Thinking about 2020: How do you feel about Kirsten Gillibrand?

[Algernon Moncrieff]

...and why?

124 votes, 0 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	Love her!
	2 (2%)
	Like her!
	5 (4%)
	Meh
	8 (6%)
	Not so much
	71 (57%)
	Can't stand her!
	38 (31%)
	Who?
	0 (0%)
	0 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[Persondem]

1. She threw Franken under the bus, then backed up over him. nt

[Freethinker65]

2. Yep. I will never forget that

[brush]

3. Yep, and she threw her 2020 chances under the same bus.

Last edited Fri Nov 23, 2018, 12:31 PM - Edit history (1)

[Pachamama]

4. [phone]

I will never forget nor forgive her for that....

[MyOwnPeace]

65. I'm with...

#1, #2, #3. and #4 - and any others that won't even begin to consider her after how she was involved in the Al Franken situation.

[onetexan]

204. second that

I will never forgive her for forcing out one of our best senators. Gillibrand is an opportunist and is only loyal to herself. She threw the Clintons under the bus as well.

[Judi Lynn]

189. Like your wording, and most definitely agree. n/t

[Lotusflower70]

32. Yep

That's the first thing that comes to mind when I think of her. My Senator was railroaded. It pisses me off so much still. Senator Franken was critical to getting the ball rolling in the investigation.

[snort]

37. Thats it.

[hlthe2b]

40. +1.000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (where is the no f'in way response?)

I support her fully to continue on in the Senate, but as far as I am concerned her self-ambition and poor judgement cost us Franken and I will not enable that further

[Power 2 the People]

79. +1

[workinclasszero]

63. Yup, showed a stunning lack of judgment and fairness

Cluelessly taking out one of the best, most liberal Senators we had sure as hell don't look good on the resume of a democratic office holder with presidential aspirations IMO.

[CozyMystery]

73. And because of that, I will never vote for her in any primary.

But I'd prefer her over a Repub.

[hlthe2b]

87. So, as of 4 pm ET, 12/213 support her (5.6%, like or love her) Not very good for her

[trueblue2007]

106. She crapped on Senator Franken. I don't like her. And don't hate on my post - i'm saying same thing

as everyone else on this thread.

[Stargazer09]

180. That's exactly why she lost my support

It was obvious from the beginning that the accusations were bogus. She didn’t even wait for an investigation before calling for him to step down.

Yes, I know others were guilty of that, too, but her voice was the loudest.

[Vogon_Glory]

190. Gillibrand's Treatment of Franken Is Still On My Mind

I still hold it against her and won’t support her in the primaries because of it. I can only see two reasons for her taking down Al. Neither reflect well on her. The first was that she cynically saw the Fox-generated accusations as a chance to take down a rival. The kinder version was that she was too naive to see that the Franken smear was a hit job and was too set in her ways to back away.

If she’s the party’s nominee, I might fall into line then. In the meantime. Nope.

[roscoeroscoe]

203. Agreed

First they came for Al Franken, and she said... Go ahead and take him.

Not interested in her, no moral courage.

[tparrett62]

232. No way, no how

She didn't let the body hit the floor before she pounced. She's an opportunist.

[MineralMan]

5. No, thanks. We can do much better.

Her sorry performance with Al Franken writes her off for me.

[Bucky]

6. I've never seen her speak. I'm neutral.

I'm certain that if she got the nomination, Al Franken would get behind her 100%.

But someone help me, what makes her stand out? What is her driving passion? What issues has she shown accomplishment or leadership in?

[Algernon Moncrieff]

8. "Al Franklin" looks like an autocorrect error

Just curious - posted from phone or tablet? I ask because i have that problem all the time.

[Bucky]

10. Guilty as charged

It's the Friday after Thanksgiving. I'm not getting out of bed till my stomach tells me it's time for leftovers

[Vogon_Glory]

191. Not to worry

My auto-correct keeps changing Al’s surname to Frankenstein.

[Merlot]

11. Saw her on Colbert

She did not answer your question of driving passion, that's for sure. She was bland, full of politi-speak. Did not hear any thing that didn't sounds scripted or that would motivate me to learn anything else about her.

It takes more than "capable" to light the fire of a voting base. She doens't have it.

[Bucky]

18. Thank you.

I'll still keep an eye out for her in case she speaks, but I'm looking for a dragon with fire in its belly. I agree that it takes true passion to move the needle

[ZZenith]

54. My experience as well.

Bland as bland can be and seemed stiff.

I can’t escape the impression that she threw Franken over as a political calculation.

[PBass]

26. Her record in opposing the Trump agenda is one of the best...

She's voted in opposition to the Republican agenda something like 93% of the time, one of the best records in the Senate in that regard.

All the Congressional stats are on the 538 blog.

[Bucky]

33. Good to know. Now... about that 7%

I leave myself open to the possibility that up to 7% of what Trump does is not completely shitty

[MrsCoffee]

49. +1

[crazycatlady]

145. I have seen her speak

Her driving passion is sexual harassment/sexual assault.

I saw her speak at an event about sexual harassment in the workplace.

[susanna]

179. Similar thoughts here...

She just doesn't interest me that much at all, because I have zero to go by on what actually makes her tick.

The most I know of her is in regards to the Franken debacle, which did not make me more interested in her. She seemed a bit too harsh there. My opinion.

My ultimate take is that she was remote before, and she is remote now. Not sure I see anything special in her.

[LakeArenal]

7. Political opportunist.

Sadly the list includes Corey Booker, Kamala Harris, Sherrod Brown, and Schumer as well.

JoeBiden and Beto not on the list

[Bucky]

13. Damn

Corey Booker, Kamala Harris, and Sherrod Brown all seem pretty acceptable nominees to me. I don't think Brown is running, however.

But if you don't want an opportunist to run for president, then you probably don't want a winner. These are politicians that we're talking about, so taking advantage of opportunities is more or less in their job description. Hell, that's what politics is--finding moments of opportunity and moving effectively on them.

