Now Hillary too blasts outsourcing (WTF??)

[OhioChick]

February 22, 2008 11:55 IST

Democratic US Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has joined party rival Barak Obama in promising an end to tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas, playing to the gallery on the hot-button issue of outsourcing as she tries to resuscitate her White House bid.

". . . we are going to rid the tax code of these loopholes and giveaways. We're going to stop giving a penny of your money to anybody who ships a job out of Texas, Ohio or anywhere else to another country," Hillary said during a debate with Obama at University of Texas in Austin.

Hillary, who had in the past refused to join the anti-outsourcing bandwagon, has been perceived as a fence-sitter on the issue till now.

Taking a cue from Obama, who has been fiercely opposing outsourcing, the 60-year-old, who is banking on March 4 contests in Ohio and Texas to revive her fading campaign, appeared to be joining the hardliners in an effort to attract the blue-collared workers.

http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/feb/22bpo1.htm

All of a sudden she's "against" outsourcing, while promoting it for years? :wtf:

Feeling desperate and copying Obama now? (Her quote sounds an awful lot like what Obama's ads say that have been running here.)

On edit to Add: Please recommend if you think that this "flip-flop" is important.

[Exilednight]

1. Remember this quote, we're going to need it when Obama wins the White House and ...

needs Congressional support to help get these plans through.

[OhioChick]

2. Good Point. n/t

[ClassWarrior]

3. Excellent point.

NGU.

[Rosemary2205]

6. ouch.

Has either of them put out a plan to do just this while they've been in office?

[ChromeFoundry]

4. Ah..I see...

She was before it before she was against it.

[thoughtcrime1984]

5. Ta- daaaaa!

[nebula]

7. Pandering at its finest.

This should be news to her Indian lobbyist donor friends in DC.


-------------------------------------------

Clinton Taps Newly Active Indian Donors

By JOSH GERSTEIN
Staff Reporter of the Sun
June 12, 2007


Senator Clinton plans to take time out of her tightly packed presidential campaign schedule next month to deliver a speech to a large and influential alumni group. The well-connected crowd, expected to number about 4,000, hails not from the Ivy League or one of America's renowned state universities, but from a school half a world away, the Indian Institute of Technology.

The unusual speaking engagement is just one sign of the growing clout of the Indian-American community and how Mrs. Clinton is harnessing it to a degree previously unknown in presidential politics.

In April, a prominent New York hotelier and restaurant owner, Sant Chatwal, announced that Indian-Americans plan to raise at least $5 million for the former first lady's presidential campaign, an impressive sum even at the overheated pace of this year's fund raising. Later this month, almost 1,000 people are expected to attend an Indian-themed $1,000-a-plate dinner for Mrs. Clinton in Manhattan. There are also plans to bring in stars from India's film industry, known as Bollywood, for another Clinton campaign event later this year.

"Indians have never raised so much money, to the best of my knowledge, and I've been living here 24 years," Mr. Chatwal told The New York Sun.

"We're all maxing out," a Manhattan philanthropist and socialite, Meera Gandhi, said.

The intense activity reflects a long-standing affinity for Mrs. Clinton on the part of many Indian-Americans, dating back to the state visit she and her husband, President Clinton, made to India in 2000.

However, the new fund-raising prowess also demonstrates how, after a generation or two of toil, another immigrant community has achieved the financial security and social confidence to venture into the American political arena.

"This Indian community has come of age, where they now understand they have to be involved in the political process," Ms. Gandhi said. "We are the new wealthy kids on the block, so to speak. We feel we should have a stake in our country's politics."

www.nysun.com/article/56332

[KittyWampus]

43. there's the money quote.

[ChromeFoundry]

8. This deserves front-page status. n/t

[rucky]

9. Good.

No criticism here for anyone who switches to a better position.

[nebula]

16. Switches to a better position?

You can't possibly be that stupid.

