September 13, 2016

What an ideal vector for the Putin-is-poisoning-Hillary theory!

WaPo reports:
Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist who has made the NFL so uncomfortable with his discovery of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in the brains of deceased players, suggests that Hillary Clinton’s campaign be checked for possible poisons after her collapse Sunday in New York.

Omalu, whose story was famously told in the movie “Concussion,” made the suggestion on Twitter, writing that he advised campaign officials to “perform toxicologic analysis of Ms. Clinton’s blood".... adding that his reasoning is that he does not trust Russian President Vladimir Putin or Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee who has expressed admiration for Putin.

Putin, as The Washington Post reported, was implicated by a British inquiry in January in the poisoning death of Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB operative, in London in 2006....
The article presents Omalu's idea as if it's another conspiracy theory, but I assume that poisoning is one of the threats the Secret Service is looking out for. Here's a Snopes article on the President's "food taster":
Whether food tasters are employed on behalf of U.S. presidents when they're away from the White House is a subject that the Secret Service refrains from officially commenting on, but it's something of an open secret that they are....
But it is known the Service goes to great lengths to scrutinise the source and the preparation of food served to US presidents whenever they eat out of the White House to ensure it is not tampered with.
And I wouldn't assume that Hillary Clinton hasn't had a toxicologic analysis of her blood. If she had, would she tell us? First, even though I don't like her general tendency toward secretiveness, I don't think it's good to hear details about the threat of poisoning. It might encourage someone to act and give hints on how to evade detection. But what if Hillary has been tested and Omalu's suspicious are correct: She has been poisoned. Would she tell us? Should she tell us? Would it be classified? Would we find out slowly through small doses of suspicion like Omalu's tweets? My suspicion is that we would find out only what is deemed politically useful to Hillary Clinton (at least up to a point where she withdraws from politics). But what would be politically useful? It's politically useful to waft a theory that Putin may be poisoning her. Her campaign has been trying to paint Trump as chummy with Putin, and a Putin plot to help Trump would bolster the hell out of that theory.

Omalu seems to be a sort of folk hero. A movie was made about him. The movie — "Concussion" — starred Will Smith. What an ideal vector for the Putin-is-poisoning-Hillary theory!

55 comments:

bleh said...

I don't think Putin would've failed to kill her.

MadisonMan said...

^^^^^^

What if Bill Clinton is poisoning her?

The mystery novel writes itself!

Humperdink said...

The Washington Post must have access to some ugly polls for the fainting one. This is swinging for the fences.

MadisonMan said...

Talking about poisoning means not talking about emails.

Tommy Duncan said...

Through the combined efforts of the Clinton campaign and the media we can no longer trust anything we are told is fact.

This medical episode has revealed (for anyone willing to look) how Hillary deceptively manipulates the appearance of every detail of her life. She lives in a world where secrecy and deception are the norm.

Humperdink said...

Sad there is a Pittsburgh Steeler connection to this doctor. Especially after the Steelers throttled the Washington Redskins last night.

Humperdink said...

What medical episode? Hillary was quoted last night as saying she "stumbled".

Known Unknown said...

Trump should bring HIllary's shoe to the first debate.

"Here, you dropped this."

Brando said...

Between Ted Cruz's father killing JFK and now this, we are in the year of conspiracy theories.

By the time a real nasty conspiracy turns out to be true, we're going to be so desensitized no one will believe it.

PB said...

Putin would rather have Hillary than Trump. Hillary will double down on Obama's policies. That Putin would help Trump is just another lie being retailed by the Democrats.

Tommy Duncan said...

Brando said: By the time a real nasty conspiracy turns out to be true, we're going to be so desensitized no one will believe it.

If the conspiracy theory makes Trump look bad the media will believe it and support it.

Curious George said...

"Omalu seems to be a sort of folk hero"

Maybe to you. Because you need him to be. But I'd bet 95+% of American's would identify "Omalu" as a city in Hawaii.

Bill, Republic of Texas said...

I agree with Humperdinck. What medical episode. I keep hearing over and over that Hillary was fine that stupid Fauxnoise was making up stories to damage Hillary. Then we heard that NYC was hot and humid and Hillary felt a little light headed and left after a 11/2 hours. Then she was woozy and needed assistance to get in the van but everything was great after running around and playing with her grandchild. After all it was a beautiful a beautiful day in NY

After the video surfaced we were told that she Powering Through her Pneumonia.

Now Bill tells us she just needed a little water and now she is fine. She passes out all the time so no big deal.

exhelodrvr1 said...

Is Putin one of The Deplorables?

Earnest Prole said...

