Clinton Preps for Trump's Lewinsky attack

[Deleted]

www.politico.com/story/2016/08/hillary-clinton-prepare-trump-debate-lewinsky-227033?cmpid=sf

It’s one of the most uncomfortable and important jobs in Democratic politics: trying to embarrass the woman who could be the next president.

The person picked to be Hillary Clinton's sparring partner in her upcoming debate prep sessions is expected to confront her about the death of Vincent Foster, label her as a rapist's enabler, and invoke the personally painful memories of Monica Lewinsky and Gennifer Flowers.

Clinton’s team is beginning its preparation ahead of the first general election debate scheduled for Sept. 26 at Hofstra University. And one of the key components of that prep, campaign allies said, is finding a person who can stand in as Donald Trump during mock debates and launch personal attacks on the former secretary of state that will make the real Trump look tame by comparison.
“It needs to be someone who is naturally smart, glib and utterly irreverent,” said Democratic strategist Bob Shrum, who oversaw debate prep for Al Gore. “You can’t learn to be utterly irreverent.”

Even so, out-Trumping Trump to prepare Clinton is an inherently awkward enterprise, one which is expected to unfold only in front of a small group of trusted aides. Clinton allies are comparing the confidentiality surrounding the tricky upcoming prep sessions to that of a closed film set when actors are shooting a nude scene.

“You can't put it beyond Trump that Monica Lewinsky will play a role in this debate,” said Greg Craig, President Obama’s former White House counsel who played George W. Bush in John Kerry’s 2004 debate prep, and John McCain in prep sessions against Barack Obama in 2008. “She's got to be prepared to deal with the Foundation and Wall Street and super PACs and all of that. They need to be less focused on dealing with his policy proposals and more on dealing with the unexpected. He’s going to be in attack mode, probably the whole time.”

Added Gene Sperling, the former director of the National Economic Council, who has been involved in prep sessions for Bill Clinton, Gore, and Kerry: “Debate prep, in general, is a weird thing. It offers the possibility for passive aggressiveness against your boss.”

This year in particular, it's a job that nobody close to Clinton is particularly eager to take on.“You have to start off by saying, ‘I want to thank the American people, especially Monica and Gennifer Flowers,” anticipated a top Clinton ally with close ties to the campaign. “Nobody who is a friend of hers is going to want to say that in debate prep.”
But challenging Clinton to prepare her for Trump is also one of the most crucial roles in the general election. The first debate is widely expected to overshadow the conventions, the Olympics and the Super Bowl in terms of television ratings. “It is rare that a candidate can win the election at a debate,” said Craig, “but it's quite frequent that one can lose the election during a debate.”

For weeks, Clinton has been fielding jesting offers from donors at fundraisers: “if you need someone to play Donald Trump in debate prep,” they joke, “you know who to call.” The topic comes up so often she has remarked on it to her Brooklyn-based campaign staffers.

Self-made billionaire Mark Cuban, who endorsed Clinton last month, told POLITICO he was “happy to do it,” but noted that no one had yet asked.

But Democrats said he might have the the swagger to avoid being too deferential to Clinton. Rep. Joe Crowley, a New Yorker with a large presence, could perhaps more accurately channel Trump’s Queens heritage, other Clinton allies said. Other potential Trump stand-ins discussed include James Carville, a naturally irreverent character who is trusted by the Clintons, Sen. Al Franken, a longtime Clinton ally with an actor’s rearing, and Ron Klain, the former Biden aide who is running Clinton’s general election debate prep and is already part of her leak-free inner circle.

Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell joked that he is “probably one of the only ones who says things bordering on the outrageous like Trump does" but that he was not angling for the job.

Playing the opponent requires hours of studying game tape of every response Trump has given in a debate or an interview, in order to anticipate exactly what he will say. That has been easier in past elections, depending on the candidate. George W. Bush was a highly-scripted candidate who memorized stock answers to most questions. "He had a presentation that he gave all over the country that he went to almost reflexively,” said Craig, who played him in prep sessions against Kerry. “With Trump, it’s going to be different.”
“It’s a complicated debate prep,” agreed Shrum. “The Clinton challenge is to prepare for the crazy Trump who will probably show up, some kind of toned down Trump, and the somewhere-in-between Trump.” Trump could spend 90 minutes berating Clinton for helping to found ISIS, Democrats said, or he could turn on the moderator and the media so that Clinton simply becomes a bystander rather than a participant. He could even devote real time to preparation and surprise Clinton by his substance on the issues.

