Washington, D.C.—Today, Correct The Record President Brad Woodhouse released the following statement on Donald Trump’s decision to hire David Bossie, the now-former president of Citizens United and head of the “Defeat Crooked Hillary” super PAC, as his Deputy Campaign Manager:
“The right-wing paranoid fringe takeover of the Republican Party is now complete,” said Brad Woodhouse, President of Correct The Record. “Just when you thought he couldn’t sink any lower, Donald Trump goes and hires right-wing hit man David Bossie. Bossie is a conspiracy theorist of the highest order who has spent decades desperately lying about Hillary Clinton. In the 1990s, even the most rabidly anti-Clinton congressional Republicans had to fire him after he leaked secret phone calls to try and damage Hillary Clinton. Bossie is an unhinged man who will say and do anything to hurt his political opponents. With Bossie and Bannon at the helm, the Trump campaign is now in the hands of some of the most extreme figures in American politics.”
David Bossie made a career out of anti-Clinton agitation
David Bossie has investigated the Clintons for more than two decades. “David N. Bossie, the veteran conservative operative who has investigated the Clintons for more than two decades, has been named Donald Trump’s deputy campaign manager. The Republican presidential nominee revealed his hire in a phone call with The Washington Post. ‘A friend of mine for many years,’ Trump said, speaking from his office in New York. ‘Solid. Smart. Loves politics, knows how to win.’” [Washington Post, 9/1/16]
David Bossie marketed himself as a “repository of all things Clinton since 1992.” “In an interview this week, Bossie called himself a ‘repository of all things Clinton since 1992.’ The father of four said young voters don’t know enough about Clinton and the controversies that dogged her husband’s administration. Part of his job, he said, is to dredge up that history, tie it to the latest controversies about Clinton Foundation funding and Clinton’s private email server and use the newest technology and money from deep-pocketed donors to spread the message to voters. ‘That makes us dangerous,’ he said.” [USA Today, 7/20/16]
Salon: David Bossie “was often at the epicenter of churning out stories about President Clinton” during the Clinton administration. “For David Bossie, professional Clinton-era agitator and renowned Republican dirty trickster, these must seem like the good old days. During the 1990s Bossie, as a grass-roots activist and congressional staffer, was often at the epicenter of churning out stories about President Clinton, deftly feeding the press and Capitol Hill investigators outlandish — and usually unsubstantiated — assertions about White House wrongdoing. Once Clinton left the national stage, Bossie, a political hit man by trade, seemed adrift professionally.” [Salon, 7/20/04]
Salon: David Bossie’s style “was to lob scattershot allegations toward an appreciative press corps that rarely seemed upset when the charges he gave them to amplify…failed to pan out as factual.” “Bossie’s style during the investigation was to lob scattershot allegations toward an appreciative press corps that rarely seemed upset when the charges he gave them to amplify — that Whitewater was a criminal enterprise, for instance — failed to pan out as factual. As Democratic strategist James Carville once put it, ‘He made collective fools out of about 80 percent of the national press corps.’ But none of this appears to have marred Bossie’s reputation with reporters, even when then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich — no stranger to hardball partisan politics — reportedly ordered Bossie fired from his congressional staff position in May 1998. Bossie had overseen the bungled release of supposedly incriminating recordings of Whitewater figure Webster Hubbell’s jailhouse phone conversations about Hillary Rodham Clinton — recordings that had been edited, deleting obvious exculpatory remarks.” [Salon, 7/20/04]
David Bossie’s tactics have drawn bipartisan condemnation
George H. W. Bush once condemned David Bossie’s “filthy campaign tactics,” and George W. Bush urged Republican donors not to contribute to Bossie’s organization. “In fact, in 1992, Bush’s father condemned Bossie and Brown’s gutter practices, telling reporters: ‘We will do whatever we can to stop any filthy campaign tactics.’ During that same campaign, George W. Bush, on his father’s behalf, even sent out a letter to 85,000 Republican contributors encouraging them not to contribute to Brown and Bossie’s effort.” [Salon, 7/20/04]
David Bossie was fired from the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee for releasing deceptively edited recordings intended to implicate Hillary Clinton in scandal. “Bossie was fired as an investigator for the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee after overseeing the release of recordings of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s phone conversations with Whitewater figure Webster L. Hubbell. The tapes were edited to create the impression that Clinton was involved in billing irregularities at the Arkansas law firm where she and Hubbell worked.” [Washington Post, 8/29/06]
