As Common Dreams reported on Tuesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has joined hundreds of anti-war, civil rights, and environmental groups in calling on the Senate to reject Pompeo. (Photo: Ron Sachs/CNP/MediaPunch/IPX)
As Progressives Nationwide Urgently Mobilize to Block Pompeo, Hillary Clinton Reportedly Gave Him 'Advice'
"Why is Clinton even taking a call from such a monstrous person?"
As civil rights organizations, LGBTQ advocates, environmentalists, and progressive lawmakers continue their urgent push to prevent the confirmation of torture-supporting warmonger Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, at least one prominent political figure has been perfectly "willing to help" Pompeo survive his upcoming Senate hearings: former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
"On the whole, with very few exceptions, people who have spent years in Washington are more allied with each other than with the principles they claim to represent or the people they ought to be helping."
--Libby Watson, Splinter
According to a Politico report published Tuesday, Pompeo has reached out to every living former secretary of state "to ask for guidance" and "advice" as he looks to take over the thoroughly depleted State Department.
"Clinton, for one, has been willing to help," Politico reports, but it is unclear whether Kerry or any other previous secretaries of state have responded to Pompeo's request for advice.
"During their talk, Clinton advised Pompeo to stem the flight of career diplomats who quit under Tillerson, according to a person familiar with the call," Politico adds.
Clinton expressed a similar sentiment during a speech in New York City last week, saying that the massive outflow of career officials from the State Department is a "tragedy."
The former Secretary of State went on to suggest that Pompeo's nomination offers "one small glimmer of hope" because "when he went into the CIA, he only brought two people with him and he really relied on the career intelligence people."
While it is unclear what precisely was said during the reported conversations, commentators and activists were quick to express outrage that Clinton would even speak with, let alone offer advice to, a Trump administration official with a record like Pompeo's.
"Why is Clinton even taking a call from such a monstrous person?" wrote Splinter's Libby Watson, who noted that Pompeo has "defended torturers as 'heroes'" and espoused Islamophobic hysteria.
One possible reason, Watson suggests, is that "on the whole, with very few exceptions, people who have spent years in Washington are more allied with each other than with the principles they claim to represent or the people they ought to be helping."
In a similar vein, Evan Greer of Fight for the Future tweeted:
News that Clinton gave Pompeo advice comes as progressive groups kick into overdrive their efforts to block his confirmation ahead of Senate hearings set to begin on Thursday.
As Common Dreams reported on Tuesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has joined hundreds of anti-war, civil rights, and environmental groups in calling on the Senate to reject Pompeo.
In an email to supporters, CodePink noted on Tuesday that the "vote is expected to be tight and we have a real chance to stop" Pompeo from taking control over at the State Department.
"Pompeo advocates military intervention and regime change in North Korea, and supports ongoing unauthorized conflicts like the Saudi-led war on Yemen. When the Iran nuclear deal was signed, Pompeo blasted it as being 'not foreign policy, it's surrender,'" the group continued. "Since [national security adviser John] Bolton's appointment did not require a vote, a vote for Pompeo is also a vote for Bolton and a vote for war. Act now to tell the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to oppose Pompeo."
FINAL DAY! This is urgent.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just hours left in our Spring Campaign, we're still falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
As civil rights organizations, LGBTQ advocates, environmentalists, and progressive lawmakers continue their urgent push to prevent the confirmation of torture-supporting warmonger Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, at least one prominent political figure has been perfectly "willing to help" Pompeo survive his upcoming Senate hearings: former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
"On the whole, with very few exceptions, people who have spent years in Washington are more allied with each other than with the principles they claim to represent or the people they ought to be helping."
--Libby Watson, Splinter
According to a Politico report published Tuesday, Pompeo has reached out to every living former secretary of state "to ask for guidance" and "advice" as he looks to take over the thoroughly depleted State Department.
"Clinton, for one, has been willing to help," Politico reports, but it is unclear whether Kerry or any other previous secretaries of state have responded to Pompeo's request for advice.
"During their talk, Clinton advised Pompeo to stem the flight of career diplomats who quit under Tillerson, according to a person familiar with the call," Politico adds.
Clinton expressed a similar sentiment during a speech in New York City last week, saying that the massive outflow of career officials from the State Department is a "tragedy."
