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Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Bernstein: The White House Is Terrified the Clinton Campaign "Is In Freefall"


The White House delivers another message via Carl Bernstein

by Gaius Publius

The last time I featured former Watergate reporter Carl Bernstein on these pages, it was to showcase his delivery of messages he received from the White House, to the effect that the "White House" thought Clinton was blowing it with her Wall Street speeches stance, and because of that, the "White House" was freaking out (to put it colloquially) — at least as Bernstein tells it.

Here's part of what Bernstein — a Clinton supporter — said last February (my transcript and emphasis; video at the link):
Bernstein: There is a huge story going on. I've spent part of this weekend talking to people in the White House. They are horrified at how Hillary Clinton is blowing up her own campaign.

And they're worried that the Democrats could blow -- they are horrified that the whole business of the transcripts, accepting the money -- that she could blow the Democrats' chance for White House. They want her to win. Obama wants her to win.

But Sanders has shown how vulnerable she is. These ethical lapses have tied the White House up in knots. They don't know what to do. They're beside themselves. And now, you've got a situation with these transcripts a little like Richard Nixon and his tapes that he stonewalled on and didn't release.
Note the insider tone and access. I'm not writing a hit piece on Clinton; I'm showing this to make a more general point — that Carl Bernstein carries messages from the White House to the public, from Valerie Jarrett perhaps, or someone else just a step removed from the president, and Bernstein is clearly speaking with Team Obama's permission (and likely encouragement). Which has to mean, with President Obama's permission.

In other words, this isn't reportorial digging-and-revealing; this is White House messaging delivered via an intermediary. Read Bernstein as the White House speaking.

In that context, listen to the current "White House" message about the Clinton campaign via Bernstein and video at the top (my italics):
Bernstein: The implications of all of this [the email server issue] are that Hillary Clinton did not want her emails subjected to the Freedom of Information Act or subpoenas from Congress. And that's why she set up a home-brew server.

I think we all know that. People around her will tell you that in private if you really get them behind a closed door.

I was in Washington this week, I spoke to a number of top Democratic officials and they're terrified, including people at the White House, that her campaign is in free fall because of this distrust factor. Indeed, Trump has a similar problem, but she's the one whose numbers are going south.

And the great hope in the White House, as well as the Democratic leadership and people who support her, is that she can just get to this convention, get the nomination — which they're no longer 100% sure of — and get President Obama out there to help her, he's got a lot of credibility, it's an election that's partly about his legacy.

But she needs all the help she can get because right now her campaign is in huge trouble...
Bernstein goes on to pivot the message against Trump, but we can leave it there.

Bernstein Carrying White House Water

This is at least the second time Bernstein has carried White House messaging about Hillary Clinton's campaign to the public (see link above for the first), and both times, the message is the same — again colloquially, "we're freaking out" (Bernstein is nearly as vivid). What freaks them out this time? That "her campaign is in free fall" and they're "no longer 100% sure" that she can get the nomination.

Wow. Wow that they think it, and wow that they're leaking to the public that they think it.

Makes you wonder what the White House and other "top Democratic officials" know that they didn't tell Carl Bernstein, or at least, what he's not telling us. Maybe this story explains the plan all the networks are alleged (by Chris Matthews no less) to have agreed to — that they will declare Clinton the overall winner the minute the East Coast polls close in New Jersey, even though (or especially because) the West Coast polls are still open in California, the largest state and one which Clinton could well lose.

Put these two things together and it's clear there's now just one goal for "top Democratic officials" including the White House — to get Clinton across the finish line despite the fact that her campaign is "in free fall" and she's limping to get there. In White House terms, to get her into the convention and get her the nomination, no matter how or under what condition.

Two takeaways — one is that top Democrats know how precarious Clinton's position is. They're not fooled any more than you are. That's worth noticing. And second, the White House and Bernstein are not blaming Sanders. Whoever crafted this message for us is blaming the Clinton campaign only, and by extension, Clinton herself.

Again, makes you wonder what they know and if they really know it.

GP
 

11 comments:

  1. They have the surrogates banging on Bernie Like my ex Governor Rendell Or Barney Frank who is REALLY nasty

    People don't trust her and Trump's numbers keep going up! Did they jut get that?

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  2. What are a 'few' ethical lapses among corporate democrats? Hillary is going to 'continue' Obama's legacy by what? Having Billy Bob save the economy? Or is that just something that Hillary tells black audiences while she tells her white audiences something different? There IS a reason why Hillary polls nationally at 60% for being dishonest and untrustworthy.

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  3. The Clinton email scandal is also an Obama scandal. He knew, he could have shut it down, he didn't. This is on him almost as much as her.
    Bernie will need to win California by 20% to win the majority of pledged delegates, and that does not seem to be in the cards. Whoever wins the majority of pledged delegates will be the nominee, there is not political possibility that the super delegates will alter that.

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  4. @Alice: Correct. Obama knowingly allowed the State Department to operate without an Inspector General during the Clinton secretaryship.

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  5. marcusp12:27 PM

    But this intimates that an indictment is unlikely. Doesn't it? If this is truly about President Obama's legacy AND if he is seen as someone who can restore or provide her credibility, then how could any indictment go forward, even if it was followed by a pardon?

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  6. Anonymous5:16 PM

    There are 781 pledged delegates still to be determined (475 in California alone).
    Sanders trails by 270 in the pledged delegate count.

    He would have to win 67% of the delegates to be allocated in the final primaries to pull even in the pledged delegate race. As much as I'd like to see that happen, it seems highly unlikely that it will.

