HRC Paid Speeches
Team,
Attached are the flags from HRC’s paid speeches we have from HWA. I put
some highlights below. There is a lot of policy positions that we should
give an extra scrub with Policy.
In terms of what was opened to the press and what was not, the Washington
Examiner got a hold of one of the private speech contracts (her speeches to
universities were typically open press), so this is worth a read
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/clintons-speeches-are-cozy-for-wall-streeters-but-closed-to-journalists/article/2553294/section/author/dan-friedman
*CLINTON ADMITS SHE IS OUT OF TOUCH*
*Hillary Clinton: “I'm Kind Of Far Removed” From The Struggles Of The
Middle Class “Because The Life I've Lived And The Economic, You Know,
Fortunes That My Husband And I Now Enjoy.” *“And I am not taking a position
on any policy, but I do think there is a growing sense of anxiety and even
anger in the country over the feeling that the game is rigged. And I never
had that feeling when I was growing up. Never. I mean, were there really
rich people, of course there were. My father loved to complain about big
business and big government, but we had a solid middle class upbringing.
We had good public schools. We had accessible health care. We had our
little, you know, one-family house that, you know, he saved up his money,
didn't believe in mortgages. So I lived that. And now, obviously, I'm
kind of far removed because the life I've lived and the economic, you know,
fortunes that my husband and I now enjoy, but I haven't forgotten it.”
[Hillary Clinton Remarks at Goldman-Black Rock, 2/4/14]
*CLINTON SAYS YOU NEED TO HAVE A PRIVATE AND PUBLIC POSITION ON POLICY*
*Clinton: “But If Everybody's Watching, You Know, All Of The Back Room
Discussions And The Deals, You Know, Then People Get A Little Nervous, To
Say The Least. So, You Need Both A Public And A Private Position.”*
CLINTON: You just have to sort of figure out how to -- getting back to that
word, "balance" -- how to balance the public and the private efforts that
are necessary to be successful, politically, and that's not just a comment
about today. That, I think, has probably been true for all of our history,
and if you saw the Spielberg movie, Lincoln, and how he was maneuvering and
working to get the 13th Amendment passed, and he called one of my favorite
predecessors, Secretary Seward, who had been the governor and senator from
New York, ran against Lincoln for president, and he told Seward, I need
your help to get this done. And Seward called some of his lobbyist friends
who knew how to make a deal, and they just kept going at it. I mean,
politics is like sausage being made. It is unsavory, and it always has been
that way, but we usually end up where we need to be. But if everybody's
watching, you know, all of the back room discussions and the deals, you
know, then people get a little nervous, to say the least. So, you need both
a public and a private position. And finally, I think -- I believe in
evidence-based decision making. I want to know what the facts are. I mean,
it's like when you guys go into some kind of a deal, you know, are you
going to do that development or not, are you going to do that renovation or
not, you know, you look at the numbers. You try to figure out what's going
to work and what's not going to work. [Clinton Speech For National
Multi-Housing Council, 4/24/13]
*CLINTON TALKS ABOUT HOLDING WALL STREET ACCOUNTABLE ONLY FOR POLITICAL
REASONS*
*Clinton Said That The Blame Placed On The United States Banking System For
The Crisis “Could Have Been Avoided In Terms Of Both Misunderstanding And
Really Politicizing What Happened.”* “That was one of the reasons that I
started traveling in February of '09, so people could, you know, literally
yell at me for the United States and our banking system causing this
everywhere. Now, that's an oversimplification we know, but it was the
conventional wisdom. And I think that there's a lot that could have been
avoided in terms of both misunderstanding and really politicizing what
happened with greater transparency, with greater openness on all sides, you
know, what happened, how did it happen, how do we prevent it from
happening? You guys help us figure it out and let's make sure that we do
it right this time. And I think that everybody was desperately trying to
fend off the worst effects institutionally, governmentally, and there just
wasn't that opportunity to try to sort this out, and that came later.”
