Captain Renault would be shocked: Hillary Clinton's campaign put pressure on Eliot Spitzer to drop his disastrous licenses-for-illegals plan.
The word came from crack NY Post Albany reporter Fred Dicker [pictured here], appearing on this afternoon's Hardball.
View video here.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Do you know if Hillary Clinton had anything to do with Governor Spitzer's decision to do his 180?
FRED DICKER: Yeah, we believe she did. We were told -- I was told -- at a very high level in New York politics that Mrs. Clinton's campaign or some of her top people signalled to Governor Spitzer's people that he had damaged her. They were wondering what the heck he was up to, why did he bring it to the floor now, and made it clear that the governor was hurting her and he ought to back down if he wanted to help her, which he says he wants to do.
MATTHEWS: Is anybody in his office saying that, or are you getting that from a third party? Is anybody in Spitzer's office saying that the governor got the word from Hillary to cut it?
DICKER: In his camp, but not his office. But at the highest levels.
MATTHEWS: Well how does it work? Did she send word through New York politicians that it was hurting her?
DICKER: Well first of all Spitzer's a very smart guy and he's aware of what happened. Secondly, they travel in similar circles. High-level consultants talk with one another. The governor's political consultants and advisors were advised as to the damage that was done here. That's how it was related.
And the rest is history. Spitzer dumped his proposal, and Hillary immediately announced that as president she would not support licenses-for-illegals.
So much for the proposal that a scant two weeks ago she declared was a "good idea."
Aside: Dicker says that Hillary's people asked aides to Spitzer "what the heck he was up to?" Think the actual language might have been a tad more colorful?
Note: Allahpundit is reserving judgment on the story on the theory that Spitzer might be looking for a scapegoat. But wouldn't the NY gov be committing political suicide in levelling a false accusation against Hillary?
—Mark Finkelstein is a NewsBusters contributing editor and host of Right Angle. Contact him at mark@gunhill.net.
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Mark
November 14, 2007 - 19:09 ET by Noel SheppardMark,
Been waiting all day for someone to make this claim. There's no question that's what happened here. This is an impossible issue for both parties, and I'm sure Hillary doesn't want to be asked any more immigration questions. ns
Dicker is the consummate
November 14, 2007 - 19:11 ET by Mark FinkelsteinDicker is the consummate Albany insider. I have confidence in his report.
But, will Wolf ask her?
November 14, 2007 - 19:24 ET by general companyBut, will Wolf ask her? What fun
"Always do right. This will gratify some people, and astonish the rest". Mark Twain
Yes
November 14, 2007 - 19:41 ET by LighthouseJI was just watching CNN and they were talking about this same issue. One of the panel members indirectly asked if the candidates will be asked about illegal immigrants and Blitzer said in no certain terms that there will be some sort of line of questions about illegal immigrants.
"Boats are safe in the harbor, but that's not what they're made for." -- Maritime quote
He had better keep a stiff
November 14, 2007 - 20:15 ET by general companyHe had better keep a stiff upper lip, cant wait.
"Always do right. This will gratify some people, and astonish the rest". Mark Twain
Anyone want to bet if his
November 14, 2007 - 21:46 ET by motherbeltAnyone want to bet if his questions will be along this line:
Senator Clinton says illegal immigrants shouldn't have driver's licenses...do you agree with that?
or
Senator Clinton has pledged to reform our immigration system and secure the border if elected. What would you do regarding illegal immigration?
Do you think he will ask her if her plan to "reform" the system will include amnesty?
Mark & Noel,
November 14, 2007 - 22:13 ET by Dave RDo either of you think it just a little strange the the "smartest woman on the planet" stepped into this huge pile of manure so clumsily? I mean, this pile is fifty feet high and a hundred feet wide, yet Hillary Rhodam lept into it with both feet, as well as both hands.
People who never went beyond the seventh grade would have easily seen it.
Why didn't she?
Something just isn't quite right here.
Why didn't she see it?
November 15, 2007 - 11:17 ET by Hunter12The Democrats and (let's face it) any Republican with a large Latino population in their district are catering to a potentially large voting bloc. That's why they're willing to promise health and welfare benefits to a group of people who have never paid a dime into the system and will send the dollars they reap back to the homeland. Any legal immigrants and those of us born here should cringe at the impact this will have on our childrens' future.