    Recent Clinton/Sanders vs Trumpf polls show Clinton only winning within the margin of error, if not actually losing to Trumpf. Sanders is well ahead of Trump, by double digits in some polls.

    Therefore, one must wonder of the White House message (via Bernstein) is being sent to the 715 UN-pledeged ("super") delegates to quash any notions they, as political animals by definition, might be entertaining to nominate the candidate who actually appears able to beat Trumpf and who has no scandals bubbling vigorously at the moment.

    It would fit my view of Obumma's "legacy" perfectly for him to engineer the nomination for his former SecState ... who then gets trounced by America's "first indisputably Nazi" president.

    primary summary: tinyurl.com/q6kcfqx

    John Puma

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    Replies
    1. richard vajs9:21 AM

      I don't care how many "super-delegates" she gets - it matters to me about as much as how many angels can get on a pin. The bloody woman is crooked, money-hungry, and dead wrong on the Palestinian issue. The greed-heads on Wall Street, everyone pulling down at least $200k/yr, the over-heated feminists, and the racists who love Israel can vote for her, but I never will.

      Delete
  7. Anonymous9:05 AM

    Or... The White House is laying the groundwork for pulling the rug out from under Hillary (actually indicting her) and making a deal with Bernie. The Deep State has virtual control of the office of the president anyway, so even if Bernie makes it and chooses a liberal VP, he will still be hamstrung in most of the important international decisions and will have to compromise to move forward at a snail's pace on domestic ones. And they figure, 4 years later he's too old to get re-elected and by then they can slip Martin O'Malley or some other pretty face into the picture and continue their puppet theater -- unless he chooses Elizabeth Warren as VP. Then it's basically game over. (Dream on!)

    Dr. Ip

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  8. ericinsantarosa4:20 PM

    Have to disagree with the comments here which intimate that there won't be strong pressure for the supers to nominate the candidate who is the obviously stronger general election choice general election. I don't see anything getting better for Clinton from here on out, at all. It will be a stark choice between: a) winning the general with Bernie, coincidentally saving the democratic party from self-immolation; and b) losing the general with Hillary, coincidentally blowing apart the Democratic party with the bonus of being directly responsible for electing Trump. After handing us the shit sandwich of our current presumptuous (yeah i meant that) nominee, I don't see them being successful in sticking anybody other than Bernie with the nomination if Clinton ends up being the apparent horror story that i believe she will be. And by successful, I mean winning the general, defeating trump, coattails for a democratic congress, and keeping the party together.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous7:48 AM

    If you believe a new president can change the ongoing plans to undermine US sovereignty, you are the problem this nation faces. Researching history will unveil the future, and Democracy is Fascism on steroids. Start here: http://100777.com/protocols

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anonymous7:36 AM

    1) obamanation's legacy is nothing for any democrat, save one totally corrupted, to aspire to. obamanation ran on a democrat-ish platform but admin'd like a true-red republicon. Only the past few months has he even tried to do, via exec order, to do some polishing of the rough edges of his turd of an admin.

    $hillbillary is an even worse turd of a candidate and **SHALL** be a worse unitary than cheney/junior shrub. More warloving. More drones. More neocon. More corrupt. More drilling/fracking. More xxFTAs. Moreso than obamanation, which is saying something.

    Naturally the wh is freaking out... because the money is almost apoplectic that they'll have to try to herd cats (drumpf) instead of having their chosen servile $hill. No greater proof of their total corruption than their NOT indicating that they are warming to Bernie.

    Also no greater vindication of Bernie that the money/wh/dnc are NOT warming to him.

    **IF** the USA survives its plummet vector, all scholarly analyses of slick willie's admin will show he was horrible, advocating/signing GLBA, CFMA, xxFTAs, GATT, WTO, destruction of welfare and generally initiating the meme of destruction of NEW DEAL and GREAT SOCIETY improvements. And bill was a leader in the corruption of the party with his DLC.
    Same goes for the extension of Clinton/bush by obamanation. bush/cheney took the Clinton domestic horrors, continued them, but added wars, war crimes and empire-by-invasion to the mix. Obamanation took all that and expanded them all.
    So obamanation's legacy, under the same predicate, would be more horrible -- especially given his Ds had 60 seats in the senate for almost 2 years and refused to do anything good with it. (special recognition for the abominable harriet reid here).

    $hillbillary is the next heir to Reagan that the money wants to extend/expand all this. Finally SOME voters are awakening... but not enough.

    But, hopefully, $hillbillary's felonies will do what voters cannot seem to -- keep $hillbillary out of the WH.

    If the corrupt supers coronate $hillbillary over the more popular (today) and much more electable Bernie, 10s of millions of their voters will go poof -- and there will likely be protests that the corporate media will have to cover. I hope anyway.

    If the money eats that shit taco and noms $hillbillary, she'll likely lose and be indicted by a drumpf DOJ.
    If $hillbillary somehow wins, the R house will immediately impeach based on one or all of her felonies.
    If obamanation pardons her, the electorate will have to face up to the fact that $hillbillary did stuff requiring a pardon and drumpf will have more than he needs to destroy her campaign... and the house might impeach for her pardoned felonies anyway on principle.


    The money/dnc is in a real pickle here. But you can be sure they wouldn't warm to Bernie. So it'll either be $hillbillary or some replacement whore... but not Bernie.

    Best scenario? The DNC acts predictably and some corrupt pos is foisted upon us/US... and Bernie runs as a Green or Independent and beats both pos and drumpf.

    And $hillbillary ends up in jail.

    ReplyDelete