The former Secretary of State went on to suggest that Pompeo's nomination offers "one small glimmer of hope" because "when he went into the CIA, he only brought two people with him and he really relied on the career intelligence people."
While it is unclear what precisely was said during the reported conversations, commentators and activists were quick to express outrage that Clinton would even speak with, let alone offer advice to, a Trump administration official with a record like Pompeo's.
"Why is Clinton even taking a call from such a monstrous person?" wrote Splinter's Libby Watson, who noted that Pompeo has "defended torturers as 'heroes'" and espoused Islamophobic hysteria.
One possible reason, Watson suggests, is that "on the whole, with very few exceptions, people who have spent years in Washington are more allied with each other than with the principles they claim to represent or the people they ought to be helping."
In a similar vein, Evan Greer of Fight for the Future tweeted:
News that Clinton gave Pompeo advice comes as progressive groups kick into overdrive their efforts to block his confirmation ahead of Senate hearings set to begin on Thursday.
As Common Dreams reported on Tuesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has joined hundreds of anti-war, civil rights, and environmental groups in calling on the Senate to reject Pompeo.
In an email to supporters, CodePink noted on Tuesday that the "vote is expected to be tight and we have a real chance to stop" Pompeo from taking control over at the State Department.
"Pompeo advocates military intervention and regime change in North Korea, and supports ongoing unauthorized conflicts like the Saudi-led war on Yemen. When the Iran nuclear deal was signed, Pompeo blasted it as being 'not foreign policy, it's surrender,'" the group continued. "Since [national security adviser John] Bolton's appointment did not require a vote, a vote for Pompeo is also a vote for Bolton and a vote for war. Act now to tell the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to oppose Pompeo."
As civil rights organizations, LGBTQ advocates, environmentalists, and progressive lawmakers continue their urgent push to prevent the confirmation of torture-supporting warmonger Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, at least one prominent political figure has been perfectly "willing to help" Pompeo survive his upcoming Senate hearings: former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
"On the whole, with very few exceptions, people who have spent years in Washington are more allied with each other than with the principles they claim to represent or the people they ought to be helping."
--Libby Watson, Splinter
According to a Politico report published Tuesday, Pompeo has reached out to every living former secretary of state "to ask for guidance" and "advice" as he looks to take over the thoroughly depleted State Department.
"Clinton, for one, has been willing to help," Politico reports, but it is unclear whether Kerry or any other previous secretaries of state have responded to Pompeo's request for advice.
"During their talk, Clinton advised Pompeo to stem the flight of career diplomats who quit under Tillerson, according to a person familiar with the call," Politico adds.
Clinton expressed a similar sentiment during a speech in New York City last week, saying that the massive outflow of career officials from the State Department is a "tragedy."
The former Secretary of State went on to suggest that Pompeo's nomination offers "one small glimmer of hope" because "when he went into the CIA, he only brought two people with him and he really relied on the career intelligence people."
While it is unclear what precisely was said during the reported conversations, commentators and activists were quick to express outrage that Clinton would even speak with, let alone offer advice to, a Trump administration official with a record like Pompeo's.
"Why is Clinton even taking a call from such a monstrous person?" wrote Splinter's Libby Watson, who noted that Pompeo has "defended torturers as 'heroes'" and espoused Islamophobic hysteria.
One possible reason, Watson suggests, is that "on the whole, with very few exceptions, people who have spent years in Washington are more allied with each other than with the principles they claim to represent or the people they ought to be helping."
In a similar vein, Evan Greer of Fight for the Future tweeted:
News that Clinton gave Pompeo advice comes as progressive groups kick into overdrive their efforts to block his confirmation ahead of Senate hearings set to begin on Thursday.
As Common Dreams reported on Tuesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has joined hundreds of anti-war, civil rights, and environmental groups in calling on the Senate to reject Pompeo.
In an email to supporters, CodePink noted on Tuesday that the "vote is expected to be tight and we have a real chance to stop" Pompeo from taking control over at the State Department.
"Pompeo advocates military intervention and regime change in North Korea, and supports ongoing unauthorized conflicts like the Saudi-led war on Yemen. When the Iran nuclear deal was signed, Pompeo blasted it as being 'not foreign policy, it's surrender,'" the group continued. "Since [national security adviser John] Bolton's appointment did not require a vote, a vote for Pompeo is also a vote for Bolton and a vote for war. Act now to tell the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to oppose Pompeo."