[Goldman Sachs AIMS Alternative Investments Symposium, 10/24/13]
*Clinton: “Even If It May Not Be 100 Percent True, If The Perception Is
That Somehow The Game Is Rigged, That Should Be A Problem For All Of
Us.” *“Now,
it's important to recognize the vital role that the financial markets play
in our economy and that so many of you are contributing to. To function
effectively those markets and the men and women who shape them have to
command trust and confidence, because we all rely on the market's
transparency and integrity. So even if it may not be 100 percent true, if
the perception is that somehow the game is rigged, that should be a problem
for all of us, and we have to be willing to make that absolutely clear.
And if there are issues, if there's wrongdoing, people have to be held
accountable and we have to try to deter future bad behavior, because the
public trust is at the core of both a free market economy and a democracy.”
[Clinton Remarks to Deutsche Bank, 10/7/14]
*CLINTON SUGGESTS WALL STREET INSIDERS ARE WHAT IS NEEDED TO FIX WALL
STREET*
*Clinton Said Financial Reform “Really Has To Come From The Industry
Itself.” *“Remember what Teddy Roosevelt did. Yes, he took on what he saw
as the excesses in the economy, but he also stood against the excesses in
politics. He didn't want to unleash a lot of nationalist, populistic
reaction. He wanted to try to figure out how to get back into that balance
that has served America so well over our entire nationhood. Today, there's
more that can and should be done that really has to come from the industry
itself, and how we can strengthen our economy, create more jobs at a time
where that's increasingly challenging, to get back to Teddy Roosevelt's
square deal. And I really believe that our country and all of you are up
to that job.” [Clinton Remarks to Deutsche Bank, 10/7/14]
*Speaking About The Importance Of Proper Regulation, Clinton Said “The
People That Know The Industry Better Than Anybody Are The People Who Work
In The Industry.”* “I mean, it's still happening, as you know. People are
looking back and trying to, you know, get compensation for bad mortgages
and all the rest of it in some of the agreements that are being reached.
There's nothing magic about regulations, too much is bad, too little is
bad. How do you get to the golden key, how do we figure out what works?
And the people that know the industry better than anybody are the people
who work in the industry. And I think there has to be a recognition that,
you know, there's so much at stake now, I mean, the business has changed so
much and decisions are made so quickly, in nano seconds basically. We
spend trillions of dollars to travel around the world, but it's in
everybody's interest that we have a better framework, and not just for the
United States but for the entire world, in which to operate and trade.”
[Goldman Sachs AIMS Alternative Investments Symposium, 10/24/13]
*CLINTON ADMITS NEEDING WALL STREET FUNDING*
*Clinton Said That Because Candidates Needed Money From Wall Street To Run
For Office, People In New York Needed To Ask Tough Questions About The
Economy Before Handing Over Campaign Contributions. *“Secondly, running for
office in our country takes a lot of money, and candidates have to go out
and raise it. New York is probably the leading site for contributions for
fundraising for candidates on both sides of the aisle, and it's also our
economic center. And there are a lot of people here who should ask some
tough questions before handing over campaign contributions to people who
were really playing chicken with our whole economy.” [Goldman Sachs AIMS
Alternative Investments Symposium, 10/24/13]
*Clinton: “It Would Be Very Difficult To Run For President Without Raising
A Huge Amount Of Money And Without Having Other People Supporting You
Because Your Opponent Will Have Their Supporters.”* “So our system is, in
many ways, more difficult, certainly far more expensive and much longer
than a parliamentary system, and I really admire the people who subject
themselves to it. Even when I, you know, think they should not be elected
president, I still think, well, you know, good for you I guess, you're out
there promoting democracy and those crazy ideas of yours. So I think that
it's something -- I would like -- you know, obviously as somebody who has
been through it, I would like it not to last as long because I think it's
very distracting from what we should be doing every day in our public
business. I would like it not to be so expensive. I have no idea how you
