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Hillary Clinton: jail Americans who post misinformation

Hillary Clinton speaks to Rachel Maddow on MSNBC. Credit: MSNBC

September 17, 2024 - 3:00pm

Americans should be charged for amplifying Russian disinformation in support of Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton claimed during an interview with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow yesterday.

Russian propaganda efforts, the former presidential candidate warned, have only become more advanced since 2016, and continue to pose a threat in US elections. In response, the US Government needs to prosecute Americans who spread Russian disinformation, she argued.

“It’s important to indict the Russians, just as [Robert] Mueller indicted a lot of Russians who were engaged in direct election interference and boosting Trump back in 2016,” the former presidential candidate said. “But I also think there are Americans who are engaged in this kind of propaganda, and whether they should be civilly, or even in some cases criminally charged is something that would be a better deterrence, because the Russians are unlikely, except in a very few cases, to ever stand trial in the United States.”

Right-wing influencers including Tim Pool, Dave Rubin and Benny Johnson were allegedly duped into working for a company which was in fact an arm of the Kremlin, according to a Department of Justice indictment against the Russian actors last week. Russia’s goal was allegedly to amplify US divisions over the war in Ukraine.

Clinton has long blamed Russian interference for her loss in the 2016 presidential election. She credited the DOJ for investigations into Russian propaganda efforts in the US, but argued that “we are just at the beginning of uncovering everything that Russia — but not just Russia, other countries — have done and are doing to influence our election [sic].”

She added: “I think we need to uncover all of the connections and make it very clear that you could vote however you want, but we are not going to let adversaries, whether it is Russia, China, Iran or anybody else, basically try to influence Americans as to how we should vote in picking our leaders.”

Clinton also complained about the media’s handling of Donald Trump, arguing that truly “objective” coverage would emphasise Project 2025 and Trump’s “desire to be a dictator”. Outlets “careen from one outrage to the next. What was outrageous three days ago is no longer on the front pages, even though it threatens the physical safety of so many people,” she said. “I don’t understand why it’s so difficult for the press to have a consistent narrative about how dangerous Trump is.”


is UnHerd’s US correspondent.

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D Walsh
D Walsh
27 days ago

Monica Lewinsky’s ex boyfriend’s wife, is a dangerous fool

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
27 days ago

She is so frickin awful and hateful, railing about Russian misinformation in one breath and spreading misinformation in the next breath.

Susan Grabston
Susan Grabston
27 days ago
Reply to  Jim Veenbaas

Might one even call her deplorable?

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
27 days ago
Reply to  Susan Grabston

I think that would be carrying flattery to an absurd extreme.

Graham Stull
Graham Stull
27 days ago

“We came, we saw, he died” *cackle, cackle*
-Hillary Clinton, commenting on Muammar Gaddafi’s death by knife sodomy.

ChilblainEdwardOlmos
ChilblainEdwardOlmos
26 days ago
Reply to  Graham Stull

Indeed. She’s pure, unadulterated, narcissistic evil.

Janine Econ
Janine Econ
26 days ago
Reply to  Graham Stull

We can all see the results of her foreign policy choices in the chaos and death and endless war that resulted in Libya, not to mention a new migrant crisis for Europe and open slave markets.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
27 days ago

If Captain Queeg and Lady MacBeth had a daughter….

Santiago Excilio
Santiago Excilio
27 days ago
Reply to  UnHerd Reader

“She’s got dyed blonde hair and pouty lips, and a steely blue stare, like a sadistic nurse in a mental hospital.”

Cathy Carron
Cathy Carron
26 days ago

Nurse Ratchett – ‘One Flew over The Cuckoo’s Nest’!

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
27 days ago

She’s just terrified that, if Trump gets in, we’ll find out what Bill was up to on all those trips to Epstein’s island.

D Walsh
D Walsh
27 days ago
Reply to  Hugh Bryant

Trump’s love for Israel means Bill and all the rest are safe enough

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
27 days ago

Hillary has proven that thanks to the US Constitution we dodged this obvious, dangerous sociopath. She is the one who colluded eith Russia to fabricate charges against Trump and his advisors. She is the one whose campaign laundered money through a lawfirm to pay a foreign spy to interfere with our elections.

