Hillary Clinton Is A Liability: Bernie Or Bust
No wonder Hillary Clinton wanted to avoid debates until she realized she is no longer a front runner for the Democratic Party nomination. The Town Hall and last night’s debate in New Hampshire, have sealed my belief in Bernie Sanders’ ability to lead. After the tasteless way Hillary Clinton accused Bernie Sanders of running a ‘smear’ campaign against her, I’ve decided: enough is enough, #BernieOrBust. I bet I’m not alone, after all there is a hashtag for it.
I have never seen a more noble, less belligerent presidential candidate than Bernie Sanders. To accuse him of running a ‘smear’ campaign is such a big lie, that it exposes Hillary as, well, a liar. By using this tactic Clinton literally exposed herself as a liar before our eyes in last night’s debate.
Business as usual, by career politician speaking in lawyerese, who has already had eight years in the White House, is not going to win this election. It didn’t work against Obama and it won’t work this time around. But the problem is more dangerous than that. Last night, I saw a Hillary Clinton who is very vulnerable to attacks should her opponent not be as noble as Sanders. Last night we saw a Hillary Clinton that wants to win so badly she exudes a certain nervousness.
Hillary is also a liability because she simply won’t bring the numbers needed at the polls and if she thinks Bernie is running a smear campaign, what will she do against a Republican who won’t hold back? Sound even more paranoid? She’s got too much baggage and too little charisma to win this. Frankly, being a woman doesn’t make her anti-establishment. You can’t have spent two terms in the White House receive huge sums from Wall Street and big business and expect people to buy your claim that you are anti-establishment. People are just not that stupid. If we don’t back Bernie Sanders we will all regret it come November. Losing 85% of the 18–25-year-old vote will spell the death knell of the Democratic Party in the future. If I was a party leader I’d be very worried about losing those kids if Hillary is nominated.
Foreign policy, which she flaunts as her forte is where I mistrust her the most. She is Iran-baiting to gain popularity, being tough on Iran is her campaign promise. Iran, which has zero to do with terrorism in the world right now. Iran, which has complied with the international community and IAEA demands and has dismantled her nuclear program, should not be used for fear mongering to win votes. This kind of Sarah Palin bellicosity is not what you need at such a sensitive juncture in US/Iran relations. Clinton, having been secretary of state should know better. She wants to sound tougher than Obama but, if there is credit to be taken she will grab it. Hillary Clinton acts like the Iran Nuclear Deal was signed during her tenure and not John Kerry’s. Does she just want to steal all of Obama’s achievements and make them her own? Just like she has stolen Bernie’s platform and made it her own? Her only genuinely felt platform seems to have one goal: elect Hillary.
For us, Iranian-Americans, who have waited so long and come this close to normalized relations between the two halves of our hyphenated identities, a Hillary presidency is a scary prospect because she threatens to ruin the diplomatic gains that were gained under Obama. Sounding hawkish to win votes and appear like you have stature just doesn’t work anymore. Not on the millennial vote she will need to win this. I feel almost sorry for her, someone should take her aside and tell her that women don’t need to talk tough to show they are capable, we are in the 21st century. We don’t need to act tougher than men anymore. In case, you are thinking that I am biased, let me tell you that I am an active opponent of the Islamic Regime in Iran and I was with her on the Iraq war. But the incompetent occupation and disastrous Iran Election uprising and Arab spring that followed has taught me a lesson: diplomacy is the only way forwIraard in this world. Hillary doesn’t sound like she’s learned this lesson.
Obama’s ability to bring Iran to the negotiating table and make it comply with American demands was a huge gain which may not have happened under an AIPAC-supported Hillary. If you want a president who kowtows to Israel vote for Hillary. If you think the US president should put US interests ahead of that of any other nation, vote for Bernie Sanders who is a son of Jewish immigrants and who spent time in the Kibbutz but who doesn’t lie, nor does he use fear-mongering to sound strong, or take money from the overly-powerful Israeli lobby in Washington. He will be better for Israel too, which surely doesn’t need an enabler in the White House. We need a morally sound leader, one who can’t be bought, if we want to save our world from war, terrorism, greed and it’s life-threatening fall-out: environmental damage.