:rofl:

It's called pandering and hypocrisy. Saying anything to win votes while she
accepts large amounts of cash from the India lobby in DC. What a shameless fraud!

[rucky]

23. I must be that stupid.

Because I thought the whole point of being outspoken about an issue is to gain political support for it. So when somebody comes around to your line of thinking, is it better to:

a) call them names
b) welcome them into the fold?

We pressure them, then insult them when they cave into the pressure. How's that supposed to further a cause?

I swear, some progressive activists wouldn't know what to do if they ever won something.

[dansolo]

26. Only if the support is sincere

At this point, it is ONLY WORDS.

[rucky]

27. At this point, EVERYTHING is only words. n/t

[ClassWarrior]

29. The fact that it happened while her campaign is tanking? Just a coincidence...

...right?

:eyes:

NGU.

[rucky]

32. And again, I say Good.

[Stephanie]

10. Sheesh. Ask Buffalo NY about Tata Industries.

She promised jobs to Buffalo and all she brought was one lonely outsourcing firm, Tata Industries. Thanks for nothing, Senator.

[OhioChick]

11. 10 New Jobs...

"But in Buffalo, the fruits of the Tata deal have been hard to find. The company, which called the arrangement Clinton's "brainchild," says "about 10" employees work here. Tata says most of the new employees were hired from around Buffalo. It declines to say whether any of the new jobs are held by foreigners, who make up 90% of Tata's 10,000-employee workforce in the United States."

http://almosteverafter.blogspot.com/2007/09/clinton-woos-outsourcers-feared-by-us.html

[Prefer]

17. Lie - Tata is Indian

I work with Tata resources - they suck.

They are kids from India with no experience and can't speak the language. They pay a tiny fraction of the standard wage to the kids.

It's all about meeting some corporate paper requirements with out actually having a skilled person.

They pretend there is a skills shortage in ths country but what that really is referring to is Skill at an extremely low price.

By leaving price out of the debate they are committing fraud

[texas_indy]

12. I wonder if it will impact her Sikh support??

http://www.sikhcouncilusa.org/article.aspx?article=evtdinner

"Washington May 18th - “I am delighted to be the Senator from Punjab as well as from New York” said Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and the former first lady of the United States of America. She received a standing ovation and thunderous applause from the Sikh Americans who had gathered in the Senate side of the Capitol Hill on May 17th for the Sikh American Heritage Dinner Event in Washington, DC. The Sikh Council on Religion and Education (SCORE), based in the nation’s capital organized this event."


Texas is Obama country!

[OHdem10]

13. This is so disheartening: John Kerry ran with this promise.

Over and Democrats use this argument and go back to the Senate
and never change it. The next Candidate just promises the same
thing.

And do they think we have no memory???


Hillary has used this before--she is not necessarily copying Obama.
Perhaps earlier she got reminded we were promised that before.

Even Al Gore ran on it.

Obama and Hilary need to find something substantial.

[catgirl]

14. Hillary is a huge supporter of outsourcing (self-serving purposes)

Putting Obama's and Hillary's name together in this is simply wrong.
She also wanted to expand the # of temporary foreign workers visas.

[OhioChick]

18. Courtesy of One of "Antigop's" Posts:

Hillary pushes for more h1-b visas and outsourcing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhLBSLLIhUs

Lou Dobbs: Hillary Clinton's hypocrisy (part 1)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLNOSGM2jK4

Lou Dobbs: Hillary Clinton's hypocrisy (part 2)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgdrh2Bc95M

[karynnj]

42. Kerry hasn't ignore it since he went back to the Senate

He has tried to get provisions that would eliminate the tax advantage that companies get when they out source. That was what he said he would do and there is not sufficient support.

[catgirl]

15. A big kick

what a hypocrite!