General Store
General Store
26 days ago
Reply to  UnHerd Reader

Trouble is that UK has no constitution. We and Canada are buggered

Cathy Carron
Cathy Carron
26 days ago
Reply to  UnHerd Reader

Hillary and her team paid $15 million for the fake Russian dossier and then took the country down a rabbit’s hole for two years costing taxpayers $45 million dollars in court time & legal expenses. This woman has no perspective, no shame. No one wants to hear from her except Rachel Maddow and her crowd – the woman who also screamed ‘wolf’ over Russia, Russia, Russia, nightly over the airwaves for two years. These people are just nuts.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
27 days ago

This monster is dog whistling for yet another murder attempt on President Trump.

Jeremy Bray
Jeremy Bray
27 days ago

 “I don’t understand why it’s so difficult for the press to have a consistent narrative about how dangerous Trump is.” – Hillary Clinton.

So the US press might be biased but is not sufficiently Pravda like for Hillary’s taste. Luck this woman was pipped at the post by Trump it would seem.

Mark Knight
Mark Knight
27 days ago

I am suffering from an irony overdose having read that!

David L
David L
27 days ago

Evil woman!

Susan Grabston
Susan Grabston
27 days ago

Lady Macbeth winning the 2TK lookalike competition?

Kjell Rojvall
Kjell Rojvall
27 days ago

It would be good if UnHerd staff and writers reread its mission statement from time to time. I am a first time subscriber – will not repeat my mistake.

Carlos Danger
Carlos Danger
27 days ago
Reply to  Kjell Rojvall

I’m curious why you think this article goes against the UnHerd mission statement.

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
27 days ago
Reply to  Kjell Rojvall

We should absolutely hear this stuff.

Benedict Waterson
Benedict Waterson
27 days ago
Reply to  Kjell Rojvall

They publish a range of stuff.
Stuff you don’t like is part of the mission statement too.
You are not the mission

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
27 days ago
Reply to  Kjell Rojvall

A major national leader calling for the criminalization of political discourse she disapproves of is not news worthy in what sense?

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
25 days ago
Reply to  Kjell Rojvall

And who are you?

AC Harper
AC Harper
27 days ago

Sour losers are not politically attractive.

John Tyler
John Tyler
27 days ago

Unfortunately, one person’s misinformation is another’s solid belief. That can lead to well-intentioned misinformation, which is not the same as disinformation. Surely it’s only reasonable to punish provable disinformation rather than dubious misinformation.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
27 days ago
Reply to  John Tyler

If disinformation was to be punished, we wouldn’t have a government at all, they’d all be in jail.

Terry M
Terry M
26 days ago
Reply to  John Tyler

OK, John. Who is to judge? That’s always the question since one’s disinformation is another’s information. Simply remember the Covid nonsense about masks, social distancing, the epidemic of the unvaccinated, etc.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
25 days ago
Reply to  John Tyler

The word gobbledegook comes to mind re this comment!

Peter B
Peter B
27 days ago

She’s an even worse loser than Trump !
Meanwhile, has she explained precisely which law these people she doesn’t like are allegedly breaking ?

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
26 days ago
Reply to  Peter B

I believe there is one in the US already for misinformation, disinformation +/or malinformation.

Janine Econ
Janine Econ
26 days ago
Reply to  UnHerd Reader

Justice Brandeis established the “more speech” doctrine — the antidote to bad or false speech is more speech; that is free and open dialogue. It’s called the counterspeech doctrine and set an important legal precedent in the US
https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/article/counterspeech-doctrine/

J Chase
J Chase
27 days ago

No, lock HER up; before she hurts someone again. She can’t help her self.