You've named 3 strong progressives here, so I hope you're not thinking that they're each unacceptable as a nominee. We shouldn't be so quick to lock in our dislikes. We can't afford to be tepid about our support for 2020

[LakeArenal]

64. Will support the nominee.

I will not monetarily or volunteer for them in any primary.

[RazBerryBeret]

110. Brown is supposedly thinking it over...

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/15/us/politics/sherrod-brown-ohio-president.html


He's my Senator so I'd hate to lose him, but I would definitely support him.

[Raven123]

31. Not sure how Sherrod Brown made your list?

Could you explain? IMO he seems in the same line with Warren

[cornball 24]

44. Joe Biden and Beto! Friends and family of all ages are on the Joe/Beto bus. Just sayin'!

[LakeArenal]

66. Yep

[mchill]

147. I was in the Beto Dodge Caravan

For weeks before the midterms. He is a very appealing candidate. Very. Much like Obama.

[onetexan]

206. Thank u for your work and keep supporting Beto

I went to one of his rallies here in north tx. He's very charismatic and full of passion when he speaks. Definitely destined for much bigger & better things.

[mchill]

238. To be clear

Not literally "in the van," but riding along with Facebook.

And oh darn, missed his town hall today! Might be on Facebook?

[Trumpocalypse]

84. They said that about Hillary Clinton too.

The truth is they are all political opportunists.

[PBass]

9. I never see these comments about the dozens of other Senators who called on Franken to resign.

Only Kirsten Gillibrand is said to have "thrown Franken under the bus".

I think it's a little strange that she gets singled out, and it borders on trolling. I see this garbage all the time on Facebook. It's ridiculous.

Franken was a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, so he would have questioned Brett Kavanaugh at his Supreme Court interview, regarding allegations of Kavanaugh's sexual misconduct. That would have been a huge embarrassment to the Democratic Party. Franken was smart to resign - on his own - no junior member can force another Senator to resign. I don't understand why anybody could imagine that's even possible. Gillibrand is finishing her first Senate term, she is not a leader in the Senate. If anyone forced Franken out, it would be the leadership.

Now, do I want Senator Gillibrand to run for president? No, I want her to stay in the Senate. I think there are better choices. That being said, her record in voting against the Trump agenda is almost unparalleled.

[Sherman A1]

12. How many others Senators that you are discussing in your

comment are being considered as a candidate for President. The OP asked about Gillibrand and was soliciting our thoughts on her and no one else. If you believe she is being treated unfairly in comparison to others you may or may not have a fair point, but the OP's question was centered on our feelings about her and not others.

[PBass]

22. Several other potential presidential candidates called for Franken to resign:

Bernie Sanders
Elizabeth Warren
Cory Booker
Kamala Harris
Sherrod Brown
Jeff Merkley

https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/06/full-list-senators-call-for-al-franken-to-resign-282175

Also, Kirsten Gillibrand is the first-term junior Senator from NY, she is not the "leader" of anything

[Bucky]

34. Good points, although to be fair...

I don't think it's a compliment to say that a senator is waiting around for her second term before becoming a leader of something.

[A DAY IN THE LIFE]

61. Leader of something?

JFK
Obama

How many terms as Senator? Leader of what?

Who was the last Dem president that was a multi-term senator?
Who was the last Dem president that was chair of a Senate committee?

[Danmel]

174. She was just re-elected handily

But she did promise to serve her entire term. Not my favorite but I'd support in the general.

[LBM20]

16. But she was the leader and the most vocal. And yes, it was ALL crap. She needs to not run.

[Trumpocalypse]

85. How was she the most vocal?

She made a Facebook post. Kampala Harris had a press conference the same morning.

[wasupaloopa]

20. You have convicted Franken just as she did

without a hearing. That is why she deserves our criticism.

[PBass]

23. Al Franken RESIGNED. He was not forced out.

OMG it's like an alternate universe in here. A universe without any logic or facts.

[Merlot]

27. He asked for a full investigation of the alligations.

He did not get an investigation or support from his fellow senators.

[Trumpocalypse]

86. No He asked for a. Ethics investigation

Which only determines if he Congressional ethics rules.It is not a finding of guilt or innocence.

[NurseJackie]

94. That's an excellent start.

It serves no good purpose to deny him the investigatory due process he deserved.

[Trumpocalypse]

107. Then he shouldn't have resigned

which was his choice in the end. Hr could have stayed and fought but he didn’t.

[NurseJackie]

112. He saw the battle would harm the party...

... he sacrificed himself and his career. He was railroaded. There are no two ways about it.

[Trumpocalypse]

123. Yes He sacrificed himself for the good of the party

But it was still his choice. He was not railroaded. He made the decision to resign. No one held a gun to his head. And how would a Congressional investigation have gone with the GOP in control.They would have done everything possible to humiliate Franken and the Democrats. It would not have been the exoneration that you are assuming it would be unless you’re saying that GOP Senators would have treated Franken better than his Democratic colleagues.

[NurseJackie]

129. Franken was railroaded.

[Trumpocalypse]

134. Then he shouldn't have resigned

But he chose to do so.

[NurseJackie]

136. ...

[Trumpocalypse]

139. It's reality

Laugh at it all you want.

[Wintryjade]

125. If it was a sacrifice then he would have put a stop to the blame and bashing this last year.

Instead, he has stayed quiet and allowed a faction to fight his battle for a year. That is the only part in this I think Franken has misstepped and has disappointed me.

[NurseJackie]

130. You're not the only disappointed one...

... and I'll just leave it at that.

[Trumpocalypse]

137. Franken was a hero,.

He resigned for the good of the party. He can’t help that some are in denial about what really happened.

[Wintryjade]

144. I am all for Frankin addressing this and running again. I think he would have an easy win.

I think he enjoyed the job. I liked to hear him call the Republicans out. A real asset. His statement was top notch excellent when it first broke. And I feel that he should have come out and stated that there is no reason to go after fellow Dems. His situation, he takes ownership. From what we know, none of it was a big deal (no more than inappropriate) and anything he could not get past. The real problem was we were running against pedophile Roy Moore and it was coming to the final stretch. That is why Frankin had to put out the statement he was retiring at that point, rather than waiting it out for an investigation.

