Penn calls trade meeting 'error in judgment'

[Ichingcarpenter]

Source: CNN

(CNN) — Clinton campaign strategist Mark Penn said Friday it was an "error in judgment" for him to meet with the Colombian ambassador to advocate for a free-trade agreement Hillary Clinton has said she opposes.

"The meeting was an error in judgment that will not be repeated and I am sorry for it," Penn said in an issued statement. "The senator's well known opposition to this trade deal is clear and was not discussed."

The meeting, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, occurred Monday. Penn appears to have been acting in his role as chief executive of the international communications and lobbying firm, Burson-Marsteller Worldwide. The Colombian Embassy hired the firm to help achieve congressional approval of a bill allowing free trade with the country — a proposal Clinton has sharply criticized.

Earlier Friday, Clinton spokesperson Mo Elleithee said the New York senator "remains steadfast against the Colombian Trade Bill," and maintained Penn's meeting was "not in any way done on behalf of the campaign."

Read more: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/04/04/penn-calls-trade-meeting-error-in-judgment/

---

"error in judgment" You think?

[DJ13]

1. The only "error" he's really sorry for was getting caught

:eyes:

[Veronica.Franco]

62. MARK PENN RESIGNED TODAY ...

Well, well, well ... LOL ... Rove is available ... ;-)

[Hieronymus]

2. Yea, an error. The Clintons knew what they were doing when they got

mobbed up with the likes of Penn.

[Ichingcarpenter]

3. NOW? Who hired this "error of judgement" and

was the hiring of him an "error of judgement"?

[DeSwiss]

4. Errors in judgment....

...seem to be the defining quality of this whole campaign. And its the only thing in which they're consistent as well. I suppose were Hillary to somehow miraculously capture the Presidency, "errors in judgment" would then become the norm???



K&R!!!

[seemslikeadream]

5. Bhopal?

An error in judgement also? Exxon?

[tekisui]

6. This campaign has been one long string of errors in judgement, misspeaks

denials, apologies and lies.

Layer upon layer.

[Ichingcarpenter]

7. Sounds like the last 7 years to me

"Errors in Judgement" is gonna be a new matrix.

[Just-plain-Kathy]

15. That's because so many people feel if a person says they're "sorry", -the slate's clean.

Sometimes, sorry doesn't cut it.

[Judi Lynn]

22. You may recall during his first Presidential campaign, when asked about his former cocaine use or

drinking problem (can't remember which) he simply told the media that this had happened long ago, and that he had since become a Christian, and "God forgave me," and that he wouldn't discuss it further. Case closed!

Oh, yeah. He told people at the first that if someone tries to back him into a corner, he's not going to go.

Maybe they'll ALL start claiming their mistakes were made before they ALL became born-again Christians, and that God has forgiven them, too, and that beyond that, they don't want to discuss anything.

If this falls through, for some reason, they can all simply contract Reagan's faulty memory problems. Easy solution.

[Zhade]

56. Hence the problem with our christianized society - Jeezus forgives!

(You know, if you ignore the very real possibility he never even existed.)

[underpants]

16. They paid a lot of money for a lot of people with a lot of edumication

[ClayZ]

8. He must have mis-thought!

:banghead:

[MidwestTransplant]

9. Let's face it. He is probably working for HC for free now. He wants to get paid.

[Warpy]

10. Penn is a walking error in judgment

and he and the rest of those DLC lobbyists are killing Clinton's campaign.

Let's just hope they don't make it to the national election. Either Clinton or Obama has got to be smart enough to shitcan the lot of them.

[AdamSC]

11. Nail it Obama

Hillary has supplied her own coffin and handed Obama the
nails.  All he has to do is hammer them in.  He needs to stop
choking and put and end to this thing.

[mod mom]

12. "Penn's political consulting firm, has been paid $10.8 million so far by Clinton's Campaign

Here's the link to the quote:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/04/04/mark-penn-apologizes-for_n_95090.html

BOY IF THIS DOESN'T SHOW A LACK OF JUDGEMENT! SHE WAS SO FAR AHEAD AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CAMPAIGN AND HIS GUTTER APPROACH TO POLITICS DRAGGED HER DOWN. SHE IS NOT FISCALLY ASTUTE IN SELECTING HER STRATEGISTS!

[swag]

13. Ya think?

[Phred42]

14. Was that the same 'Error in Judgement" as when Hillary told the Canadians

Not To Worry about Her NAFTA campaign speeches in the US. That those were just Bullshit she was feeding the Peons to get elected?
Was that the SAME error in judgement -or are we seeing a pattern emerging?

[Zhade]

57. Yeah, and then LIED that it was Obama who did what she was guilty of doing!

NT!

[IsItJustMe]

17. The hypocracy is beyond absurd. When will people learn.

[Ichingcarpenter]

18. Voting for War... Just an error in Judgement

This is her number one advisor....

[Zhade]

58. Your misspelling just inspired me - clinton doesn't practice democracy, but hypocracy.

NT!

