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Trump says anyone would collude, but in the 2000 election, I called the FBI
In September of 2000, when Al Gore and George W. Bush were tied in the polls in their race for the White House, I was preparing to play Bush as Gore’s debate prep sparring partner. What happened next ended my role in that campaign, but serves as a contrasting precursor to events in a presidential campaign 16 years later.
The day before our first practice, I received a package of materials from an anonymous source that contained several VHS tapes and “debate materials” and a letter indicating that more documents where on the way. Naturally, I popped in one of the VHS tapes.
The minute I saw George Bush dressed in shorts practicing for a Tim Russert style interview, I knew my role in the Gore campaign was over. The hundreds of hours of preparation studying public tapes of Bush, reading volumes of briefing books, practicing speech patterns and phraseology even at the dinner table, much to the chagrin of my family, was utterly wasted. I stopped the tape after about 15 seconds, picked up the phone and notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation and immediately recused myself from the campaign.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 19 2017, @08:10PM (1 child)
You seem to have assumed (known?) that the tapes were illegally acquired. That needn't be the case with all information sources.
(Score: 2) by Sulla on Friday August 25 2017, @06:20PM
I'm going to go out on a limb and say we are talking about two different scenarios. Had it been the Trump campaign getting secret footage of Hillary practicing for debates (foil of situation here) I believe that the same thing should have been done with contacting the FBI. If the Russian dirt was these something that Hill had been doing that was legal, you tell the FBI, if the Russians give you information on stuff she was doing that was illegal, you use it to your advantage.
I think the meeting was absolutely stupid, but in a situation where Trump and his gang seem to personally feel that the gov't is covering up what Hill may have been doing wrong why would they contact the FBI about it. I think finding dirt on the illegal activities someone is doing is fair game, using spies to find out that your opponent is doing something perfectly legal that people won't like is not fair game, using spies to get debate prep into is definitely not fair game.
In conclusion, good on this guy. Closest I have gotten is reporting a team I was on to the department chair because one member copied answers out of the answer guide, another one recognized these answers and told me, and I downloaded said guide to confirm.
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 19 2017, @08:12PM
Fair play to Downey, doing the right thing in that scenario was undoubtedly a difficult but correct choice.
As for Trump Jr. Coming from the world of business into politics where your first introduction is being the target of the Clinton shit show... perhaps he simply thought this is how things are done? I'm not condoning his behaviour and think he should have called the FBI but the circumstances here are different enough that I cannot condemn him either.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday July 20 2017, @02:51PM (5 children)
Folks, it's a fact that dirty people are attracted to politics. It's also a fact that even a lot of good people who get into politics get themselves dirtied. And, all the while, these dirty bastards portray themselves as clean, wholesome, upstanding member of society.
If I had the dirt, I'd use it. Collusion? Maybe. I wouldn't necessarily use the dirt to help another dirty bastard win. But, I would truly love to undermine a dirty bastard. Unless, of course, that dirty bastard was less dirty than the alternative.
In this past election, I would have undermined Clinton, and refrained from undermining Trump. Neither position makes me a hero or anything. That's just my position on their relative dirtiness.
In the Bush - Gore circus, I'm afraid that I would have sided with Bush, then regretted it later. That is, I would have been happy to undermine Gore, and I would have refrained from undermining Bush. All these years later, I can't help wondering just how bad Gore would have been. At least he didn't have Cheney injecting poison into him day in and day out, justifying torture, and the denial of basic human rights to some newly classified species of humanity.
Bottom line, politics is all about dirt. If you've got the goods to bury your opponent, you might as well use it.
Hail to the Nibbler in Chief.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Thursday July 20 2017, @03:41PM (3 children)
Bottom line is that conservatives used to be patriots.
We're all well aware that you're now willing to sell out your country for your party.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 20 2017, @07:53PM
Trump clearly beats the average republican. Trump puts America first and doesn't openly despise ordinary Americans.
The average republican clearly beats the average democrat.
The average democrat probably beats Hillary. Face it though, almost none of the democrats are interested in national unity or putting the interests of the USA far above anything else. Democrats don't even like to fly the American flag or secure our borders. Democrats hate all of us Americans, themselves included.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday July 20 2017, @11:14PM (1 child)
Except - I don't have a party. Surely you've been paying that much attention.
Hail to the Nibbler in Chief.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Friday July 21 2017, @04:14PM
Sure, it's just a coincidence you're in 100% lock-step at all times even on matters of foreign governments interfering with our democracy.
Not a Republican....sure....keep tellin' yourself that...
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Friday July 21 2017, @02:06AM
At least he didn't have Cheney injecting poison into him
Lieberman is just as evil, probably more hawkish than Cheney even. Gore lost my vote because of him, and no, it didn't go to Bush either.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday July 20 2017, @07:41PM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 23 2017, @07:24PM
A good reminder of what the swamp looked like, and a confirmation that the current president is indeed different from that. We all just assumed that would mean an improvement. Doh to us.