Topic: 2016 Presidential Democratic Primary Thread

[mbw]

The organizations themselves did not donate, rather the money came from the organizations' PACs, their individual members or employees or owners, and those individuals' immediate families. Organization totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.

How would any campaign-contributions database necessarily know where an individual works when they donate money? Surely you don't have to name your employer when giving to a candidate, do you?

The Federal Election Commission (FEC), which oversees campaign finance and reporting laws at the federal level, requires candidates for federal office to collect and report data about contributors including the name, address, employer, and contribution amount.

[runawayjimbo]

When I want a laugh, I'll go to the Eagles thread.

Or you could just move my posts there?

The organizations themselves did not donate, rather the money came from the organizations' PACs, their individual members or employees or owners, and those individuals' immediate families. Organization totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.

How would any campaign-contributions database necessarily know where an individual works when they donate money? Surely you don't have to name your employer when giving to a candidate, do you?

Yes, you do (see Bernie's disclaimer here). Pretty sure it's a required field too. Now there's no verification (as far as I know) so I guess it could be gamed: maybe all those Hillary Citigroup donations were from Bernie supporters who have been playing the long game, making years of donations to Hillary and entering Citi as their employer in an attempt to make her look like she's an oligarch in bed with the very entities who have (and will again) wreaked havoc on our financial system for their inevitable 2016 matchup. Or, you know, maybe not.

[slslbs]

When I want a laugh, I'll go to the Eagles thread.

Or you could just move my posts there?

The organizations themselves did not donate, rather the money came from the organizations' PACs, their individual members or employees or owners, and those individuals' immediate families. Organization totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.

How would any campaign-contributions database necessarily know where an individual works when they donate money? Surely you don't have to name your employer when giving to a candidate, do you?

Yes, you do (see Bernie's disclaimer here). Pretty sure it's a required field too. Now there's no verification (as far as I know) so I guess it could be gamed: maybe all those Hillary Citigroup donations were from Bernie supporters who have been playing the long game, making years of donations to Hillary and entering Citi as their employer in an attempt to make her look like she's an oligarch in bed with the very entities who have (and will again) wreaked havoc on our financial system for their inevitable 2016 matchup. Or, you know, maybe not.

yes, it is required

[pcr3]

Sounds like someone has some experience donating to a campaign. I'm guessing not many of us do...

[slslbs]

I bought into the paranoia the DNC spread the last few campaigns.

I'm over it

[runawayjimbo]

Come on, you really don't want to read about this shitshow?

A black neurosurgeon, a female former CEO of a (dying) tech company, and a crazy-ass preacher walk into the race for the GOP nomination...

[rowjimmy]

Feel free to start your own joke thread.

[runawayjimbo]

Can I post jokes that pertain to the Democratic primary in here? Cause here's a good one: Bill Clinton needs to continue making up to $500k a speech while Hillary runs for president or else the Clinton's will starve.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/05/04/bill-clinton-defends-foundations-foreign-donations-and-paid-speeches/

Bill Clinton defends foundation’s foreign donations and paid speeches

Former president Bill Clinton strongly defended foreign donations to his family's charitable foundation and said that no entity gave the foundation money to try to influence his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton, while she served as secretary of state.

In an interview with NBC News that aired Monday morning, Clinton also said he would continue to deliver six-figure paid speeches during his wife's presidential campaign because, he said, "I gotta pay our bills."

Clinton said that neither his family nor the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation have done anything "knowingly inappropriate" by accepting donations from foreign governments.

“There is no doubt in my mind that we have never done anything knowingly inappropriate in terms of taking money to influence any kind of American government policy," Clinton said. "That just hasn't happened."

He said Hillary Clinton has told him, "No one has ever tried to influence me by helping you."

The foundation's finances and practice of accepting donations from foreign governments in particular have drawn considerable scrutiny in recent weeks from The Washington Post and other news organizations and in a new book, "Clinton Cash." With Hillary Clinton beginning her campaign for the 2016 presidential nomination, the foundation has become fodder for attacks from her opponents, both Democratic and Republican.

Bill Clinton said he believed there has been a "very concerted effort to bring the foundation down," arguing that the Clintons are being held to a higher standard than other politicians. "The idea that there's one set of rules for us and another set for everybody else is true," he said.

The Clinton Foundation recently bowed to pressure and announced it would restrict foreign donations to only six Western nations and increase transparency by disclosing its donors four times a year instead of once annually.

Bill Clinton spoke with NBC from Kenya during his and daughter Chelsea's annual tour of Africa to visit Clinton Foundation projects that focus on such issues as climate change, public health, conservation, economic growth and empowering women and girls.

"There has never been anything like the Clinton Global Initiative, where you've raised over $100 billion worth of stuff that helped 43 million people in 180 countries," Clinton said. "I don't think there's anything sinister in trying to get wealthy people in countries that are seriously involved in development to spend their money wisely in a way that helps poor people and lifts them up."

But he left open the possibility that he would step down from the foundation if his wife is elected president.

"I might if I were asked to do something in the public interest that I had an obligation to do," Clinton told NBC. "Or I might take less of an executive role. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

Asked about his paid speeches, some of which come with a fee of $500,000 or higher, Clinton said, "People like to hear me speak."

Clinton said it was "laughable" for people to assume that Hillary Clinton couldn't "relate to the currents of middle class America because now we have money."