[Bluepinky]

46. Franken was forced out, he was betrayed by some Democrats but mostly Gillibrand.

She was the first to call for his resignation, despite the fact he had stated the charges were bogus and had requested a full investigation. He only resigned after several more Democrats also asked him to leave.
Kirsten is personally responsible for the resignation of one of our best and brightest Senators. She has terrible judgement, and I will never forgive her.

[NurseJackie]

133. Yes. Betrayed. That's a good word to describe it.

Railroaded and betrayed.

[Trumpocalypse]

153. Actually

Franken had already announced the press conference about his political future a day before any of the 38 Senators called for his resignation. Gillibrand was the first to call for his resignation, in a Facebook post, but all the others did so the same morning, some within minutes. The was obviously a coordinated effort by party leadership with Franken’s full cooperation. If there is any to blame, it is Schumer.

[Wintryjade]

156. OR with Frankin's cooperation, there might be something we simply are not privileged in knowing.

This is where I see Frankin's stumble in not giving us the down-low, but allowing it to manifest to the point of saying Gillabrand's name, tie her to a stake.

[Trumpocalypse]

158. Franken is not responsible for that.

He may not even know that DU exists.

[Wintryjade]

161. I am not talking Du unless the only place this is an issue is here. We do not know what happened.

So, I am not much into pretending I do know when we were not given any information. I am not going to make assumptions and hurl accusations when none of us know the facts, because all got quiet.

[Trumpocalypse]

164. That's true.

We don’t know everything that happened. It is too bad some are making many assumptions and ignoring inconvenient facts. But I doubt that many outside the DU bubble even care about this. Gillibrand just won re-election with 66% of the vote.

[Wintryjade]

165. Right. She isn't one of the contenders I am watching. I do not think she has a shot.

I just really have an issue with the unfairness of this.

[Trumpocalypse]

166. So do I

It’s unfair to single out one person especially when it ignores the facts.

[brush]

193. Yes, all got quiet, including any other accusers once he stepped down.

That should be a huge flashing red light that it was all a Roger Stone/Hannity/Tweeden, et al hit job on Al Franken and the ambitious Gillibrand fell for it in seeing an opportunity to get rid of a potential 2020 competitor (she also kicked Bill Clinton under the bus while she was at it. The same Bill Clinton, along with Hillary, who endorsed and supported her when she ran for Hilary's former Senate seat).

Poor judgment, ambition and disloyalty—not a good combination for our 2020 nominee.

[Wintryjade]

218. You have to ignore so much to make your post.

[Trumpocalypse]

220. Yes

Most of the facts are ignored.

[JHan]

28. This + Amazing to me too, as if she engineered the whole thing. It was a leadership decision.

I mean, in the interest of fairness, Schumer and the others should be daily excoriated in the same way for the same reasons. It was a collective decision made.

[Bluepinky]

48. Kirsten was the first to call for Franken's resignation.

Because of it, I don’t like her (and I don’t care for Schumer that much either). They’re wimps who wanted to set an example of how tough they are on sexual harassment. Instead, they showed the world what bad judgment they have.

[JHan]

67. Do you really believe a junior senator would have made that move without leadership knowing?

do you really think Gilibrand forced the hand of her colleagues?

[dansolo]

81. No, I believe she did it with Schumer's blessing

I blame both of them, perhaps Schumer even more. But I don't trust Kirsten Gillibrand one bit.

[JHan]

82. I think it very much was a collective decision.

I can't ignore the statements by others either - which were quite strong. I think it's fine to say that Franken was considered a liability, to blame gilibrand is very odd to me.

[Bluepinky]

115. I don't think it's odd to blame her, who would you rather blame?

She asked him to resign, even after he said the charges were bogus.

[JHan]

121. How could you blame one person for a collective decision?

Again are you saying that Gilibrand forced other senators to take the position they did?

Fundamentally it was a leadership and party decision. In that case blame dem senators, instead we get this hyper focus on Gilibrand as if she wielded super powers on her colleagues.

They collectively decided that Franken was a liability.

[Trumpocalypse]

159. Please don't confuse them

with facts and logic.

[Bluepinky]

170. As I said before, Gillibrand was the first to call on Franken to resign.

And Schumer, as the Senate Minority Leader, also showed terrible judgement in asking Franken to resign. No one person is to blame for sabotaging one of our best Democratic leaders, but Gillibrand and Schumer stand out as disrespectful and disloyal to a fellow Senator and colleague.

[Trumpocalypse]

157. He never said the charges were bogus

At least, not in those exact words. He did apologize several times. And why does anyone need to be blamed. 38 Senators, including Sanders and Warren, called for Franken’s resignation on the same morning. And a day after Franken announced the press conference about his political future. It is obvious that this was a coordinated effort with Franken’s full cooperation.

[Bluepinky]

173. Franken said the charges against him were untrue, whatever his exact words were.

He asked for an investigation to clear his name, but he was booted out before this was granted. He apologized not because he was guilty of harassment but because his actions may have been misinterpreted by other people.
It would be nice if the Democrats could publicly apologize to Franken and admit they were wrong to not support him against these false accusations. Gillibrand, as the first to accuse him, and Schumer, as the Minority Senate Leader, should be the ones to speak out.

[Trumpocalypse]

183. He asked for an Ethics investigation

which is not a finding of guilt or innocence but only a determination if Congressional ethics rules had been violated. And does really think that the republicans who control the Senate ethics committee would have given Franken a fair hearing? It would have been a circus to humiliate Franken. And Gillibrand never accused him of anything. That is just false. She one of 38 Senators who called on Franken to resign after 8 women had accused him and a day after Franken announced a press conference about his political future.