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Newt Gingrich publicly voiced concern over David Bossie and insisted to media that Bossie was fired for his role in editing the tapes. “His hard-driving chief investigator, David Bossie, submitted a letter of resignation later in the day, saying that he wanted to blunt the ‘unjustified attacks’ coming from House Democrats and the White House.The editing and release of the Hubbell tapes, subpoenaed by the committee last year, was described by one insider as a ‘Dave Bossie project,’ opposed by the panel’s chief counsel and other committee staffers but ultimately approved by Burton. In meetings this week, Gingrich and other leaders have voiced their concerns over Burton’s staff. While Burton defended his senior investigator publicly and said Bossie was leaving of his own accord, Gingrich told the conference yesterday that Bossie, who had survived repeated previous attempts, had been fired.” [Washington Post, 5/7/98]
David Bossie’s anti-Clinton crusade led to the Citizens United Supreme Court ruling
Salon: “Bossie joined Citizens United in 1992 as its director of political affairs, which he quickly transformed into a full-time job of hounding the Clintons.” “Bossie joined Citizens United in 1992 as its director of political affairs, which he quickly transformed into a full-time job of hounding the Clintons. The group was essentially a two-man operation. Four years earlier Citizens United had produced the infamous race-baiting Willie Horton ad. ‘That spot was, is, will ever after be a nightmare,’ GOP strategist Mary Matalin once told the Chicago Tribune.” [Salon, 7/20/04]
David Bossie’s 2007 anti-Clinton film was the basis of the Citizens United ruling of 2010. “Bossie would know. It was his 2007 anti-Clinton film ‘Hillary: The Movie’ that was the basis of the 2010 Supreme Court case, Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission. The court ruled 5-4 in Bossie’s favor, opening the floodgates for more private money in politics.” [Bloomberg, 6/21/16]
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David Bossie’s Citizens United sued the federal government for the right to broadcast an anti-Clinton film during the 2008 election season. “Citizens United is best known for bringing the landmark Supreme Court case, ‘Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission,’ which was argued in 2009 and decided in 2010. The court came down in favor of the conservative non-profit when it sued for the right to broadcast ads for an anti-Clinton movie during the 2008 election season, meant to derail her first bid for the White House. Previously, campaign laws had largely barred corporations and unions for buying media to advance political agendas or candidates. The case dramatically scaled back regulations on unions and corporations’ political spending — and critics claimed it ushered in a dangerous era where corporations can influence elections through virtually unlimited campaign spending.” [New York Daily News, 9/2/16]
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Daily Beast: Hillary: The Movie was “a frontal assault on the character and alleged dark ambitions of the former first lady.” “His first big effort was Hillary: The Movie, a frontal assault on the character and alleged dark ambitions of the former first lady—who, Bossie assumed, would be the 2008 Democratic presidential nominee. Hillary was ready for its rollout just as the Democratic primary season heated up, but the FEC and a federal court declared that the film and its ads (one of which featured political consultant Dick Morris proclaiming ‘Hillary is the closest thing we have in America to a European socialist’) were clearly ‘electioneering communications,’ and thus banned from airing near the date of a primary election. Bossie appealed, and, two years later, the John Roberts court gave him a victory.” [The Daily Beast, 8/21/12]
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Hillary: The movie describes Clinton as “a congenital liar,” “not qualified,” and “the closest thing we have in America to a European socialist.” “In 2008, a conservative group called Citizens United produced Hillary: The Movie, a 90-minute documentary in which Hillary Clinton, then seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, is variously described as ‘deceitful,’ ‘ruthless,’ and ‘cunning,’ as well as ‘dishonest,’ ‘reckless,’ a ‘congenital liar,’ and ‘not qualified as commander in chief.’ For ideological balance, Dick Morris says that ‘Hillary is the closest thing we have in America to a European socialist.’ The movie did not expressly urge voters to vote against her. It simply implied that friends don’t let friends vote for evil people.” [Slate, 3/24/09]
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Mother Jones: Hillary: The Movie “raises a new slew of charges to spin the New York senator as a cross between Machiavelli and Lady Macbeth.” According to Mother Jones, “Created by the conservative political group Citizens United, the anti-Hillary movie makes the Democratic primary season look like a polite college-debate tournament. It hurls all the down-and-dirty opposition research her opponents have thus far declined to touch. Moreover, it doesn’t simply recycle the old anti-Hillary stuff; it raises a new slew of charges to spin the New York senator as a cross between Machiavelli and Lady Macbeth. The movie offers a preview of what the general election could look like should Clinton become the Democratic nominee. Despite far too much ranting by Ann Coulter and a few silly moments, the movie hits hard at Clinton’s weak spots and lands some solid punches that can’t be dismissed just because they come from the right-wing’s usual suspects.” [Mother Jones, 1/15/08]
