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Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2016/Federalism
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This page was current as of the 2016 election.
| CANDIDATE SUMMARY | |
Judiciary
- Hillary Clinton applauded President Barack Obama’s nomination of federal judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court on March 16, 2016. She said in a statement, "He has chosen a nominee with considerable experience on the bench and in public service, a brilliant legal mind, and a long history of bipartisan support and admiration. Now, it's up to members of the Senate to meet their own, and perform the Constitutional duty they swore to undertake. … This Senate has almost a full year to consider and confirm Judge Garland. It should begin that work immediately by giving Judge Garland a full and fair hearing followed by a vote.”[2]
- On February 18, 2016, Clinton participated in a televised town hall on MSNBC where she defended her votes against former President George W. Bush’s Supreme Court nominees Samuel Alito and John Roberts. She said, “I voted against [Alito]. We had a process. The nomination was made and we went through the process. What the Republicans today are saying is you can't vote on anything. We don't want the president to send us a nominee. I think that is very different." Her comments come after Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia passed away on February 13, 2016. Senate Republicans have said that the seat should be filled by the next president, not President Obama.[3]
- During a campaign event in Iowa on January 26, 2016, a voter asked Clinton if she would consider appointing President Obama to the U.S. Supreme Court. She said, "Wow, what a great idea. No one has ever suggested that to me, I love that, wow. He may have a few other things to do but I tell you that's a great idea. I would certainly take that under advisement. I mean he’s brilliant, and he can set forth an argument, and he was a law professor, so he’s got all the credentials. Now we do have to get a Democratic Senate to get him confirmed so you’re going to have to help me on that, OK?"[4]
- In a January 8, 2016 op-ed in The Boston Globe, Clinton said, as president, she would appoint justices to the Supreme Court that would "protect the constitutional principles of liberty and equality for all, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation or political viewpoint; make sure the scales of justice aren’t tipped away from individuals toward corporations and special interests; and protect citizens’ right to vote, rather than billionaires’ right to buy elections." Clinton said that on "Election Day, three of the current justices will be over 80 years old, which is past the court’s average retirement age. The next president could easily appoint more than one justice. That makes this a make-or-break moment — for the court and our country." She added that Republicans have been vocal about packing the court with conservative justices. "After years of accusing liberals of judicial activism, conservatives are wholeheartedly relying on Republican-appointed judges to undo progressive achievements. They’re using radical legal strategies to accomplish through the courts what they’ve failed to do through legislation, like dismembering the Voting Rights Act or attacking unions. A Republican president would support those efforts. I will oppose them," Clinton said.[5]
- Following oral arguments in Evenwel v. Abbott, Clinton said that the Supreme Court should guarantee the concept of “one person, one vote.” She said in a December 9, 2015, statement: "In the Supreme Court yesterday, parties challenging Texas’ Senate apportionment plan insisted that political representation in our democracy should be based on eligible voters, instead of total population. This change would mean that many in America, including children and non-citizen residents, would no longer be counted for purposes of representation in every state in the country. Such measures are an insult to the millions of Americans who have fought throughout our history for our country to achieve equality and justice for all people. The Supreme Court should protect political equality and turn away this harmful and reckless attempt to write off so many."[6]
| Hillary Clinton: Supreme Court Justice Appointments. |
- During a campaign stop in New Hampshire on October 28, 2015, Hillary Clinton said she opposed abolishing the death penalty. “We have a lot of evidence now that the death penalty has been too frequently applied and very unfortunately, often times in a discriminatory way. … I do not favor abolishing it, however, because I think there are certain egregious cases that still deserve consideration of the death penalty, but I’d like to see those be very limited and rare,” Clinton said.[7]