[Bluepinky]

196. The Democrats should support their own.

Especially since the Republicans have a history of making up false accusations against strong Democrats. Gillibrand and Schumer appeared weak and easily manipulated during this whole fiasco. No backbone at all. Meanwhile, we have a sexual predator as President, and Gillibrand or Schumer haven’t called on him to resign.

[Trumpocalypse]

199. The Democrats were being set up as hypocrites

if they did nothing about Franken. They were damned if they did and damned if they didn’t. While the Franken allegations were BS, we can’t take the stance that fellow Democrats should be defended no matter what they do. We should have some standards.

Now you’ve singled out Schumer and Gillibrand, did Warren, Sanders, Harris and Booker all look weak too?

[Bluepinky]

202. Well, they made the wrong choice.

If they were damned either way, they should have made the choice to keep Franken and let him fight the charges. Instead they let him go, appeared spineless and lost their best Senator.

[roscoeroscoe]

207. I'm with you

Show some freakin fight. Every damn time.

[Trumpocalypse]

210. Best Senator??? How so?

While Franken was a good Senator how was he the best Senator? Please list his accomplishments as Senator and provide links to prove that he was the best Senator.

[Bluepinky]

211. I'm entitled to my opinion, I don't have a link to my opinions.

[Trumpocalypse]

212. Even opinions should have some basis in facts.

Can you cite any facts to support your opinion?

[Bluepinky]

213. No, I just like him, always have.

[Trumpocalypse]

214. Nothing wrong with that.

But then the comment should be he was my favorite Senator not that he was the best Senator if there is no factual support of that.

[Bluepinky]

221. Well, he does ask insightful questions, he has a sharp mind

and he opened up Jeff Sessions to perjury charges.

[Trumpocalypse]

222. True

But that is one accomplishment.

[Bluepinky]

223. He has a good head on his shoulders

and I have a feeling he’s very loyal and wouldn’t ask a colleague to resign if that person was accused of things he claimed he didn’t do.

[Trumpocalypse]

226. Again true

But let's deal with facts and not feelings

[JHan]

185. yup.

[Trumpocalypse]

88. Very true

But the 38 others, including Warren and Sanders, did so the same morning, some within minutes. This was obviously a coordinated effort.

[Trumpocalypse]

90. But

You forget that Gillibrand went to Franken’s office with the resignation letter and a gun. She held the gun to Franken’s head and told him either his signature or his brains would be on the resignation.

Of course that did not happen. But many here act like it did. In fact there seems to be an almost willful ignorance of the serious of events that led to Franken’s resignation resignation. First, Franken announced his press conference about his political future, after the 8th allegation the before any of the other Senators called for his resignation. It was obviously an effort co-ordinated by leadership. However according to some here Gillibrand called for him to resign after the first allegation and then somehow forced, or blackmailed, over 30 other Senators to do so as well. And Franken was the most progressive and effective Senator who ever lived. The truth is that Franken was a good Senator but other than his questioning of Jeff Sessions, no one can cite a single accomplishment of his.

Gillibrand was just re-elected with almost 67% of the vote, so outside the DU bubble the whole Franken thing hasn’t hurt her.

[PoliticAverse]

160. Gillibrand was the first...

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand was the first of Franken's fellow Senate Democrats to take that step and was quickly followed by more than two dozen others.

See: https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/06/gillibrand-calls-on-franken-to-resign-282112

[Raine]

187. Thanks for the info

you make some good points that I hadn't thought of...

[roscoeroscoe]

205. You can't give in

To every crooked accusation. America likes a fighter, we need fighters who can stand in there and call b.s.

[Squinch]

14. I think people who pose this question, which has been posed here umpteen times before with the same

result, are just stirring shit.

[LBM20]

15. Too much baggage. Was head of the Franken railroading. NO!

[Trumpocalypse]

162. Yes the whole Franken thing has damaged

That must be why she won re-election with only 66% of the vote.

[brush]

224. That's in her state in a Dem blue wave. It's best she was re-elected.

Too much negative Franken baggage for 2020 though.

[Trumpocalypse]

225. Maybe

Maybe not. We don't really know.

[NurseJackie]

17. What she did to Franken was unforgivable.

[Trumpocalypse]

92. What about the 38 other Senators?

Including Warren and Sanders?

[NurseJackie]

93. Franken was railroaded. Denied due process.

... he asked for an investigation, he deserved to have due process... but he saw the "torches and pitchforks" coming after him and he probably knew that battling for due process would damage the Democratic party worse than just "taking a hit for the team" and allowing others to bully him out of office.

We need his voice NOW more than ever. I hope he'll return to politics soon.

[Trumpocalypse]

105. He asked for an ethics investigation

which is not a determination of guilt or innocence. And he had the choice to remain instead he chose to resign. No one put a gun to his head and forced him.

[NurseJackie]

111. ...

[Trumpocalypse]

120. You can laugh

But it is reality. As progressives we should accept and value the truth.

[NurseJackie]

135. That's not why I'm laughing.

[Trumpocalypse]

138. Then why are you?

[NurseJackie]

143. ...

[Trumpocalypse]

152. I just figured it out

Just post a silly gif when it is not possible to post a factual rebuttal.

[NurseJackie]

154. Wrong again.

But, feel free to continue guessing if it means so much to you.

[Trumpocalypse]

155. Truth does mean a lot to me

It should to all of us.

[wasupaloopa]

19. How do you feel about Al Franken?

Sorry but she needs to make amends to Franken

[Raven123]

39. Thus far she has defined herself or been defined on 1 issue

I know little else about her. I suspect I'm not alone in that. She has a lot of work to do to reach voters nationwide.

[brush]

41. She was a consevadem representative but when Hillary's Senate seat...

came open she suddenly was more left-leaning to get Hillary and Bill's support and endorsement.

BTW, she also threw Bill under the bus along with Al.

[brooklynite]

104. Do you have actual evidence that any of them had problems finding new jobs?

I know his campaign team didn't...

