February 20, 2016

Hillary Clinton is achingly honest when asked if she's always told the truth.

I don't know why everyone's treating her so roughly, like this WaPo item titled "Hillary Clinton’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad answer on whether she’s ever lied." Here's the exchange:
PELLEY: You know, in ’76, Jimmy Carter famously said, “I will not lie to you.”

CLINTON: Well, I have to tell you I have tried in every way I know how literally from my years as a young lawyer all the way through my time as secretary of state to level with the American people.

PELLEY: You talk about leveling with the American people. Have you always told the truth?

CLINTON: I’ve always tried to. Always. Always.

PELLEY: Some people are gonna call that wiggle room that you just gave yourself.

CLINTON: Well, no, I’ve always tried —

PELLEY: I mean, Jimmy Carter said, “I will never lie to you.”

CLINTON: Well, but, you know, you’re asking me to say, “Have I ever?” I don’t believe I ever have. I don’t believe I ever have. I don’t believe I ever will. I’m gonna do the best I can to level with the American people.
"I will never lie to you" is always a lie, isn't it? A President must lie some of the time. A Secretary of State must lie. A compulsive truth-teller would be a disaster. But she can't say that. She uses the word "leveling" in place of "truth-telling," and she shifts to the concept of trying.

In the course of her career, she's had to try to do a lot of things. Telling the truth doesn't always come first. In fact, we need a capable liar who has good judgment about when to lie. Pelley was trying to box her in. If she says "I've never lied," we'll be able to point to that as a lie, because we know she's lied about at least a few things. Pelley's question is oversimplified, but it worked for him. He got a great soundbite. She stumbled horribly, but wasn't that evidence of some honesty?

96 comments:

traditionalguy said...

Hillary tells the truth about whatever you already know about. But Hillary NEVER tells the truth about her secrets, which is her power over you and shall never be revealed.

Poor Hillary cannot keep her secrets anymore. So what use is politics to her or to anyone else she thinks she benefits from that style. The young folks see that.

Sebastian said...

"I will never lie to you" is always a lie, isn't it?" No.

"I have tried in every way I know how" is not "achingly honest." Painful, yes.

pm317 said...

Yeah, what is with all these simplistic gotcha questions. And thank you for putting her answer in the right perspective. I am sick of how she is being bandied about from all sides. She can't do anything right. Give me a break.

Michael K said...

Hillary lies when she says "If", "and" and "the."

The lies are not the principle problem. It is her fundamental dishonesty and corruption. The cattle futures thing was the first we knew of but the White House Travel Office was the most egregious. It never occurred to her that those people had been working for multiple presidents of both parties. It was just one more opportunity for graft.

David Begley said...

She's way worse than just a liar. She's a criminal who has exposed our secrets to our enemies and sold official acts for money.

Diogenes of Sinope said...

"No" would have been a good answer for all of us. Clinton could have followed up with a claim that she always tried to do what was in the best interests of the country......except in Hillary's case that is known to be false. So what's she gonna say.

Skeptical Voter said...

Pm 317 has it right. The Hildebeest can't do anything right-- and she asks the nation to give her a break. Sorry Charlie--we are fresh out of breaks today. Karma does come around, and karma is going to give it to Hillary good and hard.

chuck said...

Hillary is corrupt and dishonest, but in a ordinary way. She has no genius for it.

Fernandinande said...

I gather that "achingly honest" is some sort of Newspeak for "lying one's ass off as usual".

traditionalguy said...

Interestingly, at a lie detector test the examiner's first questions always include "have you ever told a lie" and "have you ever stolen anything."

If the subject says no to one of those questions the reactions on the test record become the baseline the operator uses for what a lie looks like by this subject.

Bay Area Guy said...

I despise Hillary, but the so-called journalism here is junior-varsity. Hillary 1, Pelley 0

People not only lie, they often think telling white lies over unpleasant truths is a good thing.

I'm thinking of Obama in the health care debate - "You can keep your doctor." (Except if obamacare drives your doctor out of his practice)

I'm thinking of Billy Jeff Clinton - "I did not have sex with that woman, Miss Lewinsky" (but does oral sex count?)

