Irony Fail from Democrats Reaches Epidemic Proportions
The natural extension of the mass Democratic rebuke of former Senator Al Franken is coming full circle. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) told a national audience on Monday that President Donald Trump should resign over allegations of sexual assault. You may recall, she was the first Democratic senator to call for Franken’s ouster just a few days ago. Coincidence? We think not.
Yesterday, Gillibrand ramped up the virtue signaling a few degrees by expressing aggressive platitudes on the subject of Trump. In an exclusive interview, she told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, “President Trump has committed assault, according to these women, and those are very credible allegations of misconduct and criminal activity, and he should be fully investigated and he should resign.” (Source: “CNN exclusive: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand calls on Trump to resign,” CNN Politics, December 11, 2017.)
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Not stopping there, the New York senator implied that Congress should step in if President Trump doesn’t voluntarily leave office. Trump should “immediately resign,” according to Gillibrand, adding that Congress “should have appropriate investigations of his behavior and hold him accountable.” (Source: Ibid)
Just like the Franken debacle, Gillibrand’s bullhorn is being carried by other members of the Senate. Shortly after Gillibrand’s brash call for action, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) weighed in. In a shocking tweet which presumes that Trump’s accusers are innocent, Wyden also called for legislative action from Congress if Trump doesn’t resign.
These women are right. If @realDonaldTrump won't resign, Congress must investigate allegations by many, many women that he sexually assaulted and harassed them. No one is above the law. https://t.co/ySP9DVUgLP
— Ron Wyden (@RonWyden) December 11, 2017
Expect the chorus of Democratic calls for Trump’s resignation to keep rising in choreographed fashion. That’s likely what the Al Franken ouster was all about; clear the deck so Democrats have the moral high ground to renew attacks on Trump. Never mind that there’s no hard evidence, photos, or admissions to prove the hearsay—as was the case with Franken. The women’s accounts are correct, just because. It’s the exact same attack playbook they’ve foisted on U.S. Senate-hopeful Roy Moore, to limited effect. Moore will likely win today’s Alabama run-off Senate election.
Presumably, Democrats are seeking disciplinary actions through the House Oversight Committee, or perhaps the Office Of Government Ethics (although presidents and vice presidents are exempt from some government ethics regulations).
Trump Takes the Fight To Twitter
In typical brawler fashion, Donald Trump is fighting back using Twitter. That’s a smart thing to do when you have 44.5 million followers by your side. Obviously, he didn’t mince any words:
Lightweight Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a total flunky for Chuck Schumer and someone who would come to my office “begging” for campaign contributions not so long ago (and would do anything for them), is now in the ring fighting against Trump. Very disloyal to Bill & Crooked-USED!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 12, 2017
For her part, Senator Gillibrand refused to back down. She engaged in the same damning tone seen in her CNN interview, vowing that she couldn’t be “silence[d]” on the issue. This won’t be the last we hear of Gillibrand on this matter:
You cannot silence me or the millions of women who have gotten off the sidelines to speak out about the unfitness and shame you have brought to the Oval Office. https://t.co/UbQZqubXZv
— Kirsten Gillibrand (@SenGillibrand) December 12, 2017
Senator Gillibrand’s Massive Credibility Problem
The problem with Kirsten Gillibrand sounding off this way is that she’s, at worst, a major hypocrite. Why? Because she was among Bill Clinton’s biggest supporters when it suited her politically.
Fox example, according to conservative-right commentator Tucker Carlson, Kirsten Gillibrand tweeted “Happy Birthday president Bill Clinton! Thank you for your friendship and support, as well as your incredible leadership!” In April 2016, Gillibrand claimed she was honored to campaign alongside Bill Clinton in New York. At the Democratic National Convention, she even tweeted a picture with Bill Clinton’s arm around her. (Source: “Tucker Carlson: “Kirsten Gillibrand’s Cynical Hypocrisy On Sexual Harassment And The Clintons,” RealClearPolitics, December 7, 2017.)
Unlike the Trump “scandal,” which are simply accusations to this point, Bill Clinton has paid out hush-money to actual victims. In 1998, Clinton was nearly impeached as part of the Monica Lewinsky scandal, in which he used his influence to manipulate a party staffer into sexual deviancy. And of course, there’s the dozens of trips that Bill Clinton took with registered sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on the “Lolita Express.”
Any moral equivalency lumping in Trump with Clinton is completely preposterous at this point. What Clinton has actually done is 10 times worse than even the harshest things Trump is accused of doing. Yet, Gillibrand continued her close support with the Clintons well into late 2016, only disavowing the Clintons last month, following Al Franken’s misgivings. Why?
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand: Bill Clinton should have resigned over the Monica Lewinsky affair https://t.co/MquDXHITg1 pic.twitter.com/n1LFD7kaw8
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) November 18, 2017
Verdict
The answer is rhetorical. Kirsten Gillibrand is playing the worst kind of cynical politics. She pretends to care about women’s issues, but her motivations are all political. By leading the charge against Al Franken, and now Trump, she’s attempting to build her profile as a champion of women’s rights. But, in doing so, she comes across as the worst kind of political opportunist.
If she truly stood for women’s values, she should be consistent in applying them. It’s demonstratively proven that she has not, only speaking up to lead the charge against a man who’s done far less than other politicians she previously supported.
If Trump is eventually found guilty of major impropriety, conservatives can accept the consequences. The law should be applied equally to everybody, be it the president or the homeless man on the street corner. But calling for Trump’s ouster on hearsay, and for political gain, is a bridge too far.
Perhaps Gillibrand should quit playing politics and self-reflect on why she’s part of the problem in Washington.