do that. I mean, in my campaign -- I lose track, but I think I raised $250
million or some such enormous amount, and in the last campaign President
Obama raised 1.1 billion, and that was before the Super PACs and all of
this other money just rushing in, and it's so ridiculous that we have this
kind of free for all with all of this financial interest at stake, but, you
know, the Supreme Court said that's basically what we're in for. So we're
kind of in the wild west, and, you know, it would be very difficult to run
for president without raising a huge amount of money and without having
other people supporting you because your opponent will have their
supporters. So I think as hard as it was when I ran, I think it's even
harder now.” [Clinton Speech For General Electric’s Global Leadership
Meeting – Boca Raton, FL, 1/6/14]
*CLINTON TOUTS HER RELATIONSHIP TO WALL STREET AS A SENATOR*
*Clinton: As Senator, “I Represented And Worked With” So Many On Wall
Street And “Did All I Could To Make Sure They Continued To Prosper” But
Still Called For Closing Carried Interest Loophole. *In remarks at Robbins,
Gellar, Rudman & Dowd in San Diego, Hillary Clinton said, “When I was a
Senator from New York, I represented and worked with so many talented
principled people who made their living in finance. But even thought I
represented them and did all I could to make sure they continued to
prosper, I called for closing the carried interest loophole and addressing
skyrocketing CEO pay. I also was calling in '06, '07 for doing something
about the mortgage crisis, because I saw every day from Wall Street
literally to main streets across New York how a well-functioning financial
system is essential. So when I raised early warnings about early warnings
about subprime mortgages and called for regulating derivatives and over
complex financial products, I didn't get some big arguments, because people
sort of said, no, that makes sense. But boy, have we had fights about it
ever since.” [Hillary Clinton’s Remarks at Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd in
San Diego, 9/04/14]
*Clinton On Wall Street: “I Had Great Relations And Worked So Close
Together After 9/11 To Rebuild Downtown, And A Lot Of Respect For The Work
You Do And The People Who Do It.” *“Now, without going over how we got to
where we are right now, what would be your advice to the Wall Street
community and the big banks as to the way forward with those two important
decisions? SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, I represented all of you for eight
years. I had great relations and worked so close together after 9/11 to
rebuild downtown, and a lot of respect for the work you do and the people
who do it, but I do -- I think that when we talk about the regulators and
the politicians, the economic consequences of bad decisions back in '08,
you know, were devastating, and they had repercussions throughout the
world.” [Goldman Sachs AIMS Alternative Investments Symposium, 10/24/13]
*CLINTON TALKS ABOUT THE CHALLENGES RUNNING FOR OFFICE*
*Hillary Clinton Said There Was “A Bias Against People Who Have Led
Successful And/Or Complicated Lives,” Citing The Need To Divese Of Assets,
Positions, And Stocks.* “SECRETARY CLINTON: Yeah. Well, you know what
Bob Rubin said about that. He said, you know, when he came to Washington,
he had a fortune. And when he left Washington, he had a small
-- MR. BLANKFEIN: That’s how you have a small fortune, is you
go to Washington. SECRETARY CLINTON: You go to Washington.
Right. But, you know, part of the problem with the political
situation, too, is that there is such a bias against people who have led
successful and/or complicated lives. You know, the divestment of assets,
the stripping of all kinds of positions, the sale of stocks. It just
becomes very onerous and unnecessary.” [Goldman Sachs Builders And
Innovators Summit, 10/29/13]
*CLINTON SUGGESTS SHE IS A MODERATE*
*Clinton Said That Both The Democratic And Republican Parties Should Be
“Moderate.” *“URSULA BURNS: Interesting. Democrats? SECRETARY CLINTON:
Oh, long, definitely. URSULA BURNS: Republicans? SECRETARY CLINTON:
Unfortunately, at the time, short. URSULA BURNS: Okay. We'll go back to
questions. SECRETARY CLINTON: We need two parties. URSULA BURNS: Yeah, we
do need two parties. SECRETARY CLINTON: Two sensible, moderate, pragmatic
parties.” [Hillary Clinton Remarks, Remarks at Xerox, 3/18/14]
*Clinton: “Simpson-Bowles… Put Forth The Right Framework. Namely, We Have
To Restrain Spending, We Have To Have Adequate Revenues, And We Have To
Incentivize Growth. It's A Three-Part Formula… And They Reached An
