It is now increasingly clear that Hillary Clinton will win the Democrat nomination for President. In my view, her election will be a disaster for the American family, American workers, Americans serving in the military, and for American national security.
As commanded in the Scriptures, I will pray for her, as for all leaders. But I cannot vote for her. Here are 39 specific reasons -- specific things she has said, positions she has taken, lies she has told, and values she has espoused, all that I disagree with. (True, there are so many more reasons why she would be a disastrous president, but I think this list will suffice for now.)
Where does that leave the American people at this point? I honestly don't know, but I confess I am grieving.
I was born in the United States. I was raised in the United States. I remain a loyal American citizen, even though I now live with my family in Israel -- regularly shuttling back and forth -- and have dual U.S.-Israeli citizenship, as allowed by U.S. law. I love America more than I can possibly explain. My family found freedom and safety and opportunity there. We found a personal relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ there. We learned the Word of God there, and made some of our dearest friends on the planet there. So what is unfolding in the country of my birth is as heart-breaking to me as it is surreal.
But while so much of the road ahead is foggy for me, a few things remain clear: I must trust in the sovereignty of God, come what may. I must continue to pray regularly and faithfully for a sweeping spiritual revival in the American Church, and for a Great Awakening among the broader American public. I must pray more earnestly than ever that followers of Christ across America, myself included, will preach the Gospel -- and preach the "whole counsel of God" -- in the power of the Holy Spirit, and faithfully make disciples, and engage with their fellow Americans with love and gentleness and respect.
Darkness is falling. The forces of freedom are in retreat. But God is good and God is great and I'm grateful that I can rest in His love and mercy. I hope you can, too.
- For years, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton adamantly argued that Iran's government had absolutely no right to enrich uranium -- until she flip-flopped and supported a deal that gives Iran the full legal right to enrich uranium, and eventually enrich as much as they want. "I’ve always been in the camp that held that they did not have a right to enrichment," she told The Atlantic magazine. "Contrary to their claim, there is no such thing as a right to enrich. This is absolutely unfounded. There is no such right."
- Now, Hillary says she is "very proud" of the Iran nuclear deal that gives Iran that full legal right to enrich uranium. [NOTE: For more on why the Iran nuclear deal is so dangerous, please click here.]
- Now, Hillary takes a great deal of credit for making the deal happen. "I spent 18 months putting together the sanctions against Iran so that we could force them to the negotiating table," she said on November 6, 2015.
- "Hillary Clinton Opened Door to Key U.S. Shift Toward Iran Nuclear Deal -- At State Department, the Democratic front-runner and an aide softened their stance against letting Tehran enrich uranium." -- Wall Street Journal headline, September 8, 2015.
- "Hillary Clinton makes forceful case for Iran nuclear deal" -- London Guardian headline, September 9, 2015
- "Clinton backs Obama's ISIS strategy in Democratic debate" -- Reuters headline, December 20, 2015.
- As a senior member of the administration, Hillary supported President Obama's enormous dramatic cuts to U.S. military spending. The national security portion of the federal budget has plunged from over 20% to under 16%, and from 4.6% of GDP to only 3.3%. The Army has cut its ranks by 40,000 troops. The Navy has cut the number of ships from 600 ships during the Reagan administration to only 272 ships today. This is almost as low as back in 1916 when we only had 245 active ships. While U.S. Navy ships are far more advanced than back in 1916, of course, having so few jeopardizes America's ability to defend the homeland and her allies and project power in crisis spots around the world.
- Hillary led the Obama administration's failed "reset" policy with Russian President Vladimir Putin -- yet she says she might try it again. During a presidential debate, NBC's Lester Holt asked, "Secretary Clinton, you famously handed Russia’s foreign minister a reset button in 2009. Since then, Russia has annexed Crimea, fomented a war with Ukraine, provided weapons that downed an airliner, and launched operations, as we’ve just discussed, to support Assad in Syria. As president, would you hand Vladimir Putin a reset button?” Clinton refused to rule trying the disastrous approach a second time, saying, “Well, it would depend upon what I got for it,” Clinton said.
