Hillary Clinton: "What happened in Flint is immoral"
Source: cbsnews.com
By Hannah Fraser-Chanpong CBS News February 7, 2016, 5:04 PM
Hillary Clinton: "What happened in Flint is immoral"
MANCHESTER, New Hampshire Hillary Clinton called on Congress to approve $200 million in federal aid to fix the damaged water system in Flint, Michigan on Sunday.
"Congress needs to pass that bill immediately," Clinton said, speaking at a church in Flint, and referring to legislation introduced by state legislators. "This is no time for politics as usual."
Clinton said that access to clean water is "not optional."
"This is not merely unacceptable or wrong," she said. "What happened in Flint is immoral."
Clinton traveled to Flint from Manchester on Sunday morning, just two days before the primary election, in an effort to bring attention to the water crisis there. She has been speaking out about Flint for weeks, including at the Democratic debate last month in Charleston, South Carolina. Clinton used her closing statement to draw attention to the contamination problem and to call out state officials.......................
Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/hillary-clinton-what-happened-in-flint-is-immoral/
EDIT To ADD:Hillary Clinton Verified account ?@HillaryClinton 5h5 hours ago
"The children of Flint are just as precious as the children of any other part of America." Hillary in Flint today
Karen Finney Verified account ?@finneyk 5h5 hours ago
Meeting with the community @HillaryClinton proposing the idea that people of Flint be hired to help do the long term work needed.
HassleCat
(6,409 posts)All democrats will vote for it, and probably a good number of Republicans. The smart ones, assuming there are still a few left, will want to put this Republican-made disaster in the rear view mirror as quickly as possible.
NowSam
(1,252 posts)what took her so long to speak out? This isn't new.
riversedge
(70,285 posts)NowSam
(1,252 posts)and not running for the highest office in the land. Why do you ask?
bigdarryl
(13,190 posts)At least she's been talking about it The other candidates have not been to Flint including Sanders.
DeltaLitProf
(770 posts). . . and it's exceedingly good politics the way she's doing it. See this article that has her talking about the issue at least since Jan. 11:
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/02/hillary-clinton-flint-strategy
You'd think the Clinton Foundation would be involved in the effort to provide water and filters, but my searches on google haven't uncovered any mention of that.
mercuryblues
(14,537 posts)if the foundation does help there would be tons of outrage from the Clinton haters. You know...trying to buy the election via the charity. It would be twisted around 20 different ways in an attempt to make her look nefarious.
edited in: look at post 14 for some anti Clinton spin on this
BlueMTexpat
(15,372 posts)chapdrum
(930 posts)Right. The money's available, somewhere/somehow - who's going to pony up?
pandr32
(11,605 posts)Still...need is need. Hopefully Congress will approve the funds.
BlueMTexpat
(15,372 posts)out in any meaningful fashion. Everyone else is playing catch-up - if they are playing at all. I haven't heard a peep lately from Bernie about this. His major contribution was to say that the governor should resign and that was awhile ago.
In part because of Hillary's speaking out, the mayor of Flint endorsed her candidacy.
NowSam
(1,252 posts)Three things:
1. January 11 was already late to speak. No?
2. What good has become for the people from her speaking up? What good will come of it? Seems to me to be pure political posturing. We need policies and regulations in place before these immoral and horrible crimes are committed that protect the people and punish the scoundrels.
3. This thread was specifically about Hillary who chose to go tour the devastation to contrast Bernie's appearance on SNL. This wasn't a Bernie thread. He was correct in saying the Governor should resign. His policies and his entire campaign are meant to highlight, and correct such horrible injustices. He is all about championing these causes.
Sorry. She may be saying the right thing but my perception is that she is part of the broken system that allows things like Flint to happen in the first place - and that is the problem.
BlueMTexpat
(15,372 posts)courtesy in your response.
1. It is never too late to speak out about a wrong. Flint may have been a problem before but it didn't seem to penetrate the national consciousness until recently. The thing is that Flint is symbolic of too many situations in the US that have been ignored simply because the residents were poor or members of minority communities. It is a clear instance of environmental racism and not mere "political posturing" as you put it.
2. If Bernie is all about "championing these causes," why did he simply stop at calling for the governor's resignation? Sure, that was a great reaction, but did not go far enough in the opinion of many. He simply turned back to his stump speech based on economic inequality. Hillary is going to Flint to find out what kinds of actions can be taken NOW - no matter what happens to her in the election. And she WILL follow up to help out however she can - no matter what happens in the election. That is the kind of person she has always been. She has a long record of effective activism, both in the US and abroad.
3. Flint is a city in Michigan. As such, it is under the governance of the state of Michigan. The federal government cannot just step in and do something about what is wrong there without Michigan's say-so. So how is Hillary - who has only ever been in political office in Arkansas, in New York, and in Washington, DC part of the "broken system" that let Flint happen? Bernie is also part of that same broken system and he has been in office in Washington, DC MUCH longer than she ever has. But she is acting and he isn't.
NowSam
(1,252 posts)What is happening to our fellow citizens across this land. Perhaps in the future the welfare of our own people and the conditions they are living in and make that a higher priority than the never ending war machine or enriching the billionaire class.
So good for her for going there and shining a spotlight on the horrors of runaway deregulation, corruption and greed.
Good for us both for our civility.