Agreement. But What Is Very Hard To Do Is To Then Take That Agreement If
You Don't Believe That You're Going To Be Able To Move The Other Side.”*
SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, this may be borne more out of hope than
experience in the last few years. But Simpson-Bowles -- and I know you
heard from Erskine earlier today -- put forth the right framework. Namely,
we have to restrain spending, we have to have adequate revenues, and we
have to incentivize growth. It's a three-part formula. The specifics can
be negotiated depending upon whether we're acting in good faith or not. And
what Senator Simpson and Erskine did was to bring Republicans and Democrats
alike to the table, and you had the full range of ideological views from I
think Tom Coburn to Dick Durbin. And they reached an agreement. But what
is very hard to do is to then take that agreement if you don't believe that
you're going to be able to move the other side. And where we are now is in
this gridlocked dysfunction. So you've got Democrats saying that, you know,
you have to have more revenues; that's the sine qua non of any kind of
agreement. You have Republicans saying no, no, no on revenues; you have to
cut much more deeply into spending. Well, looks what's happened. We are
slowly returning to growth. It's not as much or as fast as many of us
would like to see, but, you know, we're certainly better off than our
European friends, and we're beginning to, I believe, kind of come out of
the long aftermath of the '08 crisis. [Clinton Speech For Morgan Stanley,
4/18/13]
*Clinton: “The Simpson-Bowles Framework And The Big Elements Of It Were
Right… You Have To Restrain Spending, You Have To Have Adequate Revenues,
And You Have To Have Growth.”* CLINTON: So, you know, the Simpson-Bowles
framework and the big elements of it were right. The specifics can be
negotiated and argued over. But you got to do all three. You have to
restrain spending, you have to have adequate revenues, and you have to have
growth. And I think we are smart enough to figure out how to do that.
[Clinton Speech For Morgan Stanley, 4/18/13]
*CLINTON IS AWARE OF SECURITY CONCERNS AROUND BLACKBERRIES*
*Clinton: “At The State Department We Were Attacked Every Hour, More Than
Once An Hour By Incoming Efforts To Penetrate Everything We Had. And That
Was True Across The U.S. Government.”* CLINTON: But, at the State
Department we were attacked every hour, more than once an hour by incoming
efforts to penetrate everything we had. And that was true across the U.S.
government. And we knew it was going on when I would go to China, or I
would go to Russia, we would leave all of our electronic equipment on the
plane, with the batteries out, because this is a new frontier. And they're
trying to find out not just about what we do in our government. They're
trying to find out about what a lot of companies do and they were going
after the personal emails of people who worked in the State Department. So
it's not like the only government in the world that is doing anything is
the United States. But, the United States compared to a number of our
competitors is the only government in the world with any kind of
safeguards, any kind of checks and balances. They may in many respects
need to be strengthened and people need to be reassured, and they need to
have their protections embodied in law. But, I think turning over a lot of
that material intentionally or unintentionally, because of the way it can
be drained, gave all kinds of information not only to big countries, but to
networks and terrorist groups, and the like. So I have a hard time thinking
that somebody who is a champion of privacy and liberty has taken refuge in
Russia under Putin's authority. And then he calls into a Putin talk show
and says, President Putin, do you spy on people? And President Putin says,
well, from one intelligence professional to another, of course not. Oh,
thank you so much. I mean, really, I don't know. I have a hard time
following it. [Clinton Speech At UConn, 4/23/14]
*Hillary Clinton: “When I Got To The State Department, It Was Still Against
The Rules To Let Most -- Or Let All Foreign Service Officers Have Access To
A Blackberry.” *“I mean, let's face it, our government is woefully,
woefully behind in all of its policies that affect the use of technology.
When I got to the State Department, it was still against the rules to let
most -- or let all Foreign Service Officers have access to a Blackberry.
You couldn't have desktop computers when Colin Powell was there.