- Hillary calls the Obama administration's Libya policy her "greatest moment" as Secretary of State, even though President Obama himself calls it his "worst mistake."
- Hillary says she supports requiring Israel to withdraw to the 1967 lines -- even though President George W. Bush gave a written promise to Israel in 2004 that the U.S. would support "defensible borders" for Israel and would never force Israel all the way back to the indefensible 1967 borders; even though the Washington Postcalled this a "major shift" of U.S. foreign policy; even though this would mean forcing Israel to divide her capital of Jerusalem; even though this would mean forcing Israel to give away the Jewish and Christian Quarters of Jerusalem; even though this would forcing Israel to give away the Golan Heights to the murderous Assad regime, even as Syria is imploding; even though the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is serving in the 11th year of his four year term and refuses to call new elections; etc.
- Hillary was Secretary of State during the "worst crisis" in U.S.-Israel relations "in 35 years."
- Hillary is proud of the fact that as Secretary of State she was the "designated yeller" at Israel's Prime Minister, trying to force him to take positions that the Israeli government felt would put their people in danger.
- Hillary emerged during the 2016 Democratic primaries as the chief supporter and defender of President Obama's domestic, economic and foreign policies -- "Hillary Clinton Clings to Obama’s Legacy in Democratic Debate," noted a Time magazine headline.
- President Barack Obama has endorsed Hillary because he sees her as fully committed to implementing his third term in office -- "Barack Obama tells Democrats it's 'time to unite behind Hillary Clinton,'" noted a March 2016 headline.
- Hillary -- just in this campaign cycle alone -- has proposed increasing taxes on the American people by $1 trillion.
- Hillary -- just in this campaign cycle alone -- has proposed $1.1 trillion in increased federal spending.
- Hillary fully supports Obamacare, and absolutely refuses to repeal it -- "Not on my watch," she says.
- Hillary not only fully supports the federal government's takeover of the private health care industry, she insists it was her idea -- "It was called HillaryCare before it was called ObamaCare,” she told voters in Iowa.
- "Hillary Clinton: I Would Not Appoint Someone to the Supreme Court Who Didn’t Support Abortion" -- Life News headline, March 29, 2016.
- Hillary said she is glad her husband vetoed the ban on partial birth abortion.
- Hillary fully supports homosexual marriage now, even though she was steadfast against it for a decade until she flip-flopped in 2013.
- Hillary has proposed "a sweeping gun control" plan in defiance of the Second Amendment -- a striking flip-flop from her previous positions.
- "Secretary Clinton changes her position on (gun issues) every election year, it seems, having one position in 2000 and then campaigning against President Obama and saying we don't need federal standards," said Maryland Democrat Gov. Martin O'Malley, during the December 19, 2015 debate.
- "We didn't lose a single person" in Libya, Hillary actually said during a nationally televised debate during the 2016 campaign. Yet this is patently untrue. As Politico noted, "her comments ignore the 2012 attacks at the U.S. mission and CIA outpost in Benghazi, which killed four people including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens."
- "Hillary Clinton's big Benghazi lie" -- London Telegraph headline, October 24, 2015
- "'She Lies!': Mom of Benghazi Victim Blasts Hillary for Not Telling the Truth" -- Fox News headline, October 22, 2015
- Hillary as Secretary of State fully supported President Obama's Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal, but then she flip-flopped as a 2016 presidential candidate becoming totally opposed to it.
- "45 times Secretary Clinton pushed the trade bill she now opposes" -- CNN headline.
- Hillary once called the Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal she now opposes "the gold standard" of all U.S. trade deals -- "This TPP sets the gold standardin trade agreements to open free, transparent, fair trade, the kind of environment that has the rule of law and a level playing field," she said as Secretary of State on November 15, 2012.