USA Today: David Bossie, “as much as any single person, is responsible for the nearly unrestricted flood of money pouring into the 2016 presidential campaign.” “David Bossie isn’t a household name, but he probably should be. The 50-year-old political operative, as much as any single person, is responsible for the nearly unrestricted flood of money pouring into the 2016 presidential campaign. He runs the conservative advocacy group Citizens United, and his attempt to distribute his 2007 anti-Hillary Clinton movie through gave rise to the Supreme Court’s 2010 blockbuster Citizens United decision, which upended decades of campaign-finance rules and allowed corporations and unions to spend unlimited amounts to influence federal, state and local elections.” [USA Today, 7/20/16]
Citizens United was a driving force behind lawsuits over Hillary Clinton’s emails
Citizens United’s David Bossie stated it was his job was to “dredge up” old Clinton “controversies” and “tie it to the latest controversies about Clinton Foundation funding and Clinton’s private email server.” “In an interview this week, Bossie called himself a ‘repository of all things Clinton since 1992.’ The father of four said young voters don’t know enough about Clinton and the controversies that dogged her husband’s administration. Part of his job, he said, is to dredge up that history, tie it to the latest controversies about Clinton Foundation funding and Clinton’s private email server and use the newest technology and money from deep-pocketed donors to spread the message to voters. ‘That makes us dangerous,’ he said.” [USA Today, 7/20/16]
Citizens United has filed at least 4 lawsuits related to Hillary Clinton’s emails. “The conservative group Judicial Watch alone has filed 20 lawsuits against the State Department seeking documents. Citizens United, another conservative advocacy organization, has filed at least four.” [The Hill, 9/24/15]
Citizens United filed a lawsuit for the emails of Hillary Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea Clinton. “Citizens United President David Bossie said in an interview that the group wants Chelsea Clinton’s emails as part of its investigation into links between the Clinton Foundation and activities of the State Department during Hillary Clinton’s tenure as secretary. ‘The real interesting person here is, of course, Chelsea Clinton, who is the lead person. … We saw that pop up on the grid in all email we received over the past year,’ Bossie said, referring to other FOIA requests and suits brought by his group. ‘We want to see much more about what Chelsea Clinton was up to because she now has put herself out here on the campaign trail, along with Bill Clinton, as a lead surrogate.’ The new suit could reignite a debate about how much scrutiny Chelsea Clinton should be exposed to by the media and her mother’s political opponents. During her father’s presidency, Chelsea was a teenager and was rarely reported on by the mainstream media.” [Politico, 1/14/16]
Citizens United coordinated with the Benghazi Committee in an attempt to leak information about Hillary Clinton’s email production. “‘One of my staff communicated with the committee and provided them with the Vaughn index and their response was that we don’t think we have these,’ Bossie said. The emails appear to be responsive to the Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC)-led Benghazi Committee’s subpoena, the committee thought.” [Breitbart, 9/23/15]
Citizen’s United David Bossie told Politico that the Benghazi Committee informed him of select emails that were not produced by the State Department. “A panel spokesman said he could not immediately confirm which of the documents had been turned over to the committee, but Citizens United President David Bossie told reporters that staffers at the House panel told the group State never produced the records to Congress. ‘To the best of their knowledge, they do not have these documents either, even though they are under subpoena for an extended period of time,’ Bossie told reporters outside U.S. District Court in Washington on Tuesday after a hearing on the suit.” [Politico, 9/22/15]
David Bossie was tapped to lead an anti-Hillary PAC
David Bossie led the “Defeat Crooked Hillary PAC” prior to his involvement with the Trump campaign. “Nine years after Hillary: The Movie, the barrel-chested activist now is turning one of the biggest weapons of the post-Citizens United era on Clinton. He’s the newly installed leader of the Defeat Crooked Hillary PAC, a super PAC funded largely by hedge-fund billionaire Robert Mercer that plans to merge cutting-edge technology and old-fashioned opposition research in a push to sink the Democrats’ presumptive presidential nominee.” [USA Today, 7/20/16]
David Bossie was recruited by Trump’s now-campaign manager Kellyanne Conway to lead “Defeat Crooked Hillary PAC.” “David Bossie, president of the conservative advocacy group Citizens United, will take over as the head of Defeat Crooked Hillary. ‘This is an opportunity to really refocus the presidential debate around Hillary Clinton and her character, and the whole culture of corruption that’s surrounded the Clintons for decades,’ says Bossie. Conway said that she recruited Bossie for his role at the super-PAC, but hasn’t decided what she’ll be doing next. ‘Very few people have studied Hillary Clinton longer or stronger than Dave Bossie, and I support him in this role as I decide where I can be most helpful in defeating Hillary Clinton,’ she said.” [Bloomberg, 6/21/16]