“He’ll say anything,” added Rendell. “It’s almost impossible to be totally prepared.”
If Trump remains on message, Clinton allies expect him to attack her personal email use at the State Department, the overlapping orbits of the Clinton Foundation and the Clinton-led State Department, and for President Obama’s foreign policy legacy. They expect him to call her “crooked” and focus on her gaffe that she “short-circuited” when she recently made misleading statements about her email use.

But campaigning in Connecticut over the weekend, Trump also taunted the Clintons by noting he was happy Monica Lewinsky had “kept the dress,” noting, “it shows who the Hell they are.” It was the latest warning shot to Democrats of how awkward things need to get in prep sessions to make sure Clinton is psychologically prepared for what could be thrown in her face.

Clinton’s debate prep group is being overseen by Klain and includes her longtime attorney Robert Barnett, her top policy adviser Jake Sullivan, and attorney Karen Dunn, who also played a lead role in her prep during the primaries. A source close to the campaign said the work has already started in earnest, and that every day there’s an hour or so devoted to boning up on the briefing books about Trump. The source described Clinton as “very confident” about taking on Trump, and looking to steer the debate toward specific proposals. A Clinton campaign spokesman declined to comment about debate prep.

Preparation for the first general election debate is always one of the most grueling parts of the Fall campaign: the candidate typically drops off the trail to camp out in a battleground state with a small team of advisers for intense sessions and full simulations on a set built to look just like the stage.

The person playing the opponent is typically assigned his own staffers to prep him -- and during "debate camp" will keep to himself even between mock sessions in order not to break the adversarial tension necessary for a successful prep.

“You are there to kick their ass,” recalled Democratic strategist Paul Begala, who played George W. Bush in debate prep against Al Gore. “You immerse yourself in the style and the substance.”

Begala said it’s not so much about arriving with the self-tanner and comb-over wig necessary to impersonate Trump as it is about nailing his speech patterns and likely lines of attacks. “You don’t want to spend too much time trying to perfect the affections,” Begala said. “If he’s prone to interruptions, you need to mimic that. If he’s prone to repetition, you need to mimic that. You’ve done your job as the stand in if during the debate, the opponent repeats everything you already said in prep."

Finding the right person to play the opponent is also a calculation about how to get the candidate fully focused. Bill Clinton and Barack Obama were both unwilling to devote any attention to debate prep. “He had not been willing during the primaries to put in the time necessary to get ready -- and it showed,” Craig recalled of Obama’s 2008 debate prep. “The biggest open question going into the presidential debate prep was whether he was going to be willing and able to put in the time and have the discipline to get ready.”

In 1996, Bill Clinton’s aides recruited former Sen. George Mitchell to play Bob Dole, mainly because they needed someone who Bill Clinton wanted to impress to get him to actually engage in a serious way. “We worried that he might be a little cocky debating Dole,” recalled Sperling. “Mitchell was pretty near his equal. We knew he was going to work harder just because he wasn’t going to enjoy being in debate camp where he was being bested.”

“You should have seen George Mitchell thrash Bill Clinton in 1996,” Begala recalled. “And it worked; Bill Clinton was the only president I’ve seen in my lifetime who did well in the first debate.”

Hillary Clinton, in contrast, “is disciplined,” Sperling said. “You don’t have to get George Mitchell to make sure she’s going to work hard.”

But even when aides have successfully anticipated for the candidate 90 percent of the action that unfolds on the debate stage, it’s the one unplanned exchange that can derail an otherwise flawless performance. In 2004, Craig said, “we were nine out of 10 when it came to predicting the questions. But the final question of the debate -- when CBS moderator Bob Schieffer asked the candidates, “do you believe homosexuality is a choice?” -- elicited an unpracticed answer that undid all the other work. Kerry invoked the sexuality of Mary Cheney, the gay daughter of the vice president, in a response that was considered out of bounds and backfired on him.