[OhioChick]

19. What About This:

Hillary Clinton woos India

Hillary clears outsourcing air


Hillary Clinton made it apparent where she stood on outsourcing during her India visit, in an attempt perhaps to clear the Indian misgivings received during the Kerry campaign. "There is no way to legislate against reality. Outsourcing will continue," she told an audience of Indian big-wigs. She pointed out that there were 3 billion people who feel left behind and are trying to attack the modern world in the hope of turning the clock back on globalization. "It is not far-fetched to imagine ... if the Indian miracle would be the one of choice of those who feel left behind," said Hillary.

Hillary has been at the forefront in defending free trade and outsourcing. During the height of the anti-outsourcing backlash in the US last year, she faced considerable flak for defending Indian software giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) for opening a center in Buffalo, New York. "We are not against all outsourcing; we are not in favor of putting up fences," Hillary said firmly, despite inevitably invoking the ire of the anti-free trade brigade.

Hillary further clarified her position during her recent visit as well as solutions that could be beneficial to both countries. She urged Indian industries to invest more in the US to allay negative outpourings over outsourcing of American jobs to India. "I have to be frank. People in my country are losing their jobs and the US policymakers need to address this issue," she said. She ruled out that the anti-India feeling was a reflexive reaction, and explained that the feeling was more because of the imbalance in trade between the two countries, which in turn caused anguish among Americans about the nature of the economic relationship.

"In 2003, US merchandise exports to India was $5 billion, while India exports to the US was $13.8 billion. Though the US understood that the economic vibrancy of India was in its own interest, there are people who feel left behind and might stir up negative feelings against India because they do not understand the economic benefits of outsourcing," Clinton remarked.

"If the feeling was to be arrested, Indian companies should invest more in the US to create a balance in trade relations," she said. Hillary added that she had personally wooed Indian companies to establish partnerships with American counterparts. "In June 2002, TCS partnered with the University of Buffalo to bring patented research to the market place. I would like to see more of such partnerships," she said.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/GC01Df03.html

[nebula]

21. Hillary is pondscum

Vote for Hillary if you want to see your job disappear to Asia.

[nebula]

20. kick

another thread Hillarybots would like to see quickly disappear from the face of the earth.

[OhioChick]

33. I Seemed to Have Noticed That Trend. n/t

[L0oniX]

22. K&R

Big flip flop. NAFTA and the TWO should be hung around Hillary's neck like a mill stone.

[The Backlash Cometh]

24. I would like to believe she is finally seeing what we've been trying to tell her.

[antigop]

25. Too late, Hillary. We know where you really stand. Thanks for nothing. n/t

[Forkboy]

28. She's making a mockery of herself.

She has no line of attack because everything she tries to nail Obama with she supported herself, and it ends up making her look the fool while not even scratching Obama. I think her campaign is truly at a loss on how to slow down Obama right now, and it shows because they seem increasingly desperate and willing to play any card to try to derail him.

[antigop]

30. One thing to remember though ....

Legislation for eliminating the tax breaks has to get passed by Congress in order for the prez to sign.

Although I would DEARLY love for such legislation to get passed by Congress, what are the chances of said legislation actually passing? We have too many corporate Dems in Congress.

And btw, Sen. Byron Dorgan has pushed for an elimination of tax breaks for job outsourcing for many years. Read his book, "Take this job and ship it".

[thoughtcrime1984]

31. SHAME ON OBAMA!

S H A M E ! ! ! !

[alteredstate]

34. Shame on Senator Clinton

"Creating a free trade zone in North America—the largest free trade zone in the world—would expand U.S. exports, create jobs and ensure that our economy was reaping the benefits, not the burdens, of globalization. Although unpopular with labor unions, expanding trade opportunities was an important administration goal. The question was whether the White House could focus its energies on two legislative campaigns at once . I argued that we could and that postponing health care would further weaken its chances."

