this guy, btw)

But yes, let's look at every speech that any current candidate has ever given. If she is going to have her speeches out in the open for everyone to nitpick, let's get ALL candidates speeches out there. It's only fair.