“That's the fear,” said Craig, “Hillary Clinton may be very successful at presenting her economic plan, or talking about how we destroy ISIS, but then if there's one mistake or one exchange that is in some respect embarrassing it could dominate all of the coverage.”

The stakes will be even higher for Trump, who has been sinking in all national and battleground polls. The debate stage will likely provide him with his last chance to look like he can manage a world stage and change voters’ perceptions about him. A Trump spokeswoman declined to comment about the candidate’s prep routine.

[mrsukyankee]

Joy.

[JLV]

I do not envy the person who gets that job. Wow.

[turnipthebeet]

Man, I really feel for Monica.

I have no doubt that Hillary will do well and be prepared. She knows where she needs to work.

[DotAndBuzz]

Aug 16, 2016 7:20:38 GMT -5 @bugginnine said:

www.politico.com/story/2016/08/hillary-clinton-prepare-trump-debate-lewinsky-227033?cmpid=sf


The stakes will be even higher for Trump, who has been sinking in all national and battleground polls. The debate stage will likely provide him with his last chance to look like he can manage a world stage and change voters’ perceptions about him. A Trump spokeswoman declined to comment about the candidate’s prep routine.

Translation: we haven't started that yet

Follow up phone call from spokeswoman to Eric or Junior: "SHIT!  You guys, are we supposed to do all that too?  Ugh....when's Ivanka coming back?"

[onomatopoeia]

Aug 16, 2016 7:41:33 GMT -5 JLV said:

I do not envy the person who gets that job. Wow.

I'm a big Clinton fan and I actually think it would be really interesting. I can see why a lot of people want to do it.  

[WanderingWinoZ]

Fascinating! TFS- going to be a crazy thing to watch. I'm planning all my work travel around the debates...

[WanderingWinoZ]

Aug 16, 2016 7:42:50 GMT -5 turnipthebeet said:

Man, I really feel for Monica.

I have no doubt that Hillary will do well and be prepared. She knows where she needs to work.

I hope so. She has done well with being attacked by men for her whole life, so she should be well prepared in that aspect.

I don't think she is a really great off-the-cuff or off top of her head speaker with quick come backs, nor is she ever been very good about answering questions about race/POC/BLM.

[mrsd2006]

Interesting. But really, what can he say that she hasn't already heard 1000x in the last several years? It's going to be a complete shit show regardless.

[twotrue]

This just pisses me off and makes me incredibly sad at the same time. If 'she' were a 'he' this conversation would not be happening. Or, if it did the 'he' would probably take the low road and swing back at Trump on his extramarital affairs.

[tessalb]

Aug 16, 2016 7:42:50 GMT -5 turnipthebeet said:

Man, I really feel for Monica.

I have no doubt that Hillary will do well and be prepared. She knows where she needs to work.

I feel for Monica, too. I can't imagine having my actions from my young 20s brought out constantly for political fodder, especially with social media. She's spoken out about being bullied, and I suspect she is preparing much like Hillary is.

[smock]

"[Trump] could even devote real time to preparation and surprise Clinton by his substance on the issues."

Let's not get crazy here, people. I can guarantee this won't happen.

[turnipthebeet]

Aug 16, 2016 8:03:12 GMT -5 WanderingWinoZ said:

Aug 16, 2016 7:42:50 GMT -5 turnipthebeet said:

Man, I really feel for Monica.

I have no doubt that Hillary will do well and be prepared. She knows where she needs to work.

I hope so. She has done well with being attacked by men for her whole life, so she should be well prepared in that aspect.

I don't think she is a really great off-the-cuff or off top of her head speaker with quick come backs, nor is she ever been very good about answering questions about race/POC/BLM.

Unfortunately, I am not sure that Trump will drill on her too much w/r/t BLM or race, because his own track record there is pretty abysmal. I actually wish her opponent were better in that area, so that she would have to face the music. But maybe I'm wrong and he will hit her there (I hope he does) and she responds with substance rather than volleying the issue back into his court.

[pixy0stix]

Aug 16, 2016 8:39:04 GMT -5 twotrue said:

This just pisses me off and makes me incredibly sad at the same time. If 'she' were a 'he' this conversation would not be happening.  