I'm thinking of Hillary -and the Sniper fire she survived in Bosnia.

In this case, the abstract discussion of lying, unrelated to a specific issue or statement is bush-league.

Amadeus 48 said...

As the guy in the Firesign Theater sketch says, "You can trust me, because I'm always right, and I never lie."

Meade said...

When I lived and worked down in Carolina some 40 years ago, I overheard a conversation of wisdom:

"We can't work with that boy, he lied to us."

I know. But we can trust him.

"TRUST him? He LIED to us."

I know. But he told us about the lie. That's how we know we can trust that boy.

Hnkn said...

What I hate about the 2008 and 2016 election cycles is that they've made me sympathize with Hilary Clinton far more than I find comfortable.

I think it was a bullshit question and I'm stumped how a person can answer it honestly without getting roughed up for nonsense. I don't know why they don't ask everyone the question.

Maybe, though, that's the lesson? A reputation for dishonesty brings you under scrutiny that none of us can stand up to.

Anonymous said...

Why is this post analyzing what Hillary said in a vacuum?

She has a history, you know. Not a good one.

Tom said...

Anyone who's ever been in a negotiation has lied by omission, at least.

Hagar said...

Pelley was not asking her if she just had lied; he was asking if she had lied-lied, as Whoopi would say.

Hagar said...

I think it was Bill Safire who said about the Clintons that it was not just that they lied, but that they lied so easily, that disturbed him.

tim in vermont said...

I have to side with Hillary on this one, even though I think she is lying when she says she has always "tried to level with" us.

Like when Granny said "Jed would rather run over a fresh mowed stubble field than tell a lie!" and Jed says "Now, Hold on Granny."

Real American said...

One does not "try" to tell the truth. You either tell the truth or you don't. Hillary is a big fucking liar and everyone knows it. That Democrat Party voters would countenance this crook for political gain tells you everything you need to know about how corrupt and dishonest that entire party is.

tim in vermont said...

She stumbled horribly, but wasn't that evidence of some honesty?

Was O.J.'s vow to "find the real killer" evidence he was innocent? It's an honest question.

Rae said...

"I've always tried to..." and "I don't believe I ever have..." is attempting to get points for honesty while being dishonest to our face.

And yes, we're all hyperaware of Hillary Clintons mendacious nature. But we have good reason.

Lying may sometimes be necessary. But it should never be celebrated, and never become the go to strategy.

It's amazing to me that the American electorate knows their politicians and bureaucrats are lying to them, and yet doesn't tar and feather them, let alone re-elect them.

Bob Boyd said...

@ Meade

The boy in the story presumably admitted a lie after an attack of conscience.
Has Hillary ever acknowledged a lie?

Her reputation is that of a liar. Just a misunderstanding?
Hillary lies when she doesn't even need to lie. It's her default setting. She's gotten away with it for so long because of a friendly press. But they're not so friendly anymore. If anything is unfair about the question it's that these same smug media types enabled Hillary's lying, even encouraged it for years. They're complicit. They helped make her what she has become. Now they're changing the rules and looking down their noses at her.

Original Mike said...

Well, if she had said "Yes" smoke would have come out to her ears and she would have shut down.

"Norman, coordinate."

LYNNDH said...

And you that feel sympathy for Hillary over this question undoubtedly believe her when she said there were no classified Emails on her server.

tim in vermont said...

Well, if she had said "Yes" smoke would have come out to her ears and she would have shut down.

Exactly! So she said the only thing she could say! The equivalent of "Does not compute! Does not compute!"

CStanley said...

An honest discussion about the necessity of lying to the public would make it clear that Hillary Clinton has also lied to protect herself and her husband.

It was an impossible question and her answer wasn't as bad as it could have been- but the worst part was (as Megyn Kelly pointed out) the way her voice started to rise in pitch as she became more defensive.

Ken B said...

Althouse says we need a good liar. Perhaps in the national interest, but in her own? How is lying about Benazir or emails in the national interest?

tim in vermont said...

"Level with" means that she lies in service of what she has judged a larger truth that she believes is in the best interest of the American People.

Hagar said...

Though ths time she did not lie easily; she opened her eyes so wide her eyebrows were about to meet her hairline, and that is always a tell that a real whopper is coming.
Bill is the really good liar in the family.