Brought to you by twitter: mobs and medieval conspiracies. This is not the shining future I was promised.

damikesc said...

Way to flush that credibility down the toilet, son.

Talking about poisoning means not talking about emails.

Indeed. Has anybody asked Cilizza if this is a valid question one can ask?

What medical episode? Hillary was quoted last night as saying she "stumbled".

Are we sure SHE said that, and not that some staffer manipulated her jaws and spoke for her?

I still love that "she had pneumonia" is the story. The evidence presented is...her campaign. Who first claimed she overheated. And who has lied about every possible issue this campaign. But THIS time...she's being honest.

Dehydrating for no reason, as her campaign claims she does fairly regularly, seems to be bad. I guess I'm wrong, though.

AllenS said...

We keep hearing about how Hillary just doesn't want to drink any water, and that's why she had problems in NYC, according to those around her. However, every time she has a coughing fit on stage, she asks for water, gets it, and gulps it down. Every one of her stories/excuses are bullshit.

damikesc said...

And the infuriating part is that the media keeps accepting the lies as if they were unvarnished truth and gospel.

They sold her comments on her email scandal every step of the way. When her previous comments were found to be false, they treated the next ones as if there was no question of their veracity.

Mark said...

Talk about a reset switch.

Left Bank of the Charles said...

It's ideal for the NFL's Roger Goodell, who would very much like to discredit this doctor as a conspiracy theory crackpot.

rehajm said...

If Putin wanted to poison her they'd give her the polonium-210 treatment and finish the job, not slip her something to turn her into a teetering 68 year old nana since she's already a teetering 68 year old nana.

Don't you think she looks tired?

MayBee said...

Hilarious considering the buzzword about questioning Hillary's health was that was a "conspiracy theory".

It's like we all have an attention span of 5 hours.

MayBee said...

AllenS said...
We keep hearing about how Hillary just doesn't want to drink any water, and that's why she had problems in NYC, according to those around her. However, every time she has a coughing fit on stage, she asks for water, gets it, and gulps it down. Every one of her stories/excuses are bullshit.


Someone on Twitter posted an interview with Hillary where she said she drinks tons of water. I'll look for it.
I also saw a compilation on reports of falls she has taken over the past several years.

Today, CBS reported Hillary is really mad at her staff for not reporting her whereabouts to the press immediately.

holdfast said...

I'd love to see that blood work. Shite loads of vodka and drugs to treat the symptoms of Parkinson's.

holdfast said...

NFL' Commissioner and SJW extraordinaire Roger Goodell seems to be doing a great job of discrediting himself and his National Felon's League.

MayBee said...

She drinks lots of water.

Paco Wové said...

The more the Clinton campaign goes on about the dastardly Rooskie menace, the more it makes me think about Secretary of State Clinton and the "reset" button that wasn't, and inexorably draws me, again, and again, to the conclusion that she was utterly incompetent in that role. Heckuva job, Hillary!

MayBee said...

Ace has them at the top of his Twitter feed.
2005
2009
2012

Falls bad enough to be reported in the news.

traditionalguy said...

That is a great metaphor. Putin has indeed been poisoning Hillary, Barry and Bill with wiki leaked emails proving them to be a two bit gang of deplorable thieves and murderers for profit. Meanwhile the CIA assassinates Putin's friend and 30 year driver in one of their a patented head on collisions.

Anonymous said...

Awaiting blurry cell phone videos of man in MAGA cap carrying umbrella in the vicinity of Hillary...

traditionalguy said...

FTR: Levodopa is not actually a poison, although its side effects are nasty.

Known Unknown said...

Food taster for Trump or Hillary? That's a lot of food!

Anonymous said...

Putin : the Clinton campaign :: Snowball : Animal Farm.

CWJ said...

I was on my way to the Royals game when you posted this. The funny thing is that I had just joked with my friend that Hillary dropped like a Russian defecter poked with a poisoned umbrella. Imagine my surprise and laughter when I logged on and saw this just now.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Good Lord, they really are getting desperate, aren't they? Throw out so much random, crazy bullseye that the truth never gets a chance to settle in. It isn't surprising that Althouse's resident trolls are laying doggo. They can't keep up with the fantasy factory. Right now the Democrats remind me of Lucille Ball on the assembly line.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Bullshit, of course. Bullseyes are triggering.

Annie said...

If Putin is poisoning her, then maybe she shouldn't have cozied up to him by giving him a fifth of our uranium in exchange for millions of dollars to her slush fund.

YoungHegelian said...