I disagree with this. Trump has said some wild things about his opponents this election.

[jojoandleo]

Aug 16, 2016 7:42:50 GMT -5 turnipthebeet said:

Man, I really feel for Monica.

I have no doubt that Hillary will do well and be prepared. She knows where she needs to work.

Seriously. Leave her alone. I don't think any of this should be brought up against Hillary, but I hope if he DOES bring it up, it is just that Bill cheats without naming names. Although, Trump gives zero fucks about women, so, I doubt he will have that level of respect for Monica.

[twotrue]

Aug 16, 2016 9:27:45 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Aug 16, 2016 8:39:04 GMT -5 twotrue said:

This just pisses me off and makes me incredibly sad at the same time. If 'she' were a 'he' this conversation would not be happening.  

I disagree with this. Trump has said some wild things about his opponents this election.

You're probably right.  But didn't much of it happen on Twitter and not on the debate stage?  I have the world's worst memory but I don't recall the vicious personal attacks about Cruz' wife for example happening while the two men actually stood next to each other.

[smock]

Also, can I say a pre-emptive FUCK YOU to Trump if he does bring up Bill cheating? Trump brags about cheating on his wives, but he's happy to throw it in HRC's face that her spouse cheated--that's some BULLSHIT right there.

[pixy0stix]

Aug 16, 2016 9:34:23 GMT -5 twotrue said:

Aug 16, 2016 9:27:45 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

I disagree with this. Trump has said some wild things about his opponents this election.

You're probably right.  But didn't much of it happen on Twitter and not on the debate stage?  I have the world's worst memory but I don't recall the vicious personal attacks about Cruz' wife for example happening while the two men actually stood next to each other.

I'm trying to remember if he reiterated the JFK line on the debate stage. I think he did, but it all blurs together.

[DotAndBuzz]

Aug 16, 2016 9:36:56 GMT -5 smock said:

Also, can I say a pre-emptive FUCK YOU to Trump if he does bring up Bill cheating? Trump brags about cheating on his wives, but he's happy to throw it in HRC's face that her spouse cheated--that's some BULLSHIT right there.

If that happens, I almost hope HRC calls him on it.  Hell, it could be a practiced and rehearsed response on her part, but it could potentially come off as her being willing to "play his game on his terms."  


"You want to talk about affairs? OK. Let's do that. Which wife would you like to start with, Donny?"  

eta to clarify- not wife, affair.  And no, she shouldn't *actually* do that, because I don't want her to stoop to his level of humiliating other women.  My "almost hope" is more fantasy than actual hope that she does that.    But she does need a practiced and rehearsed response to shut down that conversation, because I can't imagine him not bringing it up.

[ESF]

Aug 16, 2016 9:34:23 GMT -5 twotrue said:

Aug 16, 2016 9:27:45 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

I disagree with this. Trump has said some wild things about his opponents this election.

You're probably right.  But didn't much of it happen on Twitter and not on the debate stage?  I have the world's worst memory but I don't recall the vicious personal attacks about Cruz' wife for example happening while the two men actually stood next to each other.

If it didn't, it was probably for lack of opportunity or forgetfulness, not self-restraint or a sense of decorum.

[ESF]

Aug 16, 2016 9:42:37 GMT -5 DotAndBuzz said:

Aug 16, 2016 9:36:56 GMT -5 smock said:

Also, can I say a pre-emptive FUCK YOU to Trump if he does bring up Bill cheating? Trump brags about cheating on his wives, but he's happy to throw it in HRC's face that her spouse cheated--that's some BULLSHIT right there.

If that happens, I almost hope HRC calls him on it.  Hell, it could be a practiced and rehearsed response on her part, but it could potentially come off as her being willing to "play his game on his terms."  


"You want to talk about affairs? OK. Let's do that. Which wife would you like to start with, Donny?"  

No no no.

Hillary Clinton should not humiliate his wives.

[2doxies]

The most shocking thing he could do at this point is show up uber-prepared and actually debate her on her positions, like Will Farrell in Old School. But that would require a lot of prep work, so....