CStanley said...

It could have been worse, she could have tried humor:

Interviewer: Have you ever lied?

Clinton: You mean like a rug?

Hagar said...

How did Benazir Bhutto get into this?

robother said...

This discussion is deeply connected to the other thread on Religion in Politics. As Machiavelli saw, a Prince is in a different relationship to religious commandments (especially as to lying and killing) than mere individuals, precisely because of his representative role. His duty to the polis trumps even his individual salvation.

And, of course he would've been acutely conscious of the way Popes could use their power of applying individual morality to unfavored Princes to enhance their own political power.

sunsong said...

Character matters, especially in a President. Hillary has a reputation for dishonesty, probably over 60% of Americans think she is not honest or trustworthy. She should have been prepared for the question. In fact, she probably ought to have addressed this months ago. Instead, she lied in an interview about lying. "I don't think I ever have" Give me a break. This is good for a laugh, good for Saturday Night Live...

Jon said...


Hillary lied to the faces of the families of the Benghazi dead. For no reason at all, from a national security point of view (which I believe to be permissible when the actual national interest is involved, so I am not a perfectionist here), just for the most venal political motive.

She should burn in Hell, if there is one.

Sam L. said...

Evidence? I would NOT bet on it.

Jon said...

Shame on you Ann, for trying to mitigate what she is.

Laslo Spatula said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
William said...

She's been caught in a number of whoppers, and her husband lied under oath. I just don't see how she could answer that question in a graceful way. She and her husband tell lies, and everyone knows it. Maybe she could say that some of her memories have been proven to be faulty, and she apologizes for that but her intent was never to deceive the American public.....Nah, that wouldn't work. Maybe she could claim that although she sometimes prevaricates, she is always in pursuit of the higher truth. Just as a football player is not considered a liar when he feints right and goes left, so should her stumble steps be forgiven. The point of the game is not to tell the truth but to score the goal. "I will always do what is necessary to score the goal for the American people." Hillary Clinton a liar American can trust.

Bob said...

She stumbled horribly, but wasn't that evidence of some honesty?

On the same principle as the stopped clock, sure.

Laslo Spatula said...


"Hillary?"

"Yes, Huma?"

"That question you were asked about lying: it got me thinking. Do you tell ME the truth?"

"I’ve always tried to. Always. Always."

"That's the same answer you told the reporter."

"Well, but, you know, you’re asking me to say, “Have I ever?” I don’t believe I ever have. I don’t believe I ever have. I don’t believe I ever will. I’m gonna do the best I can to level with my Huma."

"Hillary, it's me. Please..."

"Huma, okay. Of COURSE I have lied to you. I lie to everybody. But when I lie to you they are Special Lies, to bring us closer together."

"What 'Special Lies' have you told me?"

"Well, I told you I really liked that blue purse of yours."

"I love that purse. You don't like it?"

"It makes you look like a Beirut Hooker. Plus it isn't big enough to fit a full bottle of Vodka."

"But have their been... 'bigger' lies?"

"Huma, of course there has. But do you really want me to tell you that your vagina is ugly and your asshole smells sour?"

"I have an ugly vagina?"

"It is like an oversized mollusk, Huma, stuffed with spoiled roast beef. Sometimes I can barely stand to look at it without gagging."

"Oh my..."

"Huma, just assume that everything I tell you is a lie, but for your own good."

"For my own good. Okay."

"And that way when I DO tell you the truth it is like a special secret surprise we both share."

"How will I know when it is a 'special secret surprise.'?"

"Well: when I tell the truth my eyes bleed a little..."

"I thought that was from all the concussions and strokes and drunken falls."

"Well, that is true, too. See: right there! A special secret surprise!"

"It DOES feel good, Hillary."

"I always want you to feel that way, Huma."

"You do?"

"No, not especially. Sorry: no special secret surprise there..."


I am Laslo.

robother said...

Yes, character matters in a President, but we should be clear that the characteristics that matter in choosing a leader are not the same as those in choosing a pastor or a friend. To ask anyone in politics or the law "have you ever lied" is a ridiculous question, which shows no appreciation for the demands of diplomacy or the lawyer-client relationship.