BlueMTexpat
(15,372 posts)billhicks76
(5,082 posts)I heard Bernie address it first. And he FIGHTS for the cause. She just talks about it and panders for votes like a political ambulance chaser. The Bubble is strong with this one.
LanternWaste
(37,748 posts)"I heard Bernie address it first..."
I also pretend that if I heard something, it must be because it's the first time it's been mentioned. It allows our bias to overwhelm any objective evidence we fail to provide which would support our mere allegation.
mcar
(42,372 posts)riversedge
(70,285 posts)Karen Finney Verified account ?@finneyk 5h5 hours ago
Meeting with the community @HillaryClinton proposing the idea that people of Flint be hired to help do the long term work needed.
SunSeeker
(51,660 posts)jtuck004
(15,882 posts)tens of millions more people, killed a few, will hurt many for generations.
If you had said the same thing about the Bank$ters and their actions on Wall Street instead of just taking their money you might not have to be spending so much time figure out how not to lose these days.
Heck. Just maybe, had you given less support to the Bank$ters before this, the people in Flint might not have poison flowing from the faucets in their home.
But we are where we are. They can't drink their own water, you have a nice, fat bank account.
NowSam
(1,252 posts)sadoldgirl
(3,431 posts)What a joke!
Rachel did this by going after it night after night,
until the general media picked it up.
Everybody, who watches news, knew about it.
HRC is just using it as a political football.
jillan
(39,451 posts)Hekate
(90,773 posts)...picked up the baton and publicized it repeatedly in an effort to reach those with the power to effect change.
"Those with the power to effect change" would be who? Politicians, legislators, that kind of person.
So who among them has picked up the baton? Looks like Hillary.
meow2u3
(24,768 posts)There. I corrected it for you.
jillan
(39,451 posts)pangaia
(24,324 posts)So is supporting fracking and invading the wrong country.
chapdrum
(930 posts)1) Affects Americans.
2) Apparently done willfully.
Invading a sovereign country and promoting fracking require some mature nuance.
kath
(10,565 posts)Omaha Steve
(99,700 posts)Where was Hillary last August???
By VICE News
August 24, 2015 | 6:00 pm
https://news.vice.com/article/in-photos-living-without-access-to-clean-water-on-the-navajo-nation
More than 10,000 people in the Navajo Nation which includes parts of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado live without regular access to clean drinking water.
Navajo Nation, the largest Native American reservation in the United States, has the highest concentration of water-poor homes in the country. At least 40 percent of the population on the reservation does not have access to clean running water.
The water situation is the result of isolated geography, extreme poverty, and a legacy of Uranium mining on Navajo soil. Thousands of water wells dot the reservation, but most have been marked unsafe to drink after decades of contamination.
VICE News met residents of Smith Lake, New Mexico, where many residents have to choose between infrequent deliveries from the "Water Lady," or risk drinking contaminated water.
it's been 8 years. I wonder if he is old enough to vote?
Handout material from a community teach-in about water sovereignty and water contamination in Navajo Nation.
Darlene Arviso delivers water to over 200 families each month.
riversedge
(70,285 posts)Omaha Steve
(99,700 posts)Get real.
riversedge
(70,285 posts)I am glad she is keeping the tragedy in the national spotlight. It will help the kids and families. That is the goal regardless of whatever ulterior motive you make up.
Omaha Steve
(99,700 posts)I remember Hillary getting a thank you from Michael Moore for mentioning "Flint" in the debate. One of her best comments, of the few she has had.
But who did Michael endorse later?
NorthCarolina
(11,197 posts)Moore's endorsement of Bernie. Glad to hear that he has apparently endorsed Bernie. Is he out campaigning for him as well? Guess I have some Googling to do.
Omaha Steve
(99,700 posts)He can't even promote his new movie.
http://michaelmoore.com/MyEndorsementOfBernie/
http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2016/02/filmmaker_michael_moore_in_icu.html
NorthCarolina
(11,197 posts)Sent Michael's endorsement to Twittersville.
I had read that he was in ICU, and pneumonia is a serious thing, so best wishes for a speedy recovery to Michael Moore from this lowly Bernie supporter.
Thanks again for your post.
earthshine
(1,642 posts)I live in the mountains in North Carolina. That last major East coast storm? Neighbors and I noticed some weird piles of snow that took way too long to melt.
The community swimming pool (which still has the summer's water) iced over and stayed that way for days after above-freezing temps returned. It's never done that before.
Any thoughts? Would love to read them.
chapdrum
(930 posts)In our civil discourse, this reflexive response is, more often than not, missing from the many environmental depradations we evidently are permitted to sustain.
fbc
(1,668 posts)Why should US taxpayers have to put up money for the reckless corruption of the Michigan governor while that governor not only isn't being charged with a crime, but hasn't even been removed from office?
Yeah, I get it, the people of Flint need help and they should receive it. That's not really taking much of stand, is it?
It's more or less the same stand Clinton has on the financial meltdown: "Let's all pitch in and bail them out, but nobody point any fingers"
DI Freighter Watcher
(128 posts)Her outrage would be more believable if she would issue a scathing condemnation of Governor Snyder and call for his arrest and prosecution. But she is so entrenched in the establishment she can't even criticize a Republican, even one who poisoned BABIES!
billhicks76
(5,082 posts)500000 dead Iraqi kids from water born diseases where she said it was worth it. Did Hillary speak out about that? Of course not because she didn't care. It only matters if it aids her manipulations.