Isn't it amazing that the Left is now saying about Russia the same things that it complained about when Right said them about the Soviet Union? It's no longer "Commies! Commies under every bed!", it's "Russkies! Russkies under every bed!".

It ain't just me who's noticed the similarities.

damikesc said...

Today, CBS reported Hillary is really mad at her staff for not reporting her whereabouts to the press immediately.

Know what could've resolved that?

If they didn't forbid the press from following.

Also, if the press wasn't so pathetic that they obeyed that edict.

Darrell said...

You might be a Leftie--

If you give credence to anything coming out of the Clinton camp...

Humperdink said...

In light of the recent video, it's a real shame we don't have a video of Hillary dodging sniper fire. That would have been a real treat.

As an aside, if it wasn't for videos and emails, Hillary would be up yuge in the polls. Prolly have to invoke the mercy rule on Trump. Lying is so hard in this age of advanced technology.

cacimbo said...

If she did not have a chronic illness, it seems unimaginable that the Secret Service would not have rushed her to the hospital after her complete collapse on 9/11. That the incident was treated so routinely is what argues against poisoning and for a chronic serious condition.

Curious George said...

"AllenS said...
We keep hearing about how Hillary just doesn't want to drink any water..."

In her booze Allen. In her booze.

Comanche Voter said...

Ah Hillary and poison. Why does Lucretia Borgia come to mind?

Ann Althouse said...

"It isn't surprising that Althouse's resident trolls are laying doggo."

HAMM Laying! Lying you mean... lying doggo.
CLOV Ah? One says lying? One doesn’t say laying?
HAMM Use your head, can’t you. If he was laying we’d be bitched.
CLOV Ah. [Pause.] What about that pee?
HAMM I’m having it.
CLOV Ah that’s the spirit, that’s the spirit!

Beckett, Samuel (2009-06-16). Endgame and Act Without Words: 1 (p. 34). Grove/Atlantic, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

HoodlumDoodlum said...

Last week it was a symptom of a fevered mind to point out that Hillary seemed to have some health problems--it was irresponsible rumor-mongering and conspiracy theorizing, our Media said.

This week the WashPo has no problem publishing a rather wild unsubstantiated rumor based, itself, on the reality of Hillary's poor health.

There's spin and then there's spin...if only we could harness the power of the Liberal Media's forces of mendacity, hypocrisy, & speciousness!

Yancey Ward said...

Too funny! Hillary! powers through Polonium 210!

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

Goodness, Althouse, it must be like a form of possession...

Scott said...

Cacimbo Cacimbo said...

If she did not have a chronic illness, it seems unimaginable that the Secret Service would not have rushed her to the hospital after her complete collapse on 9/11. That the incident was treated so routinely is what argues against poisoning and for a chronic serious condition.

9/13/16, 10:36 AM


Very well said. After all, the Secret Service would have no way of knowing at the time that her collapse was not poisoning or a serious medical condition (stroke, hear attack, etc) if it was happening to a healthy individual. If this was a regular affair, albeit happening more publicly than normal, then their behavior makes more sense. The more so, since the Presidency is a very high stress job (look at before and after photos of Obama, Clinton, Bush, Lincoln, etc.), so the candidate's health is a major concern, especially for two senior citizens.

Even so, taking her to the hospital would have been the medically sound thing to do, and it says something that political considerations trumped her health and potential safety. This reminds me unpleasantly of the death of Stalin when after his stroke, his subordinates were too terrified to take action that could have potentially saved his life (getting prompt medical attention, for instance). Or, in US history, Woodrow Wilson's stroke, I suppose.

As a side note, if I were the Russians and wanted to poison Hillary, there's ways around food tasters. Finding out a drug that has adverse reactions to the blood thinner that we know that she's on (say convulsions) would do it, since the taster would presumably not be on the same medication.

Joe said...

I suppose this is supposed to make it look like Putin is afraid of Hillary Clinton, yet all the evidence is the opposite. The big red reset button was but the start. (I doubt Putin is afraid of anyone, which will likely be his downfall.)

Indigo Red said...

Hey! Isn't this doctor also a Nigerian Prince who needs to use my bank account to get his money from the insurance company?

jg said...

i'm really enjoying the desperation

jg said...

plot twist: bill and hillary have been poisoning each other for the last 20 years

jg said...

it's quite obvious that this is nothing but a chronic illness well known to her nurse and SS detail. a symphony of rehearsed moves. catching hillary, dragging her into the handicap van. bodyguards standing to screen out civilian cameras. heading straight to the private treatment facility (no hospital! we have exactly the right equipment+supplies to treat this condition we're already well aware of)

jg said...

michaelk breaks Her Condition down