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Upcoming Event: Doug Henwood On Hillary Clinton’s Rise To Power

Shadowproof will be hosting a discussion with author Doug Henwood about his book, “My Turn: Hillary Clinton Targets the Presidency,” on March 10 at 8 pm ET.

“My Turn” offers a brief overview of Clinton’s rise to political power within the Democratic Party establishment, from her early years dabbling in Barry Goldwater conservatism to her time as First Lady and then as a senator for New York. It details her first attempt at running for president in 2008 against then-Senator Barack Obama, and then highlights her time as secretary of state. Finally, the book examines Bill and Hillary Clinton’s philanthropy and Hillary Clinton’s campaign for the White House in the 2016 Election.

“The case for Hillary boils down to this: she has experience, she’s a woman, and it’s her turn,” Henwood writes. “Even ardent supporters seem to have a hard time making a substantive political argument in her favor. She has, in the past, been associated with ‘women’s and children’s’ issues, but she supported her husband’s signing the bill that put the end to welfare.”

The section of Henwood’s book on Hillary’s early years, before she was First Lady, are some of the more eye-opening parts of the book. That is possibly because the media universally overlooks her past (in addition to most of her record as a public official).

While working for the Rose law firm, Hillary fought against the community organizing group, ACORN, when it was based in Arkansas. She helped business fight a ballot measure that passed, which lowered electricity rates for residents in Little Rock. Hillary defended Coca-Cola when the company was sued by a worker with disabilities. Hillary supported Bill when he chose to paint the teachers’ union as the enemy in a battle over a tax increase tied to a competency test for teachers. And, in the late 1980s, Hillary served on the corporate board of the anti-union corporation, Walmart.

Of course, the aspect of Henwood’s book that has attracted the most attention is the cover, which upset quite a few people who consider themselves to be very important. The reaction to the cover by Sarah Sole signaled what would unfold in the 2016 Election. Throughout the Democratic primary race, the concept of feminism has been consistently narrowed by Hillary surrogates and her supporters, and they have consistently cried out against “sexism” any time Bernie Sanders challenges her over her record and her stances on critical issues. Henwood defends the cover of his book, saying it appropriately represents Hillary’s ruthlessness and hawkishness.

Henwood and I will discuss his book, Clinton’s record, and why her past does not seem to matter to anyone in the U.S. establishment press. We will tie-in parts of his book to developments, which have taken place during Hillary’s 2016 presidential campaign. We will examine why so many reject her to support Bernie Sanders and what the Democratic Party’s commitment to nominating Hillary means for its future and all those who are committed to fighting for transformative change.

Sign up to receive an email reminder for the online discussion, or check our Twitter account at 8pm East on Thursday for a link to livestream.

Kevin Gosztola

Kevin Gosztola

Kevin Gosztola is managing editor of Shadowproof. He also produces and co-hosts the weekly podcast, "Unauthorized Disclosure."