"An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last." - Sir Winston Churchill
It's coming...
November 14, 2007 - 19:15 ET by tbbaxterMark my words: if HillBilly (Hillary AND Bill) becomes President, illegal aliens will have driver's licenses in 2009, and they will have complete amnesty by 2010. Hillary has been humiliated by this issue, and she will make sure all Americans pay for her embarassment.
"Hillary has been
November 14, 2007 - 20:21 ET by HumanEvents"Hillary has been humiliated by this issue..."
Isn't in interesting how the Clintons get humiliated by just being exposed for who they are. Other people get humiliated if they tear their pants, slip on a banana peel, etc. But the Clintons? Ask them a challenging question, quote them something they actually said, state something in a debate or interview that they actually did, and they are humiliated. Very interesting that Tim Russert, Chris Dodd, Barack Obama, and John Edwards embarrassed The Dragon Lady by simply quoting her actual words!
The She-devil and her scampaign are so incredibly dirty and corrupt. Too bad there's so many of her supporters who have already decided they will vote for her no matter what happens. She's probably the only candidate who can literally say or do anything and still have the vast amount of her supporters be in her camp.
A liberal persuaded against his will is of the same opinion still.
tbbaxter, not "if", but
November 14, 2007 - 21:19 ET by Sonny Lykostbbaxter, not "if", but "when."
I'm licking my chops for
November 14, 2007 - 19:50 ET by bobthemanI'm licking my chops for the day the republican nominee goes head to head with this woman. A smart, well concieved, aggressive PR campaign to expose the hypocrisy of this woman is going to be a thing to behold.
http://politicsofdes...
Reactions
November 14, 2007 - 20:15 ET by John StephensonRounding up blog reactions
I don't know what to think
November 14, 2007 - 20:28 ET by Col SmokeI don't know what to think about this story...if I recall correctly, Hillary came out a day or two after the debate and confirmed that she was indeeed in favor of this scheme. It wasn't just her waffling quote from the debate, but she actually endorsed giving state IDs to illegal aliens.
This seems more like some CYA story out of that jerk Spitzer's "camp" - first he tried to blame Bush, now he blames Hitlery. Truly, I really, really worry about the voters of the Empire State.
I know exactly what to think ...
November 14, 2007 - 20:59 ET by drewinmass61Hillary will now be on the "right" side of this issue while Obama is in favor of liscences for illegals. She's positioned herself to the right of Obama. Exactly where she needs and wants to be. Never mind that we all know she would sell out her country to illegals in order to win the Presidency. The lamestream media will now be falling all over themselves to tell American's how she's tough on illegals and against this awful lisence idea. And the average American's attention span may be just short enough to pull the ruse off.
Overstepping
November 14, 2007 - 20:36 ET by doug1950NO one seems upset that Hillary has overstepped her authority in directing a State's Governor what to do and he is abiding.
Hillary's Lock Box
November 14, 2007 - 20:48 ET by TinianIt's simple: Hillary has Spitzers testicles in her lock box.
Rally online with fans of Dr. Ron Paul.
Nice pic, Mark
November 14, 2007 - 20:51 ET by Blonde"Round up the usual suspects".
Too funny. Sublime, actually.
David Gregory, do you know which damn network you lie for? ~ Uncle Jimbo, @Blackfive
Or.. Round up the
November 15, 2007 - 10:29 ET by Jack BauerOr..
In her statement, Senator
November 14, 2007 - 21:34 ET by motherbeltIn her statement, Senator Clinton said (emphasis added):
“As president, I will not support driver’s licenses for undocumented
people and will press for comprehensive immigration reform that deals
with all of the issues around illegal immigration including border
security and fixing our broken system.”
Well, well, well, I guess she is done with "understanding" what Gov. Spitzer was trying to do!
Excuse me, but what, exactly is "broken" in our system? Our immigration system is just fine, thank you, if people would only enforce our laws. Border security??? Does anyone really believe that? Has she ever championed border security before today? I did a Google search on Clinton border security, and all I found was an article from 2005 where she and Schumer voted against a bill.