[brooklynite]

197. Some of us don't make claims we don't know to be true.

[brooklynite]

230. Tina Smith to keep top Franken aides in D.C.

Took me all of two minutes to find this...exhausting.

Lt. Gov. Tina Smith will have the help of some experienced staff members when she takes over U.S. Sen. Al Franken’s seat next month.

Smith, who was appointed last week by Gov. Mark Dayton to fill Franken’s Senate seat after he resigns, said her office will be led by Franken’s chief of staff, Jeff Lomonaco, and his state director, Alana Petersen.

Lomonaco has worked for Franken since he took office in 2009. He began serving as the senator’s legislative director in 2012 and moved up to the chief of staff role in 2015. Petersen has served as Franken’s state director since he took office and will serve as deputy chief of staff and state adviser under Smith.

http://www.startribune.com/tina-smith-to-keep-top-franken-aides-in-d-c/464631703/

[aikoaiko]

21. She's as capable many of the other younger Democratic contenders.

Yes, she did a 180 on guns when given the chance to inherit HRCs Senate seat.

Yes, she was one of several Senators calling for Franken to resign when an investigation might have contextualized his behavior better.

But still, she's a contender like Harris and Booker.

[In It to Win It]

30. Well... on the guns.

She had to do a 180 on the guns. She was dealing with a statewide constituency as opposed to just the district she was representing. Guns are a problem when looking at the issue through a statewide lens. I don't think the 180 on guns should be a downside given the context... but I do understand many people won't see it that way.

[roody]

216. Does she have any beliefs of her own?

[In It to Win It]

233. From all the interviews I've seen of her, I think she genuinely believes we should have...

gun control legislation. She says her mind was changed on guns once she became a Senator and actually had to meet her constituents across the state, as opposed to the pro-gun district (she described it as a pro-gun district) she was representing before. She was discussing all the stories she heard from her constituents about the horrific gun violence, and all of the tragedies she heard of mothers losing their children to gun violence.

[In It to Win It]

24. I have no opinion of Kirsten Gillibrand

[Chipper Chat]

25. No

[oberliner]

35. There used to be a time where saying that you "can't stand" a prominent Democrat was frowned upon

[jalan48]

36. If Gillibrand is our candidate I think we will be spending a lot of time post-election

blaming the voters for not voting for her. Franken and her work as a corporate attorney defending big tobacco is reason enough to find a better candidate.

[hlthe2b]

148. She was just on Chris Hayes and he soft-balled it all the way. No questions at all pertinent to

the big issues that would prevent one hell of a lot of us from voting for her. Chris, you can do better...The voters (at least the most informed voters) won't let her skate...

[jalan48]

151. I think it would be a disaster if we chose her as the nominee.

[roody]

38. never

[CrispyQ]

42. We'll lose if she's at the top of the ticket.

We need someone who can fire up the base & get everyone who voted in 2018 to do it again in 2020. Gillibrand is not that person. I don't know who is, but I know she's not.

[Takket]

43. She burned that bridge. She'll never win a primary

[MrsCoffee]

45. We'd be lucky to have her.

But as usual... one woman will be held accountable while 38 people signed the letter.

[JHan]

75. she forced them apparently. That's tremendous power wielding ability.

seems impressive if that's the case

[lillypaddle]

47. Will never forgive her

Al Franken, that's why.

[brooklynite]

50. Well, it HAS been a month since folks have been able to have an "I hate Gillibrand" rant...

On the other hand, the average Democratic Democratic voter isn't fixating on what happened to Al Franken and who to blame...

[Trumpocalypse]

91. Outside the DU bubble

She won re-election with almost 67% of the vote.

[Squinch]

98. She's my senator. If she is the senatorial candidate next time, I'll vote for her. But I wouldn't

want her to be our Presidential candidate.

[brooklynite]

99. Does the same principle apply to every other Democratic Senator?

[Squinch]

100. Obviously not. Just the ones who would make weak Presidential candidates.

[brooklynite]

103. Fair enough; but you've said nothing about WHY Gillibrand would be a weak candidate...

I, for one, will wait until I see how (IF she runs) she performs on the campaign trail, and how our likely conversation goes.

[Squinch]

108. That's nice.

[Trumpocalypse]

109. FYI

https://www.axios.com/trumps-women-problem-2020-poll-05a62799-a63d-422b-afb7-59b0139794f1.html

[Algernon Moncrieff]

167. That's why I posted this

I was discussing this with someone I know who has worked in Dem campaigns ; who is an ardent feminist; and who is a New Yorker. Her feeling is that just as many people are happy as unhappy with the way the Franken thing went down vis a vis Gillibrand. Perhaps in New York, that is true. DU (which I think represents a pretty good party cross section- maybe skewing a little left) disagrees.

[Trumpocalypse]

184. If just as many

are happy as unhappy. If that were do you really think she would have gotten almost 2/3rds of the vote?

[WeekiWater]

51. I have a great amount of respect and appreciation for her.

She is a progressive fighter and isn’t scared to do go all in working on legislation, including leading the way on many issues.

Unfortunately, many online progressives have made Franken the story of her career. It simply doesn’t matter that everyone from Manchin to Sanders called for Franken to resign. Oops. Let me take that back. Manchin stood up for Franen.

Fact is that many of us in the know understand that Franken was quickly on his way to becoming the lion of the senate. She made it too easy for the online community to make her a target.

No question for me. If she entered the presidential primaries she would immediately be at or near the top of my list. I would love to have her elevated.

[Squinch]

56. You can't express this opinion without bashing Franken? How transparent of you.

[WeekiWater]

68. Are you talking about the accidental auto correct my phone did?

If so, it was truly unintentional on my part. I went back and read it after reading your comment and made the correction.

If you are being facetious, 👍🏼.

Franken was and is one of my favorites.

[Squinch]

69. Well, no I wasn't being facetious because there was no way to know that when you referred

to Franken as "Frankenstein" it was not intentional. It's been done before.

I am glad to hear it was an error.

