2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Peacelover Hillary voted for an insane war that killed hundreds of thousands, but Bernie [View all]Martin Eden
(12,871 posts)Iraq had absolutely NOTHING to do with 9/11.
Bin Laden and the al Qaeda base were in Afghanistan. Shifting focus & resources to Iraq allowed al Qaeda and the Taliban to grow stronger and regain ground in Afghanistan. Furthermore, the invasion of Iraq opened the door to al Qaeda in that country and gave rise to ISIS.
If the objective was to defeat those who attacked us on 9/11 and to protect/avenge the people of New York, the IWR vote was a disaster.
If Hillary Clinton really cared about her constituents in New York she would have exercised the courage and leadership that was desperately needed when Bushco was spinning lies and manipulating the people through fear to mislead us into a disastrous war the neocons were clamoring for prior to 9/11.
Instead, as you pointed out, she didn't want to be seen as a weak Senator -- which is a clear indication she cared more about her own image and political prospects than the interests of the people she was elected to represent.
Her vote for the IWR revealed a truly weak Senator who lacked the courage to do what was necessary and right. Even more damning, it revealed the kind of disastrously poor judgment that is totally unacceptable in our nation's Commander In Chief.
The hatchet has already been buried in the backs of thosands of American soldiers who were killed or maimed fighting an insane war based on lies which Hillary either knew to be lies or lacked the intellectual capacity to know what was obvious to so many of us here at DU at that time. The hatchet is also buried in the backs of all Americans who depend on strong leadership to keep our country out of such costly disasters.
Words are one thing; actions are another. The actual record matters. Real consequences to real people matter more than anything else.
The consequence to Hillary Clinton is that she lost the support of many people who are aware of what went on in the runup to that insane war and who care about the judgment and the qualifications of the person we entrust with leading our country forward to a better future.
Mrs. Clinton will continue to lead a very privileged life if she does not become president.
Compare that to all the people who paid real consequences as a result of the IWR vote.