Amd where else is there to go to fix the "broken system" and accomplish "immigration reform" other than granting amnesty?
mb, we don't need "comprehensive" anything.
November 14, 2007 - 22:04 ET by Dave RWhat we need is a leader who will staunchly enforce the immigration laws already on the books.
Sadly, we do not have one at the moment.
-
November 14, 2007 - 23:55 ET by dahliatraversWhat we need is a leader who will staunchly enforce the immigration laws already on the books.
Exactly correct. In particular, our employment laws. In fact, there is evidence that recent modestly stepped up enforcement efforts are already paying off.
First it is obvious
November 14, 2007 - 22:40 ET by Right2thePointFirst it is obvious something is broken or we would not have the number here we do now!
It is not as simple as "enforce the laws we have" if only it were.
Malkin has well documented how even when caught the whole court system mess driven by groups like the ACLU have exploited loopholes in the laws to drag on the deportations through dozens of months with the multistep appeal process that the system currently has.
That section of the law needs to be tightened up with clarity to eliminate all the shell game tactics that now frustruate the system to get a deportion order.
It is far from the catch them and they are gone situation. Some people have been in the system trying to get them over the border for three years or more due to the exploits of all the activist lawyers.
Also the smaller below the radar amnesty programs we have had in the past can give some people grey area status in up to as many as 4 or 5 seperate amnesty programs that we already have.
The immigration court system is a god awful mess that really does not act as a sufficient deterrent to the flow across the border and attention to that area to clear up the laws to close all the loopholes and especially regularize the multiple smaller amnesty special programs will go a long way toward making the system work like the lawmakers intended it to.
Nothing is broken, you're dealing with greed
November 15, 2007 - 11:57 ET by Hunter12The laws on the books could deal with the issues if enforced. Those businesses that employ illegals can be subject to forfeiture under existing laws. It should be a simple matter to convince those business owners that a smaller profit and no jail time is preferable to zero profit and a room-mate with a gleam in their eyes. What happens is the larger profits from employing illegals is funnelled into the pockets of our politicians and we all know what is allowed to happen there.
Federal Immigration and Nationality Act
Section 8 USC 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv)(b)(iii)
"Any person who . . . encourages or induces an alien to . . . reside . . . knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such . . . residence is . . . in violation of law, shall be punished as provided . . . for each alien in respect to whom such a violation occurs . . . fined under title 18 . . . imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both."
Section 274 felonies under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, INA 274A(a)(1)(A):
A person (including a group of persons, business, organization, or local government) commits a federal felony when she or he:
Penalties upon conviction include criminal fines, imprisonment, and forfeiture of vehicles and real property used to commit the crime. Anyone employing or contracting with an illegal alien without verifying his or her work authorization status is guilty of a misdemeanor. Aliens and employers violating immigration laws are subject to arrest, detention, and seizure of their vehicles or property. In addition, individuals or entities who engage in racketeering enterprises that commit (or conspire to commit) immigration-related felonies are subject to private civil suits for treble damages and injunctive relief."
"An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last." - Sir Winston Churchill
Sounds to me like many of
November 15, 2007 - 16:40 ET by BeowulfSounds to me like many of our politicians and the entire city of San Francisco have some serious jail time coming...
The Closed Mind Erects Strong Barriers
Many people, including some
November 14, 2007 - 21:57 ET by nythatesusaMany people, including some conservatives, give Bill Clinton credit for signing the wefare reform bill. But he signed it(after vetoing it twice)because he was told not doing so was the only thing that threatened his re-election in 1996. The same political calculation is motivating Hillary's flip to born-again border enforcer.
First Hillary blamed
November 14, 2007 - 22:31 ET by Right2thePointFirst Hillary blamed pressure in the debate and attacking by moderators and opponents as to here flubbed answer.
Then as others pointed out without the debate pressure, she has since altered her position several times and is now against it till the next poll.
SlityourThroatSter has gone from +23 to -20 in the NY polls since this issue started.
Hillary now wants comprehensive reform. The nutroots will simply kill her for that because that was the Bush position.
