Finally, finally, the truth comes out on schip. Unfortunately, no Kerry mention (sigh).

[beachmom]

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/03/14/clinton_role_in_health_program_disputed/?page=1

But the Clinton White House, while supportive of the idea of expanding children's health, fought the first SCHIP effort, spearheaded by Senators Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, and Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah, because of fears that it would derail a bigger budget bill. And several current and former lawmakers and staff said Hillary Clinton had no role in helping to write the congressional legislation, which grew out of a similar program approved in Massachusetts in 1996.

"The White House wasn't for it. We really roughed them up" in trying to get it approved over the Clinton administration's objections, Hatch said in an interview. "She may have done some advocacy over at the White House, but I'm not aware of it."

"I do like her," Hatch said of Hillary Clinton. "We all care about children. But does she deserve credit for SCHIP? No - Teddy does, but she doesn't."

The only way they mention Kerry is "others" (sigh), but at least we still have the NYT article from '97:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=980DEFDC113CF932A2575BC0A961958260&sec=health&spon=&pagewanted=1

Not long before last fall's elections, Mr. Kennedy and John F. Kerry, the junior Democratic Senator from Massachusetts, introduced a bill that proposed paying for health insurance for uninsured children through a tobacco tax, a law that was already in place in their state.

[ginnyinWI]

1. it's her playing loose with the truth that really gets me.

She has done this several times--takes credit for something she was only peripherally related to. This is what people do when that's all they've got, unfortunately.

[beachmom]

2. In GDP now:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5073094

[Luftmensch067]

9. Nice fact work, guys!

But I must admit my favorite comment is Karynnj's #37 in that thread. :rofl: :applause:

[karynnj]

3. It is great that they are countering HRC's claim and comes at a time when her

claimed diplomatic accomplishments are being questioned. Many people equate choosing a candidate with interviewing someone for a job. If you were looking at a candidate for a job and found that she repeatedly inflated her accomplishments on her resume, how quickly will her resume go into the reject pile.

The stunning thing is that this claiming credit where it was not due is happening as she claims 35 years of experience. When you take S-Chip out - she has a vaccine program that she did push for as First Lady and deserves credit for as the sole healthcare accomplishment. (It is also interesting that even as far back as her autobiography there was a vaguer comment on being behind the scenes on that - signaling the developing narrative that having failed on health care, she learned and came back with the biggest expansion to health care since the 1960s. Another shoe that may drop (more than it has) is that in 1993 - when everyone saw that her plan was a mess - both Clintons rejected out of hand Bill Bradley's approach, that Kerry supported. Bradley left the Senate - opting not to run in 1996 because he was disgusted with a system that he called broken.)

At this point, giving the entire chronology to include Kerry would likely complicate the story and weaken it. The story is HRC inflating her resume - just as we've claimed for months. Here you have Hatch, whose name is on the bill, stating that Bill Clinton fought them on it and HRC deserves no credit. Kennedy already said that she was not there at the beginning - a more measured denunciation - likely because she is a fellow Democrat. Kerry, to his credit, has always limited his claim of his role to the absolute truth - he and Kennedy wrote the precursor bill - from which ideas and even language came. Kerry also was a co-sponsor and one of the 4 people who spoke when it was introduced (Dodd, another co-sponsor was the other non-sponsor.)

I suspect that Kennedy will campaign for his friend and junior Senator and that he will speak of Kerry's contribution there. The fact is that Kerry is in a far better place here. He really does have a solid claim to contributing to this - just as he has a very solid claim for credit on one of Bush's few accomplishments - the African AIDS program - he and Frist were the ones who proposed it - and we know which of the 2 was there first. We know that he has made solid contributions on environmental issues. I also hope that in an Obama administration, he - possibly uncredited - will be a major force on foreign policy.

I wish he was given more credit - and hate that the media was either intentionally obtuse or lazy in 2004. I can also see why HRC had to get Kerry out before it started. His accomplishments are real, hers are contrived in many cases. (Not to mention - in spite of his IWR vote, she would have a harder time against Kerry on Iraq than Obama. With Obama, she says they were the same once he was in the Senate and lies about a spoken 2004 Obama position- with Kerry she would have a problem - the vote would cancel, but then Kerry spoke out and she didn't and he led on Kerry/Feingold, while she nipped at his ankles trying to stop him. His narrative is harder to dispell and the red telephone add would not be remotely doable.)

[MarjorieG]

4. Obama's answers in debates about Hillary's overstatements?

On the stump he has talked about Hillary's deliberate divide tactics, her overstatements about experience and accomplishments. How does he frame that when asked by press.

I've seen a few places, but do we know for sure if Bill Clinton was in Canada a couple of days before the Nafta memo broke (where press reported Hillary was the wink-wink about her own statements)?

[MBS]

7. hmm. . .

I hadn't heard this (your second sentence.. ), but boy can I picture this. .

[wisteria]

5. I am pleased that she is finally being called out for tall tales .n/t

[Inuca]

6. Also heard it mentioned

on CNN and MSNBC. Media-wise it will probably get lost in the Wright tornado (double :-().

[MBS]

8. See this wonderfully sane post in gdp

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=5091778&mesg_id=5091778

HIghly recommended.