[JohnnyCougar]

19. Well, that seals the deal.

I'm not voting for Hillary if my life depended on it now. I am voting for Obama or Nader.

[kevinmc]

20. "Hillary Clinton is against this Free Trade agreement"

"Oh..... and Death to the Infidels"

Paid for by

[robinlynne]

21. and what does he call it when he advocates for blackwater?

[Judi Lynn]

23. Here's the mega scheme he's attempting to put over on Americans, and Colombians:

Forgetting the 'Fair' in 'Free Trade'
Yifat Susskind
MADRE
Fri., Apr. 4, 2008
The US-Colombia Unfair Trade Agreement: Just Say No!

With Congress back in session, the Bush Administration is pushing hard to pass another trade agreement based on the failed NAFTA model, this time with Colombia. The Administration is in a race against public opinion, which is quickly turning against the kind of neoliberal trade deals that have worsened poverty and inequality in every country where they have been implemented and led to a massive loss of jobs in the United States. The proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Colombia promises more of the same. The deal will also strengthen Colombia's government, which is responsible for severe human rights violations.

With more and more people—in Latin America and in the US—becoming aware of the repercussions of unfair trade rules, MADRE has urged its members to take action and to let their Congressional representatives know that a vote for this trade agreement is a vote for:

1. Worsening Rural Poverty and Hunger

The FTA cuts tariffs on food imported from the US but benefits only the few Colombian farmers who export to the US. Moreover, the deal bars the Colombian government from subsidizing farmers, while large-scale US corn and rice growers enjoy billions in subsidies. These double standards guarantee that US agribusiness can undersell Colombian farmers, who will face bankruptcy as a result. Many of Colombia's small-holder farmers are women and Indigenous Peoples who are losing their livelihoods and being forced off their lands.

2. Fueling Armed Conflict and Drug Trafficking

The intertwined crises of poverty, landlessness and inequality are at the root of Colombia's 50-year armed conflict. The FTA will further concentrate wealth in the hands of a few while worsening poverty for millions of people. Many Colombian farmers, whose livelihoods will be destroyed by the FTA, will be compelled to cultivate coca (the raw material for producing cocaine) to earn a living.

Continuing a trend begun in the wake of 9-11, the US has cast the FTA as a matter of its "national security," and the Colombian government has followed suit by treating anyone opposed to the deal as a terrorist. Colombia's workers, Afro-Colombians and Indigenous Peoples have taken a clear position against the FTA. Their peaceful protests have been met with severe repression, including murder.

3. Repressing Labor Rights

Colombia is already the world's deadliest country for trade unionists, with more than 2,000 labor activists killed since 1991. The FTA does not require Colombia to meet international core labor standards; it merely calls on the government to abide by its own weak labor laws. Without enforceable labor protections, the trade deal will put more workers at risk. US workers' power to negotiate better wages will also be weakened by a deal that allows corporations operating in Colombia to keep labor costs down through sheer violence.

More:
http://us.oneworld.net/article/view/159452/1/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mark Penn is a true monster to involve himself with _Bush and his bloody puppet, Álvaro Uribe. I wouldn't want a President who would even speak to him.

On edit: adding photo


Two killers sharing a joke at the world's expense.

[midnight armadillo]

24. They've been working together since 2000

There's no way that Penn is going to go on meetings like this without HRC's knowledge and consent, not after an 8-year working relationship.

[Canuckistanian]

25. Who does he work for?

Is he a campaign manager or head of a PR firm?

His judgement shows he can't handle BOTH.

This looks like a conflict of interest here.

[brentspeak]

26. Mark Penn is practically the poster child of the K-Street cocktail party circuit crowd

[DogPoundPup]

27. Group Wants Clinton Strategist Ousted

Source: The Post Chronicle

A coalition of unions backing Democratic U.S. presidential hopeful Barack Obama is calling on rival Hillary Clinton to fire one of her advisers, the group said.

The group, Change to Win, says Mark Penn should be removed from Clinton's campaign team for meeting with the Colombian ambassador about a trade agreement that is opposed by many Senate Democrats, The Hill reported.

It's time for Senator Hillary Clinton to send her vaunted 'chief strategist' Mark Penn packing - back to his job consulting for union-busting corporations and anti-labor governments for good," Greg Tarpinian, executive director of Change to Win, said in a statement.

Penn has said he regrets the meeting.

"The meeting was an error in judgment that will not be repeated and I am sorry for it," Penn said. "The senator's well known opposition to this trade deal is clear and was not discussed."

The flap comes a week after a strategist for Republican presidential candidate



Read more: http://www.postchronicle.com/news/breakingnews/article_212140355.shtml

[bemildred]

28. Clinton ought to fire all her strategists. nt

[mod mom]

29. How blue collar voters can support a candidate who selected a UNION BUSTER as CHIEF STRATEGIST

is beyond me!

[Lena inRI]

52. Clintonian logic. . . .

. . . Billary thinks this character's name will guarantee her winning the PENN-sylvania primary !