Everything that you are taking advantage of, inventing and using, is still
a generation or two behind when it comes to our government.” [Hillary
Clinton Remarks at Nexenta, 8/28/14]
*Hillary Clinton: “We Couldn't Take Our Computers, We Couldn't Take Our
Personal Devices” Off The Plane In China And Russia. *“I mean, probably the
most frustrating part of this whole debate are countries acting like we're
the only people in the world trying to figure out what's going on. I mean,
every time I went to countries like China or Russia, I mean, we couldn't
take our computers, we couldn't take our personal devices, we couldn't take
anything off the plane because they're so good, they would penetrate them
in a minute, less, a nanosecond. So we would take the batteries out, we'd
leave them on the plane.” [Hillary Clinton Remarks at Nexenta, 8/28/14]
*Clinton Said When She Got To State, Employees “Were Not Mostly Permitted
To Have Handheld Devices.”* “You know, when Colin Powell showed up as
Secretary of State in 2001, most State Department employees still didn't
even have computers on their desks. When I got there they were not mostly
permitted to have handheld devices. I mean, so you're thinking how do we
operate in this new environment dominated by technology, globalizing
forces? We have to change, and I can't expect people to change if I don't
try to model it and lead it.” [Clinton Speech For General Electric’s Global
Leadership Meeting – Boca Raton, FL, 1/6/14]
*Hillary Clinton Said You Know You Can’t Bring Your Phone And Computer When
Traveling To China And Russia And She Had To Take Her Batteries Out And Put
them In A Special Box. *“And anybody who has ever traveled in other
countries, some of which shall remain nameless, except for Russia and
China, you know that you can’t bring your phones and your computers. And
if you do, good luck. I mean, we would not only take the batteries out, we
would leave the batteries and the devices on the plane in special boxes.
Now, we didn’t do that because we thought it would be fun to tell somebody
about. We did it because we knew that we were all targets and that we
would be totally vulnerable. So it’s not only what others do to us and what
we do to them and how many people are involved in it. It’s what’s the
purpose of it, what is being collected, and how can it be used. And there
are clearly people in this room who know a lot about this, and some of you
could be very useful contributors to that conversation because you’re
sophisticated enough to know that it’s not just, do it, don’t do it. We
have to have a way of doing it, and then we have to have a way of analyzing
it, and then we have to have a way of sharing it.” [Goldman Sachs Builders
And Innovators Summit, 10/29/13]
*Hillary Clinton Lamented How Far Behind The State Department Was In
Technology, Saying “People Were Not Even Allowed To Use Mobile Devices
Because Of Security Issues.” *“Personally, having, you know, lived and
worked in the White House, having been a senator, having been Secretary of
State, there has traditionally been a great pool of very talented,
hard-working people. And just as I was saying about the credit market, our
personnel policies haven’t kept up with the changes necessary in
government. We have a lot of difficulties in getting—when I got to the
State Department, we were so far behind in technology, it was
embarrassing. And, you know, people were not even allowed to use mobile
devices because of security issues and cost issues, and we really had to
try to push into the last part of the 20th Century in order to get people
functioning in 2009 and ‘10.” [Goldman Sachs Builders And Innovators
Summit, 10/29/13]
*CLINTON REMARKS ARE PRO KEYSTONE AND PRO TRADE*
*Clinton: “So I Think That Keystone Is A Contentious Issue, And Of Course
It Is Important On Both Sides Of The Border For Different And Sometimes
Opposing Reasons…” *“So I think that Keystone is a contentious issue, and
of course it is important on both sides of the border for different and
sometimes opposing reasons, but that is not our relationship. And I think
our relationship will get deeper and stronger and put us in a position to
really be global leaders in energy and climate change if we worked more
closely together. And that's what I would like to see us do.” [Remarks at
tinePublic, 6/18/14]
*Hillary Clinton Said Her Dream Is A Hemispheric Common Market, With Open
Trade And Open Markets. *“My dream is a hemispheric common market, with
open trade and open borders, some time in the future with energy that is as
green and sustainable as we can get it, powering growth and opportunity for
every person in the hemisphere.” [05162013 Remarks to Banco Itau.doc, p.
28]
*Hillary Clinton Said We Have To Have A Concerted Plan To Increase Trade;
We Have To Resist Protectionism And Other Kinds Of Barriers To Trade.