To me, the critical question for Hillary is rather, when there is a conflict between your personal or political self-interest and your public responsibilities, have you ever put the public interest first? The long history of her shady financial dealings from Little Rock to Wall Street tells me she is not fit to serve.

Henry said...

Horrible line of questioning. When did you stop beating your husband, Ms. Clinton?

But what always strikes me with the way Ms. Clinton speaks, seems to think, and certainly acts as a politician, is an utter lack of imagination. She doesn't seem capable of striking an original pose or proposing a creative solution or embracing an unpopular cause. The bounds of her vision are constrained by boardrooms.

Even her supporters have nothing to applaud but a quantifying of her experience. There are no grand outcomes or idealistic stances associated with her name.

Brando said...

The question may have been unfair, but why not simply answer honestly? A decent politician could have said "sometimes in my position you have to hide the truth or even outright lie--for example, state secrets must be protected, sometimes feelings must be protected, and we have to be diplomatic. For Carter to say he'd never lie was naive. But where possible, my policy has been one of honesty. If that sounds like a hedge, that's because it's a complicated answer for an overly simplistic question."

But instead, Hillary does something she's quite used to--trying to be something she isn't. She could have owned her dishonesty and even used it to make us think that could be a feature, not a bug. But she has no self confidence and just comes across as less honest than before.

Anonymous said...

How refreshing that Hillary is honest for once, about she might have lied to you.

Birches said...

The reason her answer comes off terribly is because she is untrustworthy.

I agree, as others have said, it's a silly question. People lie, and in government, sometimes even when they think they're telling the truth (I'm thinking the whole Jack Ryan scenario in Clear and Present Danger).

How would any of you answer the question, do you lie? Of course you'd mitigate and say something like, "I try not to" because it's the truth. When you say it though, it doesn't come off shady because you aren't doing shady things all the time. Hillary does.

Charles said...

Laslo, my man...

William said...

@Brando. "Sometimes state secrets must be protected." That's something Hillary can't say. She's in a position ripe for ridicule......If an Athenian tells you that all Athenians are liars, should you believe he's telling the truth. She's the proverbial Athenian.......Bill Clinton knew how to put the con in conundrum, but Hillary lacks his skills. America admires and trusts a good liar, but she's not a good liar. A bad liar is not someone who stands closer to the truth. They're simply a worse con artist.

jr565 said...

""I will never lie to you" is always a lie, isn't it"

Never gonna give you up
Never gonna let you down
Never gonna turn around
And Hurt you
Never Gonnna make you cry
Never gonna say goodbye
Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you.

Maybe the biggest song about lying in the history of pop songs?
Nick Lowe responded in kind:

vs
Do you remember Rick Astley
He had a big fat hit, it was ghastly
He said "I'm never gonna give you up or let you down"
Well I'm here to tell you that Dick's a clown

Though he was very young when he made that vow
I'll bet it all that he knows by now
All Men, All Men Are Liars
There Words aint worth no more than worn out tires
Hey Girls, bring rusty pliars
To Pull this Tooth
All Men are Liars, and that's the truth.

I'd simply add that all women are liars too, and that's also the truth.

ddh said...

The problem with Hillary's answer is that no one really believes that she tries not to lie.

rhhardin said...

On an island of truth-tellers and liars, the way to find out the way to the village is to ask, "Did you know that they're giving out free beer in the village?" and follow the guy no matter what he says.

That beats creative liars as well as the rigorous ones.

jr565 said...

Its a hard question to answer in the affirmative though. If you admit you lied you are then asked what you lied about.And then have to defend why you lied.

rcocean said...

The definition of Diplomat is someone who lies for his country.

But Hillary lies to everyone.

Richard Dolan said...

Dissecting that exchange at the level of semantics is a great way to miss its meaning. No one familiar with Hillary! took the exchange to be a trick question focused on whether she's ever told little white lies or false statements for raison d'etat. Rather, that exchange had real bite because anyone familiar with Hillary! knows that she will lie whenever the truth is politically inconvenient for her.

Laslo Spatula said...

Truth is the Needle in a Haystack.