- Clinton voted against President George W. Bush's nominations of John Roberts and Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court.[8]
- In 2007, Clinton explained that she views the United States Constitution as an "organic, growing, evolving set of principles that have stood the test of time and that and can't just be looked at as though it is frozen at some point in the late eighteenth century."[9]
First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
- On August 10, 2016, Clinton published an op-ed in the Utah newspaper Deseret News in which she sought to appeal to Mormon voters in the state by highlighting her record on religious freedom. “I’ve been fighting to defend religious freedom for years. As secretary of state, I made it a cornerstone of our foreign policy to protect the rights of religious minorities around the world — from Coptic Christians in Egypt to Buddhists in Tibet. And along with Jon Huntsman, our then-ambassador in Beijing, I stood in solidarity with Chinese Christians facing persecution from their government,” wrote Clinton.[10]
- In a video played at Netroots, a convention for progressive activists, Hillary Clinton pledged to introduce a constitutional amendment that would overturn Citizens United in the first 30 days of her administration. She also said she would push for stricter requirements for the disclosure of political spending.[11]
- On April 1, 2015, Hillary Clinton posted the following tweet in response to Arkansas' SB 975, a bill similar to Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act:
- In July 2014, Clinton said she would consider an amendment to overturn the Citizens United decision by the Supreme Court. She explained, "I would consider supporting an amendment along these lines. That would prevent the abuse of our political system by excessive amounts of money if there is no other way to deal with the Citizens United decision."[12]
- Clinton disagreed with the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Hobby Lobby case. She said, “It’s the first time that our court has said that a closely held corporation has the rights of a person when it comes to religious freedom, which means the corporation’s … [‘closely held’] employers can impose their religious beliefs on their employees, and, of course, denying women the right to contraceptives as part of a health care plan is exactly that. I find it deeply disturbing that we are going in that direction.”[13]
Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
- In an interview with The Huffington Post on June 15, 2016, Hillary Clinton discussed the Orlando shooter and restricting access to guns for individuals on the no-fly list. Clinton said, “He was investigated three times by the FBI, and it is important that we take into account the easy access to these weapons of war. They should not be on our street. And it is something that we have got to address. And it is not only blocking suspected terrorists from buying guns. It is clear that if you are too dangerous to fly on a plane, you are too dangerous to buy a gun. And we have got to tighten up our provisions.”[14]
- During a speech at the Cleveland Industrial Innovation Center on June 13, 2016, Clinton said that there should be tighter regulations governing who can purchase guns. “I believe weapons of war have no place on our streets and we may have our disagreements about gun safety regulations, but we should all be able to agree on a few essential things. If the FBI is watching you for a suspected terrorist link, you shouldn’t be able to just go buy a gun with no questions asked,” she said.[15][16]
- Clinton participated in a panel discussion of gun violence in New York on April 11, 2016. She challenged Bernie Sanders’ position on gun control and gun safety in rural Vermont. She said, “Most of the guns that are used in crimes and violence and killings in New York come from out of state. And the state that has the highest per capita number of those guns that end up committing crimes in New York come from Vermont.” She continued, “So this is not, 'Oh, you know, I live in a rural state, we don’t have these problems. … It’s easy to cross borders. Criminals, domestic abusers, traffickers, people who are dangerously mentally ill — they cross borders, too. And sometimes they do it to get the guns they use. This has to become a voting issue for those of us who want to save lives.”[17]
- On March 27, 2016, The New York Daily News published an op-ed by Clinton on gun control reform. In addition to calling for the repeal of gun industry liability protections, implementing comprehensive background checks, and closing the Charleston loophole, Clinton also addressed Donald Trump’s and Ted Cruz’s positions on gun control.[18]
