Posted on 10/14/2016 7:13:44 AM PDT by shoff
What is the going rate these days to destroy a career? What would you be willing to do to advance your own career, launch into a second career or just prove to your friends what a committed party member you are? To answer this we will have to trace back some successes and failures of attempted career sabotage and analyze the outcomes.
Anita Hill who when it looked like Clarence Thomas would be appointed to the Supreme Court suddenly remembered she was sexually harassed early in her three year association with him. She did lose her professorship and was never replaced, but since then she has co-edited two books, published an autobiography, written for the New York Times and regained a professorship at a different university. Outcome a plus.
Colette Brooks and Carla Baron came forward days before Arnold Schwarzenegge’s recall election to claim he groped them and made inappropriate comments. Arnold went on to retain his seat, Colette shot up from intern to communication executive and Carla from Hollywood stand in to reality TV psychic profiler. Though their ploy didn’t work it was a plus for both women.
During the 2008 election Sarah Palin was considered a threat to the upcoming Obama election. Since the molestation gambit would not fly Katie Couric was sent in to halt her momentum with an interview. Through selective editing and gotcha questioning it almost worked. Since it didn’t work well enough the Alinsky tactic of ridicule was called for. Third rate comic Tina Fey was called up to impersonate her. Tina played Palin saying stupid things that to this day are still attributed to Sarah. (“I can see Russia from my house”) Here we have two completely different outcomes based upon success. Poor Katie is currently no longer a major news reader but a blogger reduced to begging Clinton for interviews. Tina Fey is a high paid, third rate comic with an endorsement contract with American Express.
During the 2012 election as soon as Herman Cain became the front runner in the Republican primaries two women came out to claim he made passes at dinner at them. One made her living off of various federal agencies and the other a registered lobbyist. The most damming accusation was from Ginger White who claimed to have had a thirteen year affair. Once Cain pulled out of the race Ginger found the money to invest in a fitness business that later failed which she promptly blamed on her partner. Ms. White later issued a formal apology to Cain and his family. The outcome would have been a plus for all had not Ginger blown her opportunity.
In today’s Obama economy things are a little tougher and only success pays. Witness Alicia Machado whose unsuccessful attempt to paint Donald Trump as a chauvinist pig only got her and her daughter an invite to the Metropolitan Fashion week. But some will try and try again. Just see Michael Bardaro and Megan Twohey, writers for the New York Times. When their exposé of May 2016 blew up in their faces as the subject of their story denied their allegations they returned on Oct 12 just as Trump was pulling ahead in the polls. They located some fervent Clinton supporters to stand by their stories after publication. The headliner for their story is one Jessica Leeds. Who remembers vividly (one month before election) 30 years ago Donald trump lifted the arm rest in first class and molested her for 10 to 15 minutes depending on which story you hear. Unfortunately for Leeds she forgot first class arm rests don’t lift, she never reported it or complained and no one else on the plane remembers or reported it. Since it appears at this time it will not affect the outcome of the election Jessica most probably will be SOL and eventually sued.
So what is the going rate for destroying a career? It seems to depend upon the person you accuse and the outcome. The bigger fish you bring down the bigger the reward. Fail in your mission and you become a lost footnote in electoral history.
Well done.
Nicely done essay. It’s good to see original work posted here on FR.
a little more detail....
Cain admitted the 13 year relationship.
He didn’t admit it was sexual. She said it was romantic.
White apologized for making it public and hurting his wife & kids.
I heard Herman Cain say that it was the lawsuits (4 of them IIRC) that got him to drop out. He said he could not of afforded them.
Cain also had been charged and had to settle a sexual harassment complaint when he was President of the Restaurant Association. That made the charges more believable. Trump as far as we know has never been charged in court. I bet the MSM looked up and down to see if he had.
What I don’t understand is how these vague and highly suspect charges of sexual impropriety can even influence an election anymore. As we’ve seen, they seem to get leveled so often and under such questionable circumstances that they should lack all credibility. And they only seem to injure conservative candidates, never liberals.
So it’s very likely they’re just lies from the start, and even if they’re true, do I really give a tinker’s damn if Donald Trump grabbed some butt 30 years ago?
So what did the Rats accomplish? Four years later they are looking at a guy who CAN afford the lawsuits. In fact, a guy who LOVES lawsuits. Further, a guy who has a track record of WINNING lawsuits. If I were a lawyer and got a call from one of these five women today, I would not take it.
I didn’t realize Cain admitted the affair. (if it was no-sexual wouldn’t that make them friends?) I did see White later lied about her business partner and was sued, lost and never paid the judgment.
Thanks
Thanks it means a lot to me!
My bad for missing that. I seem to remember though the sex scandals really took the wind out of his campaign.
Oh they are working on that.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-bloom/why-the-new-child-rape-ca_b_10619944.html
I’d like to believe with fact checking on the internet and how these always come up at the last minute against winning non-democrat politicians the public has grown weary and sceptical of these claims.
The rats hope to destroy Trump, win the election and then cast aside the useful idiots that made it possible.
liberals are stupid, if they were smart they wouldn’t be liberal.
I have been thinking about this. There probably are two or three “acquaintances from my youth that might suggest I groped them.
I know that I always was pretty sure that my dates “wanted to be kissed.”
Probably not always true.
And there was that girl in Burlington when someone dared me to grab a her rear end as she walked by. A draft beer in my face and a slap cured me of THAT behavior.
So in my case you would have to find them, but if you did I am sure they would sell me out for a pizza.
Didn’t help Billy Bush’s career much.
Had his tape brought down Trump he’d be looking at his own nightly show by now.
If I ever run against you for office I’ll keep that in mind.
I would hope so too. But there are always those squishy fence-sitters who are easily manipulated, always willing to outsource their thinking.
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