SAY WHAT? Hillary, the Thing that Wouldn’t Leave

Tim Donner: As we look ahead to the next presidential election in 2024, we are left to wonder exactly what it will take for Hillary Clinton to leave the stage. I mean, here's a woman who ran twice for president, went down to arguably the most humiliating, ignominious defeat in American political history, then blamed everyone but herself for it.

Now comes Special Counsel John Durham charging that an operative in the employ of Hillary's 2016 campaign hacked into Trump's computers both during the campaign and when he was in the White House. Of course, as always, Hillary did as the Clintons always do, deflect, shift the blame, and then – incredibly -- make a speech sounding like another campaign kickoff.

Hillary Clinton: We can't get distracted, whether it's by the latest culture war nonsense or some new right wing lie on Fox or Facebook. By the way, they've been coming after me again lately, in case you might have noticed. It's funny, the more trouble Trump gets into, the wilder the charges and conspiracy theories about me seem to get … Republicans are defending coup plotters … They're getting awfully close to actual malice in their attacks.

Tim: So gracious, so inspiring, so nuanced. Let's break that down for a moment, shall we? Hillary's “culture war nonsense” is exactly what has the Democrats tanking and reeling nationally. So, of course, she is, as always, completely tone deaf. It was John Durham after three years of investigation, and not Trump, who made the hacking allegation. And sounding ever the lawyer, she used the term “actual malice.” Is she planning to sue Fox or Trump or the entire basket of deplorables in a class-action suit?

Of course, Hillary may well think, "Hey, it took Biden three times to land in the Oval Office, and if he can make it, I certainly can." And really, who can argue with that, especially with Democrats so bereft of presidential timber that Hillary Clinton would actually be mentioned seriously as a potential candidate. What does that say about the Democratic Party?

Meanwhile, with President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine now official, the lengthy history of lying by the Russians in general, and Putin in particular, reveals itself once more. Here's a one-stop shop of Russian declarations and promises in the wake of the largest military mobilization since World War II delivered by Anatoly Antonov, Russian ambassador to the United States, on ABC's Face the Nation Feb. 20, three days before all the promises he made were broken.

Anatoly Antonov: There is no invasion, and there [are] no such plans. It was fixed in Russian documents that we conveyed to our American friends in the State Department. Russia has publicly decided, declared its readiness to continue the diplomatic efforts to resolve all outstanding issues. Each state has a right to protect its boundary and border. Russian troops are on a sovereign Russian territory. We don't threaten anyone.

Tim: There is no invasion. We stand ready to continue diplomacy. Then he says Russia will protect Ukraine’s boundary, which it then summarily expanded by effectively annexing two Ukrainian provinces one day later and then invading a couple days after that. But no, they don't threaten anyone. The ultimate exercise in gaslighting and lying.

Make no mistake, Putin's intent is no less than to reclaim the Russian and Soviet empire. The weakness of America's 46th president is providing him ample opportunity to kick that project into another gear.  Senator Tom Cotton (R-AK) said Putin is maximizing the hold he has over much of Western Europe.

Tom Cotton: Too many of these European nations have made themselves beholden to Russian gas, and therefore Russia has leverage over them. If we wanted to truly punish Russia for invading Ukraine, and, maybe as important, if we want to send a signal to China about what would happen were they to invade Taiwan in the months or years ahead, it's obvious the kind of sanctions we should impose. We should sanction Russian oil. We should sanction their minerals and their mining sector. We should sanction their biggest banks. We should impose secondary dollar sanctions on them as well. We should remove them from the international financial system. That would send a signal to China that we mean business.

Tim: While some stiff sanctions are already in place, the chances of Biden doing all of that, well, I would not hazard a guess. It's yet another symptom of Biden weakness, this time exploited by the Russian strongman. But Biden's problems at home may be even worse, with inflation becoming such a huge issue that even longtime liberal Democrat strategist Donna Brazile went on ABC and had to admit just how bad it is.

Donna Brazile: I mean, inflation is robbing us of our joy, stealing our hard-earned wages. I can't go to the grocery store without complaining about the price of eggs and bacon. I mean, a pound of bacon is almost $9. Jesus!

Tim: No, not Jesus -- Biden and his fellow Democrats, who are in free fall in the eyes of the American people. One poll after another shows it. It's one thing to be ridiculed by your opponents, but quite another when it's done by one of the most famous pundits on your own side, Bill Maher.

Bill Maher: When normal people read that San Francisco has basically legalized shoplifting, they think Democrats have gone nuts … It's not my fault that the party of FDR and JFK is turning into the party of LOL and WTF … Members of Congress tweeting things like, "Cancel rent. Cancel mortgage." And, "No more policing or incarceration," declaring that capitalism is slavery, canceling Lincoln and Dr. Seuss, teaching children they're oppressors, and math is racist, making Mr. Potato Head gender neutral. The Democrats have become a parody of themselves, just making rules to make rules because it makes you feel like you're a better person.

Tim: I don't know about you, but I just feel like a better person, cleansed even, for hearing all those swell ideas from the far left.

~ Read more from Tim Donner.