B Emery
B Emery
27 days ago

‘Hillary Clinton: jail Americans who post misinformation’

‘The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it. Moreover, so long as he remained within the field vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard. There was of coarse no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. How often, or on what system, the Thought police plugged in on any individual wire was guess work. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. You had to live – did live, from habit that became instinct – in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and except in darkness, every movement scrutinised’

‘Thought crime does not entail death, it is death.’

Orwell 1984.
The censorship industrial complex is arguably more sinister than anything Orwell could have come with.
Surely more censorship laws are a very bad idea.
Beating Russian ‘disinformation’ really shouldnt be that hard if you use facts and your brain.

Nell Clover
Nell Clover
26 days ago
Reply to  B Emery

Larry Ellison, Chief Technical Officer at Oracle, leading supplier of network architecture to Amazon, Microsoft, and Western governments:

“Citizens will be on their best behavior because we’re constantly recording and reporting”.

He said that at a financial analysts meeting held 12th September 2024 discussing Oracle’s future business and revenues. Ellison isn’t just another techie predicting dystopia. Larry has spent millions on “super political action committees” or super PACs as they are known in the USA.

I’m flabbergasted that what he said on that call hasn’t been reported more widely.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
26 days ago
Reply to  Nell Clover

Thank you for bringing this up.

B Emery
B Emery
26 days ago
Reply to  Nell Clover

Thanks for sharing that, I’m intrigued as to what this guys idea of ‘best behaviour’ is, how they have justified appointing themselves as judge, jury and executioner over people’s behaviour and who exactly regulates these people and to what standards.

Super PACs sound terrifying. This sounds like an enormous concentration of power in one place, also sounds like a massive security threat if these organisations become corrupt.

Think they should rebrand Oracle as LARRY IS WATCHING YOU.

Benedict Waterson
Benedict Waterson
27 days ago

Sad. The poor woman is bat shit mental

Brett H
Brett H
27 days ago

If Trump achieves nothing else we have him to thank for defeating her run for Presidency.

ChilblainEdwardOlmos
ChilblainEdwardOlmos
26 days ago
Reply to  Brett H

Amen!

Carlos Danger
Carlos Danger
27 days ago

If anyone who amplified Russian disinformation was put in jail, Hillary Clinton would have been behind bars for years. Her campaign in 2016 paid for and amplified the Steele dossier, which relayed bogus information from Russian sources like the “pee tape” report. You live in a glass house, Hillary Clinton. Stop throwing stones.

Sun 500
Sun 500
27 days ago

HC is a toxic witch that just won’t go away … she started the whole ‘Russia’ nonsense and is sore because she didn’t get away with it. She’s over and just won’t accept it. Liberal authoritarian dictators must never be given free rein.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
26 days ago
Reply to  Sun 500

She has gotten away with it clean.

Bernard Brothman
Bernard Brothman
27 days ago

Very interesting strategy. Arrest and convict supports of your opponents as once they are convicted felons, many lose the right to vote.

ChilblainEdwardOlmos
ChilblainEdwardOlmos
26 days ago

HRC is an absolute master of projection. The irony!

John Riordan
John Riordan
26 days ago

This stupid woman simply never knows when to shut the f**k up, does she?

Mark Phillips
Mark Phillips
26 days ago

Ugly inside and out.

General Store
General Store
26 days ago

Let’s start with Clinton

martin ordody
martin ordody
26 days ago

She was and is a criminal, belongs to jail.

Cathy Carron
Cathy Carron
26 days ago

The Hillster is really losing it. Just after Trump got shot for the second time she comes out with an incendiary ‘Hitler-esk’ rant against him. She needs a muzzle.

Terry M
Terry M
26 days ago

Hillary, come for the stupidity, stay for the senility.

Jonathan Nash
Jonathan Nash
26 days ago

Does traducing the reputations of your husband’s victims count as disinformation? Just asking.

Daniel Lee
Daniel Lee
26 days ago

Apparently Secretary Clinton needs a boost back into the van again.

Andrew Holmes
Andrew Holmes
26 days ago

MSNBC again leads the hit parade in the “Totalitarians R Us” competition.

Michael Clarke
Michael Clarke
25 days ago

No comment.