- At the seventh Democratic debate on March 6, 2016, Clinton discussed holding firearms distributors legally responsible for how their product is used: “I also believe, so strongly Gene (ph), that giving immunity to gunmakers and sellers was a terrible mistake. Because it removed any accountability from the makers and the sellers. And it also disrupted what was a very promising legal theory, to try to get makers to do more to make guns safer for example. To try to give sellers more accountability for selling guns when they shouldn’t have. So that is an issue that Senator Sanders and I differ on, I voted against giving them immunity, but I think we should very seriously move to repeal that and go back to making sure gun makers and sellers are like any other business. They can be held accountable.”[19]
- The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence praised Hillary Clinton’s commitment to gun reform on February 3, 2016. President Dan Gross said, “Hillary Clinton is not only a long-time champion of the life-saving Brady law, she has made gun violence prevention a centerpiece of her campaign.” He added, “Bernie Sanders didn’t even mention the epidemic of gun violence last night, perhaps because – after voting against the Brady Bill five times and for PLCAA [Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act] twice – he has been on the wrong side of this issue for so long.”[20]
- After President Obama announced his executive actions to prevent gun violence, Clinton, on January 5, 2016, tweeted: “Thank you, @POTUS, for taking a crucial step forward on gun violence. Our next president has to build on that progress—not rip it away. -H”[21]
- In an MSNBC interview January 5, 2016, Clinton said, “There needs to be a rival organization to the NRA [National Rifle Association] of responsible gun owners who know that their hunting rights, their shooting rights, their collection rights … all of that is not going to be affected. So I’m going to keep beating the drum, and I’m delighted that the president announced the actions he did today.”[22]
- During a speech at the University of Minnesota-Minneapolis on December 15, 2015, Clinton proposed instituting gun control measures to keep potential terrorists from purchasing guns. She said, "Terrorists use guns to kill Americans. I think we should make it harder for them from to do that. ...It defies common sense that Republicans in Congress refuse to make it harder for potential terrorists to buy guns."[23]
- On December 6, 2015, Clinton criticized Liberty University President Jerry Falwell for saying “that if more good people had concealed-carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in and killed them.” Falwell later clarified that he meant terrorists, not all Muslims. Clinton said, “This is the kind of deplorable, not only hateful, response to a legitimate security issue but it is giving aid and comfort to ISIS and other radical jihadists.”[24]
- While discussing the shooting at a Colorado Planned Parenthood and the terrorist attacks in Paris at the New Hampshire Democratic Party's annual Jefferson-Jackson dinner on November 29, 2015, Clinton criticized Republicans for not considering gun control measures. She said, “This is truly unbelievable, that after what we’ve seen in Paris and other places, Republicans will not bring up a bill that will prohibit anyone on the no-fly list from buying a gun in America. If you are too dangerous to fly in America, you are too dangerous to buy a gun in America. How many more Americans need to die before we take action?”[25]
- Clinton's campaign released an ad November 3, 2015, that called for increased gun control laws and promising to make the issue a central part of her campaign that can compete with the National Rifle Association. The ad comes as she has sought to use the issue to distinguish herself from Bernie Sanders.[26]
| Hillary Clinton gun control ad, November 3, 2015 |
- Since the first Democratic debate on October 13, 2015, Clinton, who favored creating stronger gun control legislation, focused on showing voters how she and Bernie Sanders differ on the issue. Dante Scala, an associate professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire, said, “[Clinton] will use gun control as a wedge issue in the primary, especially among college-educated, professional women.”[27]
