Poor, Poor Pitiful Me
[guest post by Dana]
It seems to be all the rage these days: Democrats jumping on the Poor, poor me! bandwagon. We recently saw Hillary claim that when she and Bill left the White House, they were “dead broke”. And now, Joe Biden remarked in a summit on working families that, not only is he the poorest man in Congress, but that he has no savings.
When discussing the struggles that working parents experience as they balance their careers and family time, Biden told the audience, “I can speak a little bit from my own experience.”
Though he noted that he is wearing a “mildly expensive suit” and has a good pension and salary, the vice president said, “I don’t own a single stock or bond . . . I have no savings account.”
Except that he does. Of course, he may later come back and qualify that he meant savings in his piggy bank…Just Joe being Joe! (For more of Joe’s ‘stories’, visit the “Being Biden” page at the White House official website).
In light of 2016, is it any surprise that Clinton and Biden are attempting to reach – and be – the common man with their own financial um, struggles?
Via White House Dossier.
–Dana
Bet you he has unlimited credit cards.
Kevin M (b357ee) — 6/23/2014 @ 12:23 pmCould you please point me to the line/s in that statement which contradict his claim? I only skimmed it so I may have missed something, but I saw no reference to stocks, bonds, or savings accounts.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 12:49 pmIt’s right there on page 2, line J: “United States Senate Federal Credit Union – Savings”
Then on Page 3, several mutual funds are listed. Those are typically comprised of stocks and bonds.
Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:03 pmMilhouse: Page 2, Line #1 lists a savings account. Page 3 lists numerous investment funds (i.e. stocks).
Andrew (72a72c) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:04 pmWhat’s with the Democrat rank and file? They’re okay with their politicians lying to sell major legislation and now they prize financial failure over success (or at least Biden thinks so). How can ostensibly bright people (the liberal elite) buy it?
East Bay Jay (a5dac7) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:05 pmOf course, he may later come back and qualify that he meant savings in his piggy bank
He’s got amount somewhere between $1,000 and $15,000 in a credit union – not in a savings account.
Otherwise, he’s got 4 checking accounts, one of them containing less than $1,000 and none ofthem having over $15,000. No, there’s another one, listed later: TD bank. Also above $1,000 and under $15,000.
He’d have been covered by Federal Deposit insurance even back in the 1960s.
He’s got money in 11 mutual funds, and 4 life insurance policies.
He’s also got a CD or CDs for between $50,000 and $100,000 at the Wilmington Savings zfund society.
But no savings account.
He’s got some more deferred compensation in another mutual fund, and a defined benefit pension from the State of Delaware which he cannot put a current value on.
He’s got rental property in Wilmington, Delaware, worth between $100,000 and $250,000.
Oh – two more TD bank checking accounts.
He’s got royalties from a book, too.
Sammy Finkelman (9257c5) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:10 pmAndrew (72a72c) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:04 pm
Milhouse: Page 2, Line #1 lists a savings account.
That’s not a savings account at a bank. And a certificate of deposit is not a savings account either. Why would anyone have a savings account, anyway, except maybe if it helps give them free checking/
Page 3 lists numerous investment funds (i.e. stocks)
Mutual funds. But not a single stock or bond.
Sammy Finkelman (9257c5) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:13 pmHe’s got money in a credit union account listed as a savings account. Is reading English really that hard for you, Sammy?
Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:18 pmHe never said he didn’t have a savings account at a bank. He merely said that he had NO savings account. But he did have a savings account.
You are splitting hairs. Mutual funds own stocks and bonds. Anyone who invests in a mutual fund invests in those assets.
Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:22 pmwhen it interferes with teh narrative, yes it is: Sam the Sham doesn’t let pesky trivia like facts get in the way of his spin mission…
redc1c4 (abd49e) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:29 pmChuck Bartowski (@9
He never said he didn’t have a savings account at a bank. He merely said that he had NO savings account. But he did have a savings account.
I don’t think you call what’s in a credit union an account
SF: “Mutual funds. But not a single stock or bond”
You are splitting hairs. Mutual funds own stocks and bonds. Anyone who invests in a mutual fund invests in those assets.
It actually makes a difference. There’s no conflict of interest.