- Hillary Clinton

[union_maid]

35. I wrote to her about this a while back

I'd been very frustrated by her stance on outsourcing for sometime. It was one that she shared with other DLC Democrats as well, but she's my senator. Our family has been very much affected by outsourcing and it continues to concern me. I don't see how we keep a middle class when sending middle class jobs overseas in droves. So, when she started gearing up to run for president for real, I wrote to her about the issue. Never heard back a single word. When I wrote to her about net neutralilty I got a quick and reassuring response. She has provided real help to organizations serving low income people and they needed her help. Between the Bush administration in DC and Pataki in Albany, it's been a difficult period for that kind of thing. She's done a lot of good things. But her position on trade became indefensible once it became clear what would be made possible by advances in telecommunications.

That said, I welcome anyone who's ready to see the light on that. That is what politics and building a consensus should be about. But she really can't take credit for being a leader for the people on that issue, at least thus far.

[OhioChick]

36. Good Post! n/t

[OhioChick]

37. Interesting Comments Following the Article:

Stop this hyper journalism.
by Ashish Agnihotri on Feb 22, 2008 11:08 PM | Hide replies

There is need to think before writing or write with proper analysis in mind. See at what time is Hilary changing the gears. This explains why she has made u-turn. Almost down to Obama she changed her campagin manager, she has changed her stands on few other important issues. She has no choice but try every trick in trade to see if she can reverse the vote against her in many primaries. This is last chance for her. So dont be surprised if you hear her say things that she never said before or said exactly opposite. Hold on...world is not falling for every sentence spoken by any Senator in USA. Remember Bush is still president ...have faith in ourselves...India can determine its own course after these many years...please.

Why only outsourcing of services?
by True Indian on Feb 22, 2008 10:48 PM | Hide replies

All products in US markets like food, cloth and materials are outsourced. Why shouldnt they increase the tax on the imports? US market is full of cheap chinese products. Why dont they set up their ouw industries? That shall solve their job problem. Democrats are born diplomatic and should never be trusted. They licked Paks feet even when they knew that its harbouring terrorism. Hiliary had more trips to Islamabad than to Delhi.

India should start its own products.
by Sree. on Feb 22, 2008 10:19 PM | Hide replies

I think its the time that we indians should start our own companies and our own products and market these products world wide. No outsouce, we should only do the business.. instead of selling our technology and minds, we should start selling our products.. what say on this readers..

BILL Outsourcing
by Janak Madhu on Feb 22, 2008 04:40 PM | Hide replies

Politicians will remain politicians...now that she is loosing out, she is singing the same song as others...outsourcing is never gonna stop. When did she start bothering about AMERICAN middle class families eh!!...on the other side..banning chinese goods - China holds around 60-75% of US bonds...no way they can stop importing chinese goods...even the biggest retailer WAL-MART imports all of its goods from China and from India tooo....OUTSOURCING IS HERE TO STAY...

democrats have never been pro-india
by Sriram on Feb 22, 2008 01:30 PM | Hide replies

This is complete populist banter. It will increase inflation in the US because it will cost companies a lot more to hire local labour and they will pass it on, given the highly competitive nature of american businesses. why not kick out the illegal mexicans too? They steal american jobs like we steal their investment

More Comments Following the Article:

http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/feb/22bpo1.htm

[TexasObserver]

38. Suddenly, Hillary is reversing her positions faster than John McCain.

NAFTA? Never heard of it.

Garnishing wages to pay her Insurance Industry sponsors? What?!

[ChromeFoundry]

39. One of those

I was for it before I was against it issues, right?

[HughBeaumont]

40. She seems to forget this little thing called The Internet . . .

. . . where things don't easily slip down the rabbit hole.

Although her straight-outta-the-Heritage-Foundation positions on job offshoring and free trade are the backbreakers for me, there are plenty of other reasons not to support her. Mainly that she believed the worst president this country has ever had; first when lives were on the line and then for laying the groundwork on potentially another invasion of a nation that poses no threat to us.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/HughBeaumont/32

[workinclasszero]

41. Mrs NAFTA

Is now against the treaty she helped ram through Congress and crowed about for years.:eyes:

What a world class liar you are Hillary Clinton!