- During the first Democratic debate on October 13, 2015, Clinton criticized Sanders for voting against the gun control law known as the Brady bill. Clinton said, “Senator Sanders did vote five times against the Brady bill. Since it was passed, more than 2 million prohibited purchases have been prevented. He also did vote, as he said, for this immunity provision. I voted against it. I was in the Senate at the same time. It wasn't that complicated to me. It was pretty straightforward to me that he was going to give immunity to the only industry in America. Everybody else has to be accountable, but not the gun manufacturers. And we need to stand up and say: Enough of that. We're not going to let it continue.”[28] [29]
- In a town hall on October 7, 2015, Clinton compared the National Rifle Association (NRA) to Iranians and communists. “The NRA tries to keep gun owners — the ones who are members — really upset all the time so they can keep collecting their money, because they tell them they’re the only thing that’s going to stop the black helicopters from landing in the front yard and people’s guns being seized. That’s the argument they make. And it works with some people and it has turned a lot of people into absolutists themselves,” she said.[30]
- According to NPR in October 2015, Clinton's gun control platform included “pledging to act through executive action to close the gun-show loophole, tightening Internet gun sales, if Congress doesn't act, repealing a law that shields gun manufacturers from certain lawsuits, closing the ‘Charleston loophole,’ [and] prohibiting domestic abusers from being able to buy and possess firearms.”[31]
- After two Virginia journalists were murdered on live television on August 26, 2015, Clinton pledged to address gun violence. "We have got to do something about gun violence in America. I will take it on. There are many people who face it and know it, but then turn away because it’s hard. It’s a very political, difficult issue in America, but I believe we are smart enough, we are compassionate enough, to figure out how to balance the legitimate Second Amendment rights with preventive measures and control measures so that whatever motivated this murderer, who eventually took his own life, we will not see more deaths — needless, senseless deaths,” Clinton said at a campaign stop in Iowa. She added, “I want to reiterate how important it is to not let yet another terrible instance go by without trying to do something more to prevent this incredible killing that is stalking our country.”[32][33]
- On June 18, 2015, the day after the Charleston church shooting, Clinton said, "How many innocent people in our country -- from little children, church members, to movie theater attendees -- how many people do we need to see cut down before we act? So as we mourn and as our hearts break a little more, and as we send this message of solidarity that we will not forsake those who have been victimized by gun violence, this time we have to find answers together."[34]
- According to the New York Daily News, in 2009 Clinton "called for a new assault weapon ban in the U.S. on Thursday in hopes of cutting off arms flowing to Mexican drug gangs."[35]
- During her 2008 presidential campaign, Clinton positioned herself as supportive of gun rights. During a speech she said, “I disagree with Senator Obama’s assertion that people in our country cling to guns and have certain attitudes about immigration or trade simply out of frustration."[36]
- In 2006, the National Rifle Association gave Clinton an "F" rating.[37]
Campaign finance reform
- Hillary Clinton released her campaign finance reform plan in September 2015. The Huffington Post reported, “Clinton’s proposals include a handful of actions she could influence immediately if she won the White House. She promised to issue an executive order requiring all government contractors to disclose their campaign contributions, including to outside groups that currently do not disclose donors. She said she also would advocate for the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue a rule requiring all publicly traded companies to disclose their political spending, including undisclosed outside spending, to their shareholders.”[38]
Voting rights
- In an op-ed about democracy and voting accessibility posted to CNN.com on January 21, 2016, Hillary Clinton said that she planned to fight for a constitutional amendment to repeal Citizens United, if necessary. She added that if elected she would restore and expand the Voting Rights Act. “All Americans should be automatically registered to vote on their 18th birthdays, unless they opt out. Every state should have at least 20 days of early in-person voting. And no one should ever have to wait more than 30 minutes to cast a ballot,” she wrote.[39]
- In November 2000, Clinton argued that the electoral college should be eliminated and replaced with the national popular vote. She said, "We are a very different country than we were 200 years ago. I believe strongly that in a democracy, we should respect the will of the people and to me, that means it's time to do away with the Electoral College and move to the popular election of our president."[40]