I really feel for Monica. I wish I could get shit faced drunk with her the night of the first debate.

[KB]

Fuck Trump. This makes me so angry. This yahoo is in no way qualified to be the leader of the free world. His debate strategy is going to be Bill cheats, emails & Benghazi. He has nothing of substance to say or actually "get" her on. Meantime he is on wife #3 with the first 2 under gag orders, is a flaming racist/sexist, dodged military service, won't release his tax returns and bullies people on Twitter. Fucking TWITTER. The man who wants to be POTUS has enough time and energy to bully people on social media like a 13 year old. This is insane.

The eyes of the world are upon us indeed.

[DotAndBuzz]

Aug 16, 2016 9:49:35 GMT -5 ESF said:

Aug 16, 2016 9:42:37 GMT -5 DotAndBuzz said:

If that happens, I almost hope HRC calls him on it.  Hell, it could be a practiced and rehearsed response on her part, but it could potentially come off as her being willing to "play his game on his terms."  


"You want to talk about affairs? OK. Let's do that. Which wife would you like to start with, Donny?"  

No no no.

Hillary Clinton should not humiliate his wives.

Agreed.  I wasn't clear with that.  Meaning, which of his cheating/affairs would he like to re-hash.  

In reality, she should definitely take the high road, and I don't actually want her to bring other women into this to humiliate, but in my fantasy world, she'd snap back and he'd shut up.  

[funfetti]

The more I think about this the more pissed off I get. I hope her retort is something along the lines of "Not only are you attacking me personally but you're also attacking these women unnecessarily. It's clear you have zero respect for women but this is a new low."

[miniroller]

Aug 16, 2016 9:55:00 GMT -5 DotAndBuzz said:

Aug 16, 2016 9:49:35 GMT -5 ESF said:

No no no.

Hillary Clinton should not humiliate his wives.

Agreed.  I wasn't clear with that.  Meaning, which of his cheating/affairs would he like to re-hash.  

In reality, she should definitely take the high road, and I don't actually want her to bring other women into this to humiliate, but in my fantasy world, she'd snap back and he'd shut up.  

And now we know the main difference between HRC & Dot&Buzz!!
I agree completely & wish SNL would be all over this Hillary Bulldog Rebuttal/ stooping to his level!

[smock]

Aug 16, 2016 10:19:11 GMT -5 funfetti said:

The more I think about this the more pissed off I get. I hope her retort is something along the lines of "Not only are you attacking me personally but you're also attacking these women unnecessarily. It's clear you have zero respect for women but this is a new low."

Ooooh, that's good. Email HRC's team!

[Deleted]

Aug 16, 2016 9:49:35 GMT -5 ESF said:

Aug 16, 2016 9:42:37 GMT -5 DotAndBuzz said:

If that happens, I almost hope HRC calls him on it.  Hell, it could be a practiced and rehearsed response on her part, but it could potentially come off as her being willing to "play his game on his terms."  


"You want to talk about affairs? OK. Let's do that. Which wife would you like to start with, Donny?"  

No no no.

Hillary Clinton should not humiliate his wives.

Absolutely. This is where she has the opportunity to show what true leadership looks like.

[GilliC]

“It’s a complicated debate prep,” agreed Shrum. “The Clinton challenge is to prepare for the crazy Trump who will probably show up, some kind of toned down Trump, and the somewhere-in-between Trump.” Trump could spend 90 minutes berating Clinton for helping to found ISIS, Democrats said, or he could turn on the moderator and the media so that Clinton simply becomes a bystander rather than a participant. He could even devote real time to preparation and surprise Clinton by his substance on the issues.

Unfortunately, I think this is most likely after seeing him debate in the primary. He'll probably interrupt everyone mid-sentence, run over his allotted time, etc.

I hope she's prepping hard for coming back after he derails the discussion with his quippy one-line misdirections.

[marriedfilingjoint]

She seemed awfully flustered when she was responding to the question about "if all rape victims deserve to be believed, what would you say about Juanita Broadderick, Kathleen Willey, and Paula Jones?" I imagine since then she has had time to think about how she would answer below the belt questions (although I don't think the above question was out of line at all, especially re: Broadderick).