:silly: :silly: :silly: :silly: :silly:

[Zhade]

59. Ignorance. Remember, clinton draws the "low-information voter".

Also, the liars, but I've mostly encountered them here, where ignorance really is no excuse.

[Pavlovs DiOgie]

30. K&R!

[rox63]

31. Nooooooo!

Please don't fire Penn. He's been doing such a great job. At least this Obama-supporter thinks so. I also think he's a scumbag. But he's a scumbag that's helping Clinton lose.

[union_maid]

32. It would be the best thing that could ever happen to her

Why she hasn't gotten rid of that guy yet is a mystery for the ages.

[CANDO]

33. As Bill goes, so goes Hill....

This is the sort of "republican" economics Bill Clinton practiced. And I don't trust Hillary to be any different. I'm voting for Obama!

[nichomachus]

34. If she were George Steinbrenner

and Penn were the manager of the team, his ass would have been out of there about 10 "gaffes" ago.

I'm just wondering what hold he has on her. It can't be his string of dazzling successes. Maybe he was instrumental in getting some of that $109 million to flow into the family coffers and they "owe" him.

He's not going to let go voluntarily, because if she gets in, he will be the DC influence peddler par excellence. His lobbying business will go off the charts.

[nyy1998]

39. if this were the 80s

Penn would've been gone last April if Steinbrenner was HC

[andlor]

35. groups wants....

I want this group f.o. from my candidate strategists!!!

[DogPoundPup]

36. I want Clinton;s strategist Penn to know

[Ken Burch]

37. It's even better that the "shipment" is arriving on a foreign flag vessel.

Ah, globalization!

[elocs]

38. Right, "an error in judgement", or

"since I was found out it is an error in judgement." Otherwise, what you don't know, "So sad, too bad". Next time Penn will take more care not to be found out. Yes, somebody has made an error in judgement and it is not just Penn.

[Tellurian]

41. nah, it's probably something to do with a contractual agreement...

most likely he has an iron clad contract stating such and such.. with damages if he is let go..I don't really know. I'm just speculating as to a reason he hadn't been let go sooner.

I'm happy she has someone new helping her who is well respected and she can move on.

[DogPoundPup]

47. I have a visual for that someone helpin' her move-on

[Tellurian]

40. AFAIK.. Hillary has hired someone new..

Her new pollster:

CLINTON CAMP HIRES ANOTHER POLLSTER

Posted: Tuesday, March 18, 2008 6:53 PM by Mark Murray


From NBC’s Chuck Todd

First Read has learned that the Clinton campaign has hired Democratic pollster Geoff Garin to do polling for the campaign. Garin and his firm has plenty of experience polling in the upcoming battlegrounds of Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Indiana.

The question becomes, of course: How does this impact pollster and chief strategist Mark Penn? Some in the campaign have been arguing for months that the chief strategist shouldn’t be polling his own message ideas.

Garin, one of the most respected Dem pollsters in the country, is someone who will have instant credibility inside the campaign and — more importantly — with worried anti-Penn donors.

[DogPoundPup]

43. The funny thing is...she's hiring...BUT

her campaign is BROKE...as in...in the red!

The latest FEC reports appear to suggest that the Hillary campaign may be in the red
http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/03/hillary_campaign_in_the_red.php

[Tellurian]

49. You should donate to the eventual winner..

[Zhade]

60. I'm guessing the poster's already donated to Obama.

NT!

[proud2BlibKansan]

42. Let him stay

Seriously. How dare these unions tell Hillary how to run her campaign, especially if they didn't endorse her.

[dsharp88]

44. Colombia Fired Him Today - ends conflict of interest. n/t

[Kittycat]

46. Do you really think it's that simple?

Especially after her getting caught in the Nafta for it before I was against it lie.

[DogPoundPup]

48. Yea, the Hill people really think it's just that simple

Nevermind what the guy stands for...Columbia fired him, so HillBill and HillBill's people thinks (like the good little rovians they are) it's OK now.

[dsharp88]

54. I'm for Obama 1st, not Hillary - but I don't think this will have legs.

It will appear as though the conflict of interest was "discovered" and action was taken to remove it.

I hope Obama can use it as another example showing he doesn't have lobbying interests working for him like the other candidates, but it's not likely to be the straw that breaks the camel's back for the others.

[Gman]

45. But with the Obama folks it's perfectly OK to call Geraldine Ferraro

a fucking whore. Did this pseudo-union group have anything to say about that? I doubt it. Why should they?

[Zhade]

61. For my part, I think calling her that was wrong.

I mean, she's a racist, not a prostitute.

[happygoluckytoyou]

50. FIRE HIM NOW....BRING HIM BACK WHEN SHE'S IN THE WHITE HOUSE

[krkaufman]

51. Why would you want him removed? Keep him right where he is ...

... and point-out his relationship to Clinton as often as possible, especially to those who've benefited so much from NAFTA.

[biglefthander]

53. I hope he stays...

...he is like having a saboteur deep inside the Clinton headquarters, and they are paying him a million a week.
:nuke:

[Zhade]

55. Just another lie from Camp clinton.

NT!