Executive powers
- According to The New York Times, as secretary of state, Clinton advocated for the State Department to have an increased role in global economic issues and an increased diplomatic presence.[41]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Hillary + Clinton + Government
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ CNN, "Hillary Clinton launches second presidential bid," April 12, 2015
- ↑ Politico, "Clinton, Sanders praise Obama's Supreme Court pick," March 16, 2016
- ↑ Talking Points Memo, "Clinton Defends Vote Against Alito: What GOP Is Doing Now Is 'Very Different'," February 18, 2016
- ↑ ABC News, "Hillary Clinton Would Consider Appointing President Obama to Supreme Court," January 26, 2016
- ↑ The Boston Globe, "A make-or-break moment for Supreme Court appointments," January 8, 2016
- ↑ Talking Points Memo, "Hillary Clinton Calls For SCOTUS To Uphold 'One Person, One Vote'," December 9, 2015
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Hillary Clinton Backs Use of Death Penalty," October 28, 2015
- ↑ New York Times, “Stark Contrasts Between McCain and Obama in Judicial Wars," May 28, 2008
- ↑ YouTube.com, "Hillary Clinton: Supreme Court justice appointments," accessed February 2, 2015
- ↑ Deseret News, "Exclusive: Hillary Clinton: What I have in common with Utah leaders — religious freedom and the Constitution," August 10, 2016
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Hillary Clinton to Pledge Making Campaign-Finance Overhaul a Priority," July 16, 2016
- ↑ Newsmax, “Hillary Says She'd Consider Amendment to Overturn Citizens United," July 21, 2014
- ↑ Politico, "Hillary Clinton blasts Hobby Lobby ruling," accessed February 2, 2015
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Transcript: Hillary Clinton’s Interview With The Huffington Post, " June 15, 2016
- ↑ ABC News, "Hillary Clinton: Those Under FBI Scrutiny ‘Shouldn’t Be Able to Just Go Buy a Gun’," June 13, 2016
- ↑ TIME, "Read Hillary Clinton’s Speech About the Orlando Shooting," June 13, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Clinton blasts Sanders' 'rural state' explanation on guns," April 11, 2016
- ↑ New York Daily News, "Take dead aim against gun violence: Hillary Clinton urges closing loopholes that cost lives," March 27, 2016
- ↑ The New York Times, "Transcript of the Democratic Presidential Debate in Flint, Mich.," March 6, 2016
- ↑ The Guardian, "Hillary Clinton stresses gun control as 'big difference' of Democratic race," February 3, 2016
- ↑ USA Today, "Republican 2016 candidates bash Obama's gun plan," January 5, 2016
- ↑ The Guardian, "Hillary Clinton urges moderate gun owners to take on the NRA," January 5, 2016
- ↑ NBC News, "Hillary Clinton Unveils Plan to Stop Spread of ISIS," December 15, 2015
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Hillary Clinton Accuses Jerry Falwell Jr. Of Aiding ISIS," December 6, 2015
- ↑ The Hill, "Hillary slams Republicans on guns, abortion after Planned Parenthood attack," November 29, 2015
- ↑ Politico, "New Clinton ad focuses on gun control," November 3, 2015
- ↑ ABC News, "In Post-Debate Push, Hillary Clinton Highlights Gun Divide With Bernie Sanders," October 17, 2015
- ↑ The Washington Post, "The CNN Democratic debate transcript, annotated," October 13, 2015
- ↑ Politifact, "Hillary Clinton: Bernie Sanders voted against Brady bill five times," October 13, 2015
- ↑ The Hill, "Hillary compares NRA to Iranians, communists," October 8, 2015
- ↑ NPR, "Hillary Clinton's Gun Proposals Expose Democratic Divide," October 5, 2015
- ↑ Vatiery, "Obama, Hillary Clinton Speak Out on Gun Violence After Virginia TV Shootings," August 26, 2015
- ↑ ABC News, "Hillary Clinton Pledges to Take on Gun Violence," August 26, 2015
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Hillary Clinton calls on nation to consider ‘hard truths’ about church massacre," June 18, 2015
- ↑ NY Daily News, “Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's call for assault weapon ban in U.S. gets blasted by gun lobby," March 26, 2009
- ↑ New York Times, “Clinton Portrays Herself as a Pro-Gun Churchgoer," April 12, 2008
- ↑ National Review, “Second Thoughts," November 2, 2006
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Hillary Clinton Releases Broad Campaign Finance Reform Plan," September 8, 2015
- ↑ CNN Politics, "Hillary Clinton: The cure for Citizens United is more democracy," January 21, 2016
- ↑ CBS News, “Hillary Calls For End To Electoral College," November 10, 2000
- ↑ New York Times, “Clinton Moves to Widen Role of State Dept.," December 22, 2008