[WeekiWater]

71. Franken himself would have seen it as a transparent auto correct...

For multiple reasons. I see three reasons he would have recognized it as such right off the top of my head. Guy is really smart.

[Squinch]

83. That's a bizarre statement.

[Ninga]

52. She chose to quickly hammer Al Franken in such a way, that Dems lined up behind her and fell like

Dominos.

She could have said " stop the presses! Let's investigate this immediately. A good Senator's reputation is a stake".

But no.

[Wintryjade]

70. Quickly? That would be 8 accusations later.

[Ninga]

118. I believe the first leeAnn Weeden was Nov 17

On Dec 6!Sen Gillibrand post on her FB page
He had to resign.
Thus, no due process.
Boorish behavior got him booted.

[Wintryjade]

127. Ok. So three weeks and 7 more accusations is quick in your book. That would be subjective.

[brush]

227. Unsubstantiated accusations as there was no investigation.

And quite noticeably not a single accuser came forward after Al Franken stepped down, not even one saying he squeezed her love handle while posing for a photo.

[Trumpocalypse]

200. How do you define quickly?

[vlyons]

53. I haven't forgiven her for stabbing Al Frnken in the back.

nt

[dhol82]

55. She's ok as a senator.

Don’t see her in higher office.

[Mme. Defarge]

57. I logged in to vote that

I can’t stand her. L’affaire Franken was a irreversible deal-breaker.

[TexasBushwhacker]

58. Meh. We can do better

I would prefer someone who would be more exciting to young, Latino and Black voters. If we can get more of these groups registered and to the polls, we can win.

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/11/09/how-latinos-voted-in-2018-midterms/

"In U.S. congressional races nationwide, an estimated 69% of Latinos voted for the Democratic candidate and 29% backed the Republican candidate, a more than two-to-one advantage for Democrats, according to National Election Pool exit poll data. These results largely reflect the party affiliation of Latinos. In a Pew Research Center pre-election survey, 62% of Latinos said they identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party compared with 27% who affiliated with the Republican Party. Among other racial and ethnic groups, a lower share of whites (44%) voted for Democrats in congressional races compared with blacks (90%) and Asians (77%). (Exit polls offer the first look at who voted in an election, a portrait that will be refined over time as more data, such as state voter files, become available.)

About a quarter of Hispanic voters cast a ballot in a midterm for the first time in 2018. About a quarter of Hispanics who cast a ballot in 2018 (27%) said they were voting in a midterm for the first time, compared with 18% of black voters and 12% of white voters, according to the exit polls. Meanwhile, many new voters this year were young. A majority of voters younger than 30 said they were voting in a midterm for the first time. (Note: This item has been corrected. See details at end of post.)

Hispanic women more often voted for Democrats than Hispanic men in 2018. Hispanics had a gender gap in voting preference, with 73% of Hispanic women and 63% of Hispanic men backing the Democratic congressional candidates – a reflection of the election’s broad gender differences. In a pre-election Pew Research Center survey of Hispanics, differences by gender extended to views of the country. For example, Hispanic women were significantly more dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country today than Hispanic men.

A gender gap also existed among white voters, with 49% of white women backing the Democratic congressional candidate compared with 39% of white men. By contrast, few gender differences existed among black voters, with about nine-in-ten black voters of both genders backing Democratic candidates."

[LeftInTX]

76. She's better in the senate

She's "meh". Not motivating.

[TexasBushwhacker]

80. I agree

It's all about GOTV for us. Get 'em registered, get 'em excited and get 'em to the polls.

[oberliner]

97. She won her Senate seat in NY by 33 points

She won the areas of the state with the highest concentration of young, Latino, and Black voters by 60 points.

[TexasBushwhacker]

113. Perhaps. But she got 1 Million fewer votes than in 2012

Which means she isn't necessarily good at GOTV. Like I said, we can do better.

[oberliner]

114. 2012 was a presidential election year

2018 was not.

[TexasBushwhacker]

116. No shit

And it's hard to GOTV if you're basically running uncontested, as she is in NY. Virtually any Democrat will win in NY. So the fact that she does well in NY, doesn't tell me much about how she would do nationwide. If she pulled the same numbers in FL, I'd be impressed.

[oberliner]

117. Almost 4 million people across New York state voted for her

Her GOTV was pretty impressive to pull those numbers in a non-presidential year in a race that you are saying was basically uncontested. New York is an extremely diverse state - much of it is similar to PA and OH. She also campaigned for several other Democratic candidates in other states (who won) and was very active in helping to get out the vote for them as well. I am not understanding why you are so dismissive of her.

[TexasBushwhacker]

124. I am "dismissive" because I don't find her inspiring

Obviously I'm not the only one that feels that way because only 13 people here "like" or "love" her so far. Over 200 are negative. You like her. Great. I don't. Move on.

[oberliner]

194. OK fair enough

Is there a particular potential candidate that you are most excited about at this point?

[TexasBushwhacker]

198. I would like to see Beto O'Rourke as VP

Even though he lost, what he did here in Texas is nothing short of amazing, but I think putting him at the top of the ticket is premature. He's known on a national level now, not unlike Obama after his amazing speech at the 2004 convention. I thinking pairing him with a more experienced candidate for POTUS could be a winner.

I still like Elizabeth Warren. She's feisty! She willing to take on Wall Street. I like Kamala Harris, Cory Booker and Sherrod Brown. I was a Sanders supporter last time, but he wouldn't be my first choice this time.

[oberliner]

201. I like Kamala Harris a lot

And what Beto O'Rourke did in Texas was very impressive.

[TexasBushwhacker]

208. I do too

I appreciate that she's trying to do something to put cash back in the hands of the poor and middle class. Sherrod Brown also has a bill that would increase EITC. But I really wish they would just push to raise wages instead of just redistributing tax dollars. That will always come off as "welfare" and really just subsidizes companies like Walmart and Amazon that don't pay their workers a living wage.