*“Secondly,
I think we have to have a concerted plan to increase trade already under
the current circumstances, you know, that Inter-American Development Bank
figure is pretty surprising. There is so much more we can do, there is a
lot of low hanging fruit but businesses on both sides have to make it a
priority and it's not for governments to do but governments can either
make it easy or make it hard and we have to resist, protectionism, other
kinds of barriers to market access and to trade and I would like to see
this get much more attention and be not just a policy for a year under
president X or president Y but a consistent one.” [05162013 Remarks to
Banco Itau.doc, p. 32]
*CLINTON IS MORE FAVORABLE TO CANADIAN HEALTH CARE AND SINGLE PAYER*
*Clinton Said Single-Payer Health Care Systems “Can Get Costs Down,” And
“Is As Good Or Better On Primary Care,” But “They Do Impose Things Like
Waiting Times.” *“If you look at countries that are comparable, like
Switzerland or Germany, for example, they have mixed systems. They don't
have just a single-payer system, but they have very clear controls over
budgeting and accountability. If you look at the single-payer systems,
like Scandinavia, Canada, and elsewhere, they can get costs down because,
you know, although their care, according to statistics, overall is as good
or better on primary care, in particular, they do impose things like
waiting times, you know. It takes longer to get like a hip replacement
than it might take here.” [Hillary Clinton remarks to ECGR Grand Rapids,
6/17/13]
*Clinton Cited President Johnson’s Success In Establishing Medicare And
Medicaid And Said She Wanted To See The U.S. Have Universal Health Care
Like In Canada.* “You know, on healthcare we are the prisoner of our past.
The way we got to develop any kind of medical insurance program was during
World War II when companies facing shortages of workers began to offer
healthcare benefits as an inducement for employment. So from the early
1940s healthcare was seen as a privilege connected to employment. And
after the war when soldiers came back and went back into the market there
was a lot of competition, because the economy was so heated up. So that
model continued. And then of course our large labor unions bargained for
healthcare with the employers that their members worked for. So from the
early 1940s until the early 1960s we did not have any Medicare, or our
program for the poor called Medicaid until President Johnson was able to
get both passed in 1965. So the employer model continued as the primary
means by which working people got health insurance. People over 65 were
eligible for Medicare. Medicaid, which was a partnership, a funding
partnership between the federal government and state governments, provided
some, but by no means all poor people with access to healthcare. So what
we've been struggling with certainly Harry Truman, then Johnson was
successful on Medicare and Medicaid, but didn't touch the employer based
system, then actually Richard Nixon made a proposal that didn't go
anywhere, but was quite far reaching. Then with my husband's
administration we worked very hard to come up with a system, but we were
very much constricted by the political realities that if you had your
insurance from your employer you were reluctant to try anything else. And
so we were trying to build a universal system around the employer-based
system. And indeed now with President Obama's legislative success in
getting the Affordable Care Act passed that is what we've done. We still
have primarily an employer-based system, but we now have people able to get
subsidized insurance. So we have health insurance companies playing a
major role in the provision of healthcare, both to the employed whose
employers provide health insurance, and to those who are working but on
their own are not able to afford it and their employers either don't
provide it, or don't provide it at an affordable price. We are still
struggling. We've made a lot of progress. Ten million Americans now have
insurance who didn't have it before the Affordable Care Act, and that is a
great step forward. (Applause.) And what we're going to have to continue
to do is monitor what the costs are and watch closely to see whether
employers drop more people from insurance so that they go into what we call
the health exchange system. So we're really just at the beginning. But we
do have Medicare for people over 65. And you couldn't, I don't think, take
it away if you tried, because people are very satisfied with it, but we
also have a lot of political and financial resistance to expanding that
system to more people. So we're in a learning period as we move forward
with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. And I'm hoping that
whatever the shortfalls or the glitches have been, which in a big piece of
legislation you're going to have, those will be remedied and we can really
take a hard look at what's succeeding, fix what isn't, and keep moving
forward to get to affordable universal healthcare coverage like you have
here in Canada. [Clinton Speech For tinePublic – Saskatoon, CA, 1/21/15]