Not every Haystack has a Needle.

I am Laslo.

Michael K said...

Eisenhower went to great lengths to avoid lying as President. The U2 incident was an example.

Lying by presidents has gotten far more permissible. FDR certainly lied even when he didn't have to but he seemed to have a vague relationship with truth. Truman was pretty honest, almost to a fault. Johnson was a big a liar as the Clintons. Nixon was hated and called a liar but he was a lot more honest than Bill or Hillary.

Kansas City said...

The lying problem with Hillary is that she has continuously done so in order to benefit herself personally.

I was surprised that Ann's analysis was entirely of the words and not the body language. One perhaps, could rationalize the words but not looking at her squirm. It was a person who has been a frequent liar for many years and knows it. She could not even finish "have it ever _____" - she could not say the word "lied." The pitch of her voice changed. And she was, of course, lying.

David said...

"Truth is the Needle in a Haystack.

Not every Haystack has a Needle."

Yep.

Bill Peschel said...

It was a stupid question, and typical of most reporters (I've worked with them, and a more incurious bunch I've never found).

I suppose you have to talk about something, so how about this: Why does it matter what Hillary does anymore? Why does the media write those "Hillary tries to be more authentic"?

She's been around for a lifetime. We know her so well. She's ineffectual as a leader, not very bright, has health problems, has deliberately lied (let's start with the two-faced "the YouTube video caused the attack / it was terrorists" and go from there), is a horrible campaigner and if elected president will hammer the gender card like Bill hammered interns.

Instead of eight years of racial healing, we'll get at least four of gender balance. That alone should make anyone think twice about voting for her.

Anonymous said...

You almost get the feeling Donald Trump would have borrowed Pontius Pilate's retort of "what is truth?" and walked out of the interview had he gotten this question.

The question is a bit unfair because it's damaging to answer it either with a simple yes or a simple no. To say that one has tried to be truthful is a fairly good riposte, since "trying" can be as weak as just considering whether the truth should be told. Unluckily for Clinton, when the reporter pushes back on this response, then she goes for something much closer to a flat out "no". There's still the wiggle room of what the meaning of the words "believe" and "lie" are, to use Clintonian parsing.

The stumble here to me isn't reflective of honesty so much as it's reflective of the fact that Clinton is not good at going off-script. While I don't know if she had planned the "try" response if she ever got this kind of question, when she gets pushed with Carter's example, she comes pretty close to adopting it as her own.

A better response to this kind of question, which also doesn't necessarily answer the question, is "I say what I believe to the American people." Pushback there would allow deflection more easily - either to passion, ideas, or even to set up a "I'm not going to tell the American people [insert statement here] like [insert Republican here]."

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

"She can't do anything right. Give me a break."

Certainly. Name one thing she's done right.

She continues to intrude on our consciousness purely as a media creation. No media folktales, no Hillary. Good God, she's like a koan for the evil and stupid.

Robt C said...

From Jonah Goldberg's recent newsletter:

Lying is what the Clintons are about.

And, no, I’m not talking about Bill Clinton lying about his “relationship” with Monica Lewinsky, or the numerous credible accusations that he was a sexual predator. Bill earned the name “Slick Willie” long before he questioned the meaning of “is” or claimed that while Lewinsky had made sexual contact with him, he had not had sexual contact with her.

Bill lied with half-truths, whole lies, whole truths wrapped in deceptive contexts. . . . Hillary is not a born liar the way Bill is. . . . So that brings me to Hillary’s CBS interview yesterday. . . .First of all, she is lying about not believing she ever lied. It’s like an Escher drawing of hands drawing themselves, a Mobius strip of deceit, where, in an effort to seem like she’s telling the truth about lying, she’s lying even more. (Even PolitiFact, the hackiest and most biased of the fact-checking outfits, which bends over like a Bangkok hooker to defend Democrats, has a long list of her more recent lies.)

What I love is the way she phrases it as a struggle. She’s tried “every way I know how” not to lie. It’s a burden, a task, a chore to make statements that can plausibly count as truths. This isn’t how truth-tellers talk, it’s how sociopaths talk about how hard it is to deny their urges.