Obama is hanging tough and still supports the licenses (and thus motor voter as a byproduct)
-
November 15, 2007 - 00:20 ET by dahliatraversand is now against it till the next poll
That's right. Nothing sparks an epiphany for Bill or Hillary like the latest poll results.
-
November 15, 2007 - 00:29 ET by dahliatraversHillary Clinton's campaign put pressure on Eliot Spitzer to drop his disastrous licenses-for-illegals plan.
This is fascinating.
I'm not getting why the Clinton campaign needed Spitzer to withdraw the plan before she could change her mind. Why couldn't she just have said, upon reflection, I'm flip-flopping ... I mean, I've reconsidered my position - regardless of what Spitzer did?
or she could have just said
November 15, 2007 - 14:19 ET by sguild2or she could have just said it was a bad idea the first time she was asked. She didn't say it which means she is really in support of it.
}}---> Spritzer
November 15, 2007 - 01:07 ET by Cool ArrowSpitzer's gotta love being told to shut up by the Hill de Campe.
Plant crops - not questions
Wrong, Immigrant Breath....
November 15, 2007 - 10:08 ET by JayTeeSpitzer abandoned ship on the Licenses, because of the People of NY, the 70% who are against it. Pressure on Clinton was from the People who wanted her to take a stand against Licenses for Immigration.
Everyone is forgetting, including MSM, that the "people" control the Politicians......they Elect the Politicians,.....and as the recent election last week in Indiana showed, someone with no money and a small organizaton can win an important election against BIG money and BIG political machines, because of the "people".
The People spoke to Hillary and Spitzer, and they had to Respond......it was "power to the People".
The Elected Officails are having a hard time getting the message, and still try work arounds and play games with Immigration, but the Butt Brains better start building a fence, or they will be replaced by someone who WILL.
What good is a Free Press, if it is a False Press ? David Foote GoE
}}---> OH really, JayTee?
November 15, 2007 - 10:27 ET by Cool ArrowDo you really believe Wolf Blintzer will question Hillary on this subject tonight at the debate?
Plant crops - not questions
That Depends FrozenArrow
November 15, 2007 - 10:40 ET by JayTeeDoes/Will Wolf Blizer represent the People ? MSM has one vote per talking head in the elections.
I was very surprised Tim Russet stepped up the questioning in the last Debate.......that was a shock. Will the other Candidates jump on poor 'ole Hillary and play rough with her performance and flip flopping ?
Wolf will either have some gonads, or hillary will have his in a lock box with Spitzer's. The words Flip/flop should come out of someone's mouth tonight.
So who was that Masked Indiana Republican that won the election lst week in Indiana against the Huge Democratic Machine ? Was it a Mayor ?
What good is a Free Press, if it is a False Press ? David Foote GoE
}}---> Greg Ballard
November 15, 2007 - 10:47 ET by Cool ArrowWas that Indianapolis mayoral race a hoot, or what? Seems his competition gave him name recognition and ingratiated him to the voters as an outsider with no experience in Business as Usual.
PS - I also go by chillydart.
Plant crops - not questions
The MSM is hiding that news
November 15, 2007 - 10:58 ET by JayTeeFox reported on the Indianapolis mayoral race as a shocker.......but nobody on the MSM wants to say much. As election Trends go, we have the Republican. Louisiana GOV. winning recently, now a Republican winning a Mayoral Race against a Big Political machine....people, we're seeing a Trend here, and I think it's gonna keep on keeping on.
Everyone forgets the MSM calling John Kerry winning in exit polls all over the nation, only to be followed by 53 million voting for Bush. MSM lies, just like Hollywood.
The Quiet MSM on Iraq is starting to Stink......everyone is smelling the lack of news, and wondering.
And Guess what....Congress INSISTED that Petraeus report back in 2008. Petraus has to speak again, and Congress better behave towards the General.....or risk the wrath of teh people come election time.
What good is a Free Press, if it is a False Press ? David Foote GoE
made it clear that the
November 15, 2007 - 10:53 ET by taznarSo it wasn't her lack of a firm stance on the topic that hurt her, it was his firm stance that hurt her? Got it -if Hillary's foot is in her mouth its because someone else put it there. That's what's called "Liberal Leadership".