- “This is a classic political decision that you can flip-flop if you flop over to the popular side of an issue,” said David Alexrod, a Democratic strategist who advised President Obama’s bids for the White House, on CNN [regarding Hillary's flip flops on supporting the Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal; see below]. “The great risk, though — her great liability in this race so far — has been this sense that she’s been inauthentic. This lurch on this issue opens her up for another charge of inauthenticity.”
- Hillary in February 2016 vowed to dramatically expand amnesty for illegal immigrants. "I will fight for comprehensive immigration reform and a path to citizenship for you and for your families across our country," Hillary said. "I will fight to stop partisan attacks on the executive actions that would put Dreamers, including those with us today, at risk of deportation. And if Congress continues to refuse to act, as president I would do everything possible under the law to go even further. There are more people, like many parents of Dreamers, and others, with deep ties and contributions to our communities, who deserve a chance to stay, and I will fight for them."
- "Hillary Clinton vows to expand Obama amnesty to more illegals" -- Washington Times headline, May 5, 2015.
- "I remember landing under sniper fire," Hillary told reporters during the 2008 presidential campaign, speaking of a visit to Bosnia in 1996. "There was supposed to be some kind of a greeting ceremony at the airport, but instead we just ran with our heads down to get into the vehicles to get to our base." But as the London Telegraph reported, it never actually happened. "News footage of the event however showed her claims to have been wide of the mark, and reporters who accompanied her stated that there was no sniper fire. Her account was ridiculed by ABC News as 'like a scene from Saving Private Ryan.'"
- "Video shows tarmac welcome, no snipers" -- PolitiFact headline, noting, "Yes, Clinton later acknowledged that she was mistaken, but it's hard to understand how she could err on something so significant as whether she did or didn't dodge sniper bullets. Quite simply, this kind of hyperbole deserves our harshest assessment. We rule Pants on Fire."
- "For more than a decade, one piece of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's informal biography has been that she was named for Sir Edmund Hillary, the conqueror of Mount Everest. The story was even recounted in Bill Clinton's autobiography" -- except that it's completely not true, the New York Times reported. "Sir Edmund became famous only after climbing Everest in 1953. Mrs. Clinton, as it happens, was born in 1947."
- "Hillary Clinton's absurd claim that she's the only candidate being attacked by Wall Street" -- PolitiFact headline, noting that Hillary said on the 2016 campaign trail, "I'm the only candidate in the Democratic primary, or actually on either side, who Wall Street financiers and hedge fund managers are actually running ads against." PolitiFact responds: "Wall Street financiers and hedge fund managers are running ads against Clinton. But to say she’s the only one being attacked by people associated with the financial sector is preposterous. The financial sector has contributed to both sides of the aisles, including to Clinton’s own campaign. Groups backed by Wall Street have run attack ads against virtually every candidate. Clinton’s claim rates Pants on Fire!"
- "Clinton exaggerates Republicans' plans to 'privatize' Social Security" -- PolitiFact headline. In April 2016, Hillary said on the campaign trail that the Republicans "still want to privatize (Social Security). In fact, their whole idea is to turn over the Social Security trust fund to Wall Street." PolitiFact responds,"Clinton’s statement takes a longstanding Democratic exaggeration about the scope of GOP overhaul proposals and makes it even further off-base by implying that payroll tax revenues would flow directly to Wall Street without any input from beneficiaries. We rate the statement Mostly False."
- "I have now put out all of my emails," Hillary said on Meet the Press in April 2016. But that's not accurate. PolitiFact states: "In reality, only about half of the emails sent or received by Clinton on her private email server have been released."
- "Every politician flip-flops," notes a Politico columnist. "But Clinton flip-flops so frequently that course changes have become her signature move."
[This column is based on my personal beliefs and opinions. I share them in my personal capacity as an American citizen and an author. They do not reflect the views of The Joshua Fund, which is a non-profit organization and takes no political or legislative positions.]
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