Her problem is quite simple: Hillary Clinton is a lawyer who lies. Bill Clinton is a liar who’s a lawyer. (Or at least he used to be a lawyer. He had to forfeit his license because -- wait for it! -- he lied under oath.)

When cornered, Hillary always talks as if she’s being deposed. She needs the wiggle room, the caveats, the “to the best of my recollections.”

It’s all of a piece with Hillary’s larger problem. As I keep saying, simply because you marry someone of great skill doesn’t mean that skill becomes community property. Bill Clinton, despite his flaws -- nay because of them! -- was a great politician. Hillary Clinton merely married one.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

Wow.

Well, at least she admits it's a weakness of hers.

Are we seriously going to let this nasty witch win the nomination and presidency?

Disgusting. How far we've come from our country's Washingtons and Lincolns.

Hagar said...

Not exactly. Bill has - or had - the talent, but Hillary! had the driving ambition.
By himself, Slick Willie might just have stayed in Little Rock, content to admire himself in the mirror.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...

She will make history as not only the first woman president, but the first admitted pathological liar.

It will be a breakthrough in barriers broken for pathological liars everywhere. Rejoice! No longer need you face discrimination for your affliction!

Jews will have to add an 11th plague at the reading of their Passover Hagaddahs for commemorating the miracle of however this woman is removed from public service.

Jupiter said...

"In the course of her career, she's had to try to do a lot of things."

Trading cattle futures, for instance. Arkansas real estate.

DAN said...

From RAISING ARIZONA...

Parole Board chairman: You're not just telling us what we want to hear?
H.I.: No, sir, no way.
Parole Board member: 'Cause we just want to hear the truth.
H.I.: Well, then I guess I am telling you what you want to hear.
Parole Board chairman: Boy, didn't we just tell you not to do that?
H.I.: Yes, sir.
Parole Board chairman: Okay, then.

Anonymous said...

What is true is that the worse Hillary is abused the more many will see her as a sympathetic figure. There comes a time when the piling on of insults and accusations does the opposite of what you on the right may want. There is no politician who hasn't lied. There is no human being who hasn't lied and if they say they've never told a lie, they've lied.

cronus titan said...

Among voters in NH who put honesty/trustworthiness as a key factor, Sanders beat Hillary 93-5. 93-5. Clinton as a prevaricator and liar is baked into the cake. Voters have to decide whether being a prevaricator and liar is relevant. If it is, Hillary is done. But they may not, mostly because it is simply assumed with the Clintons. They have reached the stage where the media yawns if they are caught and brush it off with the view of "that's just the way they are." No other candidate of either party would be given such a pass.

The beauty of "I've always tried" is that it can be parsed to mean anything. It can mean I try to be honest but sometimes I have to lie, don't hold it against me. Or it can mean I try but am no good at it. Or it can mean I try because I am always honest and cannot account for honest errors over the year. Or it can mean I try because it such a chore and boring to be honest, Classic Clinton -- one needs a decoder ring to figure out what they mean by the simple words "I try."

cubanbob said...

Rhythm and Balls said...
She will make history as not only the first woman president, but the first admitted pathological liar.

It will be a breakthrough in barriers broken for pathological liars everywhere. Rejoice! No longer need you face discrimination for your affliction!

Jews will have to add an 11th plague at the reading of their Passover Hagaddahs for commemorating the miracle of however this woman is removed from public service.

2/20/16, 12:22 PM"

Possibly. But with her pet Huma and her Muslim Brotherhood more likely it will be an addon to Purim.

cubanbob said...

Blogger Amanda said...
What is true is that the worse Hillary is abused the more many will see her as a sympathetic figure. There comes a time when the piling on of insults and accusations does the opposite of what you on the right may want. There is no politician who hasn't lied. There is no human being who hasn't lied and if they say they've never told a lie, they've lied.

2/20/16, 12:51 PM

There is nothing sympathetic about that grifter and criminal.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I just made a great tweet after reading this. I consider it a great tweet but twitter does not. Its very disappointing that way.

The only way I can make it decent, in the way of views, it's if I link to it, but don't reproduce it here.

That's a tough one. I want views for my tweets but in the other hand, people resent having to make extra clicks.

