Thanks for the question, Bob Herbert.

Quote:
The Clinton camp knows what it’s doing, and its slimy maneuvers have been working. . . . it’s legitimate to ask, given the destructive developments of the last few weeks, whether the Clintons are capable of being anything but divisive. The electorate seems more polarized now than it was just a few weeks ago, and the Clintons have seemed positively gleeful in that atmosphere. It makes one wonder whether they have any understanding or regard for the corrosive long-term effects — on their party and the nation — of pitting people bitterly and unnecessarily against one another.

Reason for Nomination:
When Bob Herbert says that the Clinton camp knows what they're doing, he is asking the question of whether we can trust Hillary Rodham Clinton to be honest and open with the American people about our lives.

A cherished progressive freedom is the freedom to receive truthful and open communications from my government. When candidates and their surrogates are inauthentic, i.e. tell us they will be different that the last administration and then play to our weaknesses versus our strengths, the American people have the right to say NO.

This authenticity question has implications in all areas. If our vision is of a community of strong, empathetic and responsible neighbors looking out for one another, the implications are significant. For example, check out this link to the Boston Globe http://www.boston.com/[…]/

The link takes you to an article about the Bush administration creating a treaty without Senate consent, in violation of the US Constitution. Bush calls it an agreement, because agreements don’t need Senate consent. The Iraqis understand it as a treaty, which does need Senate consent.

HRC says we must "rein in" Bush. In general about the Iraq occupation HRC SAYS she plans to start the process of leaving Iraq "in a responsible way" within the first 60 days. If she’s inauthentic with race, might she be inauthentic with foreign policy. Is her position on Iraq just a clever way of saying we're going to be staying in Iraq for a long, long time, because that's the responsible thing to do after the Bush administration constructed this treaty illegally.

These conclusions are appropriately made by Americans, when we acknowledge the Clintons play fast and loose with our first freedom to be told the truth by our government.

Hats off to Bob Herbert.