"I'm grateful for our success," he said. "But let me remind you: When we moved into the White House, we had the lowest net worth of any family since Harry Truman."

[slslbs]

He said Hillary Clinton has told him, "No one has ever tried to influence me by helping you."

Really??

well, she might have said that, but...

[PIE-GUY]

Speaking of Bill...

[ytowndan]

Pretty good news for Bernie fans!

http://national.suntimes.com/national-world-news/7/72/1298312/bernie-sanders-catching-hillary-clinton-polls

[rowjimmy]

http://www.isidewith.com/political-quiz

I'm 96% with Bernie, apparently.
I knew I liked the guy.

[runawayjimbo]

LOLOLOLOLOLOL

http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/16/politics/donald-trump-2016-announcement-elections/

Trump jumps in: The Donald's latest White House run is officially on

New York (CNN) - Donald Trump is finally taking the plunge.

The real estate mogul and TV reality star launched his presidential campaign Tuesday, ending more than two decades of persistent flirtation with the idea of running for the Oval Office.

"So, ladies and gentlemen, I am officially running for president of the United States, and we are going to make our country great again," Trump told the crowd, in a lengthy and meandering speech that hit on his signature issues like currency manipulation from China and job creation, as well as taking shots at the President and his 2016 competitors.

"Sadly the American dream is dead," Trump said at the end of his speech, promising to bring it back to life with his run.

Just over four years after he came closer than ever to launching a campaign before bowing out, Trump made his announcement at the lavish Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York, laying out a vision to match his incoming campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again."

The 68-story tower venue Trump used Tuesday is more than just the backdrop to Trump's presidential announcement, instead becoming a physical embodiment of what Trump is bringing to the table and the challenges he'll face as he formally entered politics.

Trump has already billed himself as the "most successful person ever to run for the presidency, by far," pointing out even that he owns a "Gucci store that's worth more than Romney."

That Gucci store won't be far as Trump makes his announcement -- it's located in the lobby of the Trump Tower.

But in his run, Trump isn't likely to try and shy away from the out-of-reach luxury and opulence that makes up his day-to-day lifestyle.

Instead, he flaunted his wealth and success in business as a centerpiece of his presidential platform in his speech. And on Tuesday he disclosed his financial assets, trumpeting a whopping $9 billion net worth. Trump's net worth was previously estimated at roughly $4 billion.

The Trump Tower certainly didn't disappoint in embodying that astronomical financial success, but the structure that was also home to the famous boardroom featured in "The Apprentice" television shows will also crystallize the challenge Trump faces as he looks to win over voters.

Many Americans now view him primarily as a reality TV star after 14 seasons of his "Apprentice" series, and his numerous flirtations with a presidential run -- first in 1987, then 1999 and again in 2004 and most recently in 2011 -- have left voters eye-rolling as he prompted yet another round of will-he or won't-he speculation.

He and his aides remain confident, though, that voters will take Trump seriously after he has now made his intentions clear and announces he's running.

"We can change that dynamic in 15 seconds by Mr. Trump sending out a press release saying he's running for president," Trump's top political adviser Corey Lewandowski said. "Mr. Trump's single biggest detriment is that people don't think he's going to run."

But over the past several months, Trump has ramped up his political activity, making key staff hires in the early states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina -- including the political strategist who drove former Sen. Rick Santorum to a surprise victory in the Iowa caucus in 2012.

And even as he becomes the 12th candidate to throw his hat into a ring that will become even more crowded before the first televised debate in August, Trump could find himself grinning on Fox News along with the rest of the top 10 candidates who made the cut.

Fox is limiting participation in the first debate to the top 10 GOP contenders based on national polling, and Trump is just on the edge based on the latest polls.

He tied for 10th place with 3% in the latest CNN/ORC poll earlier this month and earned 4% in both the most recent Fox News and Washington Post/ABC News polls -- coming in 10th and tied for ninth, respectively.

That puts Trump right in line with would-be-rivals like Santorum, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former New York Gov. George Pataki -- and above hopefuls like Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.

In his bid, Trump will look to escape that grouping as he challenges conventional political notions of nominating a presidential candidate who's held elected office, instead calling for an end to the politics he says are heavy on talk and light on action.

Trump is no stranger to either, though.

He famously fanned the flames of the "birther" movement and today takes credit for President Barack Obama's decision to release his birth certificate -- which Trump said this year at CPAC hasn't completely quelled his concerns.

And he won't mince words when it comes to his GOP foes, either. And he may take the opportunity to draw a contrast with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who formally announced his candidacy just a day before Trump's announcement.

Trump said earlier this year in Iowa: "The last thing we need is another Bush."

Also, DNC troll so hard: the official press release

[rowjimmy]

Can we at least talk about serious candidates?
Next thing you'll be posting is Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz nonsense.

[runawayjimbo]

Can we at least talk about serious candidates?
Next thing you'll be posting is Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz nonsense.

I wouldn't put Rubio in the Ted Cruz jackass category. I mean, if Hillary was taking him serious enough to have her pals at the NYT put a garbage hit piece about him on the front page, you probably shouldn't dismiss him either. Now, I agree with you that he's a dickbag who pretends he likes Wu-Tang cuz that's what the kidz like, but he's certainly in the top tier of establishment candidates (read: asshats).

BTW, Daily Show is gonna smoke tonight.