[Paladin]

59. Not after her hatchet job on Al Franken. (nt)

[madville]

60. I won't support anyone that drove over Franken, including

these other 2020 potential candidates, they got on the bus and backed over him as well:

Sanders
Kamala Harris
Cory Booker
Sherrod Brown

[JCanete]

219. Interesting...you hoping for Biden, or maybe O'rourke or Warren? nt

[madville]

237. Steve Bullock would be my first choice

Followed by Biden in second.

[oberliner]

62. No one has a stronger anti-Trump voting record in the Senate than she does

https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/congress-trump-score/

[Wintryjade]

72. I think this is the greatest hypocrisy we Dems have fallen into. Generally we are pretty good

at being rational. This Franken fiasco shows us otherwise. Imo.

What we are good at is seeing the grey of an issue. I can genuinely like, appreciate, value Franken. I can also see where the 8 accusers put the Democratic Senators in a tough position, while running against Roy Moore. I do not have to pull out one of the many senators and use her as our whipping horse.

[Garrett78]

74. She had to be talked out of co-sponsoring a bill that would have made boycotting Israel a felony.

I'll pass.

[roody]

177. +1

[haele]

77. She's never struck me as being a sit back and listen type.

She always seems to be acting on her agenda, not on a greater agenda. While she is progressive, it seems to be more to suit her worldview rather than to consider ramifications on the population, especially those who don't agree with her, in general.

She's a good "do-er" - a great task leader, but I'm not sure she's a good overall "leader".
My observation of her career leads me to think her skillset is more applicable for a good COO rather than a good CEO, to put it in business speak. A tactician rather than a strategist.

I don't think she's flexible or willing enough to consider what can be done when what should be done is not attainable due to political reality.

Haele

[Wintryjade]

78. The post above states he would not vote for Gillabrand because she was cosponsoring a bill, yet was

talked out of it. So ya, that poster is stating she listened to someone, but won't vote for her because of her original position.

To be clear, I do not know much about Gillabrand and she is not one I would go for in the primary, at this time. Also, I know nothing about that co sponsored bill or being talked out of it. I find it funny though you would not vote for Gillabrand because she does not listen. And the other person would not vote for her because though she listened, he doesn't like the bill she considered co sponsoring.

I do not think we have any trash on this woman, but are coming up with all kinds of reason to burn her at the stake.

[Retrograde]

89. Unlikely to vote for her in primary

Will vote for her if she's the nominee.

I'm still of the opinion that Paterson should have appointed Louise Slaughter as Clinton's replacement instead of Gillibrand. Gillibrand's OK, not in the same tier as Harris, Booker, Klobacher, or Warren: she's too centrist for my tastes but may have broader appeal in the Midwest.

[oberliner]

95. Her voting record is to the left of Harris, Booker, Klobacher, and Warren

[NurseJackie]

96. We have so many other high quality and respectable Democrats to choose from...

... I certainly question her judgement and temperament... and other than being "controversial" she'll have a difficult time in proving to me that she's better than the rest, or that she's somehow more deserving, or more qualified than so many others.

[Awsi Dooger]

101. A female nominee would have to be exceptional to withstand Trump's onslaught

I don't believe Gillibrand could stand up to it. Weal political instincts, leading to one trap after another. As someone else posted, we would be in rationalization mode immediately after the election.

I would trust Klobuchar's instincts and likability, and I'm willing to see how Kamala Harris functions under campaign pressure and decision making.

Overall I'd prefer a man and specifically Beto

[PoliticAverse]

102. How does Al Franken feel about her? n/t

[a kennedy]

119. Ah, yah........I hold her completely accountable for Senator Franken's demise......

will NEVER respect or vote for her......ok, will hold my nose and vote for her if she is EVER the nominee.

[catbyte]

122. Nope. Two words: Al Franken.

[SHRED]

126. It doesn't matter what we think

She will never be the nominee.
See: Franken.

[Renew Deal]

132. Your first statement is the reason your second statement is not true

Most people supported Franken resigning and view Gillibrand as a leader in women’s rights.

[Afromania]

128. Seems like a knee jerk reactionary sometimes.

[Renew Deal]

131. Seems like people on DU are very excited about her

And it makes sense. She has a better than average chance of winning the nomination

[dem4decades]

141. Not by this poll. DU is excited by her, in a negative way.

[hlthe2b]

149. exactly... only a little over 5% support her on this poll.

[USALiberal]

168. How did you come to this conclusion? Nt

[brush]

228. You should read the whole thread. Most on DU are against her. There are a few repeat...

posters for her throughout the thread, the same ones over an over.

Her Franken baggage doesn't go over well here, and DU is a cross section of Dems from all over the country.

[dem4decades]

140. Strike 1 - NRA. Strike 2 - Big Tabacco. Strike 3 - Al Franken

She's out.

[stuffmatters]

192. Strike 4: creepy, self definition as "morally" driven

She pulled it again with Hayes. Claims her decision to run for president will be a "moral decision" Nobody is buying that.

[MoonRiver]

142. I definitely will not support her in the primary.

If she wins the primary, which I doubt, I'll vote for her in the general.

[Mike Nelson]

146. She led the parade...

… to get rid of Al. She needs another parade, if she's going to win a Democratic Primary nomination... a much bigger parade.

[shanny]

150. Thumbs down.

[question everything]

163. NO! NO! NO!

She went after Franken who was the reason for Sessions recusing himself.

And... I have no idea what else she has contributed to our common good.

[oberliner]

240. She has the most anti-Trump voting record of anyone in the US Senate

[allgood33]

171. NOPE!

I would rather support Any Klobushar

[greyl]

172. No. nt

[Mr. Ected]

175. I trust Al Franken's opinion on questions like this

I wonder what Al would say.

[exboyfil]

176. Al Franken

[qazplm135]

178. she's not even in the top two for female potential nominees

Harris and Warren are ahead of her.

[DFW]

181. In reference to 2020 only:

If she is the nominee, I will support her against any Republican, but I will never support her nomination. We have SO many more appealing candidates, I can't imagine anyone outside of Karl Rove pushing for her to be the nominee.