So, I've decided to forgo the views and reproduce the tweet here.

It's only when the wrong people run for office that we discover we have been discarding good people for less than anything thoroughly wrong.

n.n said...

Only in the penumbra zone.

We need less practitioners of legalese... That is, semantic games, in the government.

Anonymous said...

"There is nothing sympathetic about that grifter and criminal."

Yet you people love Scott Walker.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

When Althouse writes "I don't know why everyone's treating her so roughly..."

Oh, I don't know. It could be because we are witnessing an all too familiar story, deja vu all over again.

The Clintons getting away with something.

FullMoon said...

It's not a lie, if you believe it.

I wonder, does Hillary cry in the shower?

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

"I try"

There is no TRYING! There is only DO or DO NOT.

Jim Gust said...

I don't see how lying about lying is "achingly honest." What am I missing?

Fabi said...

Scott Walker is a grifter and a criminal? I learn something new quite often from Amanda. Very little of it is ever true.

Original Mike said...

"I don't see how lying about lying is "achingly honest." What am I missing?"

Yeah, that was my reaction too.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

No questions about the private server.

Not one.

Hack press in action.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

@ David Begley

She's way worse than just a liar. She's a criminal who has exposed our secrets to our enemies and sold official acts for money.

Media won't touch it. She's full-on corrupt. It's not a conspiracy - it just is - and we are treated to the media treating her like a poor baby.

khesanh0802 said...

I don't like Hillary, but it would have been great if she had had the courage - or chutzpah - to say " If I did it was in the service of my country and none of your business." That would be a statement that we'd find hard to swallow, but would have at least have been up the nose of questioner.


tim maguire said...

No one else in this election cycle would be asked this specific question, but every findidate is asked their personal equivalent. Hillary is asked ths question because it goes directly to one of her biggest weaknesses. Asking Hillary about lying is like asking Rubio about the Gang of Eight or asking Trump about bankruptcy. It's a totally fair question.

walter said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
tim maguire said...

I burned the plaintains while typing that comment. Dammit.

Meade said...

"H: Lie? You mean like a rug? "

Yes, like a rug. Now don't track mud in onto the rug — wipe your boots. You know — like a server.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

You know — like a server.

Nice.

raf said...

She stumbled horribly, but wasn't that evidence of some honesty?

No, it is evidence that she is not a good liar.

cubanbob said...

Amanda said...
"There is nothing sympathetic about that grifter and criminal."

Yet you people love Scott Walker.

2/20/16, 1:16 PM"

The might be true in the alternate universe you inhabit but it isn't in the one the rest of us inhabit.

The Godfather said...

I didn't read or view the whole interview, but I know that there are specific things that Hillary! has said that many people think are provably untrue. Instead of asking the generic question, Have you ever lied?, how about: You said that you did not allow any classified information on your private server, but [X] emails from that server have been identified as containing highly classified information. Do you deny that those emails contained classified information? [AND THEN BE PREPARED WITH FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS, INSTEAD OF JUST ACCEPTING HER ASSERTION THAT THIS IS JUST A MATTER OF OVER-CLASSIFICATION].

JAORE said...

As my father said, "She will lie even when the truth would serve her better."

As for me, whenever she speaks her words are immediately drowned out by the sounds of dogs barking.

mikee said...

I like that Hillary told the entire country on live TV to believe her lies, instead of our own lying eyes, that Bill was a persecuted victim of a puritanical prosecution. With the ability to tell whoppers like that, anything could come out of her maw after the election.

I expect Baghdad Bob is hunkered down somewhere in a bunker still, weeping that he never took lessons from her.

LakeLevel said...

This is Hillary and her agent Pelly setting up her use of the Obama winning strategy: convince enough people to see their own ideology in whatever you say. Prospective Hillary! supporters can now hear anything she says and believe that she really really is just saying those things you don't agree with just because she has to lie. Right Ann?

mtrobertslaw said...

Hillary's answer in plain English: I always try to tell the truth I really do, but sometimes the temptation to lie is just too strong and I give in.

Peter said...

"Well, I have to tell you I have tried in every way I know how ..."

She obviously absorbed Yoda's lesson: there is no doing, there is only trying, or not trying?