Yes, Hillary Spoke at Goldman-Sachs Corporate Events. So What?

I think some of the people outraged that Hillary Clinton spoke at Goldman-Sachs and other Corporate events imagine that what she did on those occasions, sometimes in front of hundreds of people, is broadly wink and say, “Hey! Here’s how we carve up the country! Here are the favors I owe you!”, while they cheered and sieg-heiled.

No; what happens at many Corporate events is that an important and accompished or at least prominent person speaks, as what amounts to entertainment: a prize, for listening to dull-as-dishwasher drone on about policy. It doesn’t mean that the eminence who appears is brokering the price for the sale of her soul. It means that the board thought having the eminence there would be impressive, making themselves look like more of a big deal.

If the oligarchs want the celebrated person to make sinister secret backroom deals with them?

They meet with them secretly.

They spend the weekend in someone’s hunting lodge.

They use the backroom.

That’s why they’re called backroom deals.

Otherwise, it doesn’t necessarily mean anything.

Do you know who made a living appearing at corporate events?

Pat Butttram.

He was not offering to let them frack Green Acres.

Do you know who appeared at one of my corporate events, at a job I held before the Job from Hell?

Mr. T.

He was not offering to let them sell Sylvester Stallone to the Libyans.

The Clintons were heavily in debt after spending their own money to defend themselves from a series of witch hunts while Bill was in office. Hillary helped drag the family back to solvency, by joining the lectern circuit — which, I really need to remind you alarmist scolds, is legal. She did what many politicians do after leaving office, make money off her name. There is absolutely nothing inherently sinister about it. And unless you come up with some specific evidence, supported by more than paranoia, that she wrote them a blank check for future favors, it means nothing.