[Stand and Fight]

182. After her grandstanding with Al Franken and how she's treated other allies -- NOT A CHANCE IN HELL.

[wroberts189]

186. I will never forgive her for Franken. It was republican hit job and she knew it.

And it did nothing but lose us an effective senator. ..where was her voice on Kavanaugh???

[Wintryjade]

188. Gillibrand on Kavanaugh

"Senate Republicans were trying to rush a vote while they knew Deborah Ramirez would come forward with her story," Gillibrand wrote, referencing the New Yorker's reporting that indicates GOP staffers knew about Ramirez's accusation as they tried to push Kavanaugh's confirmation process forward last week.

"They deny Dr. Ford an FBI investigation, won’t subpoena corroborating witnesses, and now, this," Gillibrand wrote. "It’s an embarrassment. They have absolutely no interest in the truth."

"Enough is enough," she continued. "One credible sexual assault claim should have been too many to get a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court and make decisions that will affect millions of women’s lives for generations."

"Two is an embarrassment," she added. "It’s time for a new nominee."

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/408031-gillibrand-calls-for-kavanaugh-nomination-to-be-withdrawn

“I believe Dr. Blasey Ford because she’s risking everything — her safety, her security, her reputation, her career — to tell this story at this moment for all the right reasons,” Gillibrand said in a powerful speech on the Senate floor. “If we allow women’s experiences of sexual trauma to be second to a man’s promotion, it will not only diminish this watershed moment of societal change we are in, it will bring shame on this body and on the court.”

Gillibrand criticized Republicans for “bullying” and “patronizing” Ford, and lambasted President Donald Trump for belittling Kavanaugh’s accusers.

Trump’s raging “remind[ed] us once again that he has been credibly accused of sexual assault himself and denigrates not just women who accuse him but survivors everywhere,” Gillibrand said in her speech.

She noted that the “retaliation and scorn” Kavanaugh’s accusers have faced shows why many sexual assault survivors don’t come forward with their stories.

“This process is sending the worst possible message to girls — and boys — everywhere,” Gillibrand said. “It’s telling American women that your voice doesn’t matter. It’s telling survivors everywhere that your experiences don’t count, they’re not important and they are not to be believed.”

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/kirsten-gillibrand-kavanaugh-senate-speech_us_5bacac30e4b091df72edfd5f

"Why isn't Judge Kavanaugh asking for an FBI investigation if (he has) nothing to hide?" Hirono asked during a news conference introducing a letter from 1,000 alumnae of the Holton-Arms School supporting Christine Blasey Ford, who was attending the school when she alleges Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her.

"The option is show up Monday or don't show up at all," Gillibrand said. "I consider that to be bullying. I consider that to be disregarding. I consider that to be something set up for failure. They would like a he-said-she-said scenario, because you know what happens in those scenarios? The men are typically believed."

Gillibrand also said Republicans aren't taking Ford's accusations seriously, citing a top Judiciary Committee staffer's now-deleted tweet that said Republicans are "unfazed and determined" to confirm Kavanaugh.

"Well, obviously they are not objective. They are not the professional staff that would be necessary in the FBI to do this kind of investigation -- someone who is nonpartisan, someone who has been trained to do this level investigation," she told CNN. "And so having that quote out there, they've already ... decided. They don't want the facts. They don't want this investigation done."

https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/20/politics/mazie-hirono-kirsten-gillibrand-republicans-brett-kavanaugh/index.html

I can keep on going. There is more.

[tavernier]

195. I will support the nominee.

Which won’t be a problem for me since it won’t be Kirsten Gillibrand. She has already significantly hurt our party and our country.

[RandiFan1290]

209. Al Franken

She can fuck off

[cynatnite]

217. I don't know enough about her voting record...

It's too early at this point, IMO.

[oberliner]

239. She has the most anti-Trump voting record of anyone in the US Senate

[mahina]

229. Al Franken hit job. Never forgetting, don't trust her.

[tammywammy]

231. Gillibrand's statement on Franken was coordinated with the others. They chose her to go first.

'Their patience had worn incredibly thin': How the dam broke on Al Franken

-snip-
Women Democratic senators had been talking behind the scenes for at least the past week about how to deal with Franken, multiple aides told CNN. But those talks reached a tipping point Wednesday morning, they said, when Politico published a report at 9 a.m. ET of another woman alleging that Franken touched her inappropriately in 2006, before he was elected to office.

The story prompted a flurry of calls and texts between Senate offices within minutes, and it was decided sometime between then and about 10:30 a.m. ET that the women senators would go public in a show of unity with their desire for Franken to step aside.

"Their patience had worn incredibly thin," said an aide to one of the women senators.

Soon after that, Franken was given a heads up about what was coming, according to an aide to one of the women senators.

They would time their statements so that the first one came from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, who's been at the forefront of sexual harassment legislation in recent years. Her statement landed on Facebook at about 11:30 a.m. ET, roughly the same time she started an already-scheduled news conference on sexual harassment in the workplace. She was accompanied by others, like Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson, who famously filed a lawsuit against her news organization for sexual harassment that was settled for $20 million.
-snip-

https://www-m.cnn.com/2017/12/06/politics/senators-al-franken-resignation/index.html?r=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F&rm=1

[VOX]

234. Not interested.

Two words: “ Al Franken.”

[Seasider]

235. She's fine just where she is

I get from a Game of Thrones-ish political perspective why she led the charge to oust Al Franken and I totally get why liberals were livid about what happened to Al's political career. All that aside, I just don't see her as a strong candidate. She's comes off as a little too Diet Hillary and we're gonna need someone who is not gonna back down from a fight with Trump and someone who ignites the Democratic base the way Obama did.

[customerserviceguy]

236. We have better choices

She's an opportunist, her positions were not terribly progressive when she initially got elected to public office. If Caroline Kennedy had bothered to vote, we'd have never heard of her.