Biden was implying something other than the truth – like he had no money, but he’s just didn’t do some typical rich man things. No stocks. No bonds.
It’s possible that Biden overlooked =what was in his credit union.
Sammy Finkelman (9257c5) — 6/23/2014 @ 1:46 pmNo one ever accused him of conflict of interest. The issue was whether he had investments. Clearly, Biden lied, and you’re carrying water for him.
If it looks like a duck and walks like a duck, you expect it to quack. If it’s not an account bearing his name, what is it?
Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 6/23/2014 @ 2:01 pmIrrelevant. He didn’t say he had no assets. He said he didn’t own any stocks or bonds, and going by this statement that’s the truth. No matter how much he has in investment funds, they own the stocks and bonds, he doesn’t.
As far as I know credit union savings are not technically called savings accounts, they’re called “share accounts”; an insigificant point of terminology, but one that allows him to say what he did.
Yes, it’s hair splitting, but so what? Hairs are there to be split. If you accuse someone of lying, he has to have actually lied.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 2:22 pmMillhouse,
My credit union refers to it as a “savings account”. There is also an established minimum amount of money that must maintained in order for it to remain open.
Dana (fe2228) — 6/23/2014 @ 2:41 pmMaybe some credit unions do use that term, because these accounts function exactly like savings accounts do at banks, but my understanding is that this is technically incorrect. One question that maybe someone here can answer is what term does the Federal Credit Union use.
Another terminology difference: when a legislature (or at least the Colorado legislature) writes you a “cheque”, it’s not actually called a cheque; it’s called a warrant. That’s because it isn’t drawn on a bank, it’s drawn directly on the treasury. It’s an order from the legislature to the treasury to pay out the sum stated. The legislature hasn’t got an “account” at the treasury; the entire treasury is the state’s money. But it works exactly like a cheque does; you deposit it at your bank and the money comes in, so I’m sure in everyday
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 2:55 pmconversation people call it a “cheque” (or “check”).
Biden for President!
He’s shown himself capable of the only true qualification for high office.
The ability to lie.
DejectedHead (a094a6) — 6/23/2014 @ 2:56 pmEven better, the ability to “lie” while sticking to the literal truth.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 2:57 pmBiden wrote on his asset disclosure form that the Credit Union account was a savings account. So, he either lied when he wrote it on the disclosure form or he lied when he said he had no savings account.
Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 6/23/2014 @ 3:10 pmI can’t believe Milhouse and Sammah are trying to justify this. Nevermind.
JD (6ef8ed) — 6/23/2014 @ 3:40 pm‘we really dodged a bullet’ twice with this guy,
narciso (3fec35) — 6/23/2014 @ 3:43 pmNo, he didn’t. Look again.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 3:56 pmYou really think he would have been worse than 0bama?
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 3:58 pmI have a question… It is not in any disclosure forms. How much is the actuarial value of Joe’s pension from the Senate? I bet it is pretty damn high.
Cheshirecat (32e0c4) — 6/23/2014 @ 3:58 pm^..^(____)~~~
god knows he can’t ask ashley for money
unless he’s her crack dealer
happyfeet (8ce051) — 6/23/2014 @ 3:59 pmthe quote marks, suggest sarcasm, since the media thought him more competent than the Huntress or Ryanm
narciso (3fec35) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:00 pmOh, and while we’re at it, let’s add in the value of the lifetime medical.
Cheshirecat (32e0c4) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:00 pm^..^(____)~~~
Yeah, its amazing how poor Joe Biden is …
Most politicians of his long experience are usually multimillionaires. I wonder where he hides his wealth ….
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101669271
Oh.
SPQR (c4e119) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:03 pmAnyone who actually believes that Joe Biden has a net worth less than $800,000 really should have a guardian.
SPQR (c4e119) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:07 pmOh, I thought you were referring to the defeat of his two presidential bids, not to his two victories as VP. I’ll grant that GHWB was probably a better president than Slow Joe would have been, so we dodged a bullet there, but I didn’t understand how his loss in ’08 was a dodged bullet, considering whom we got instead.
No, Palin and Ryan were both excellent candidates, whose only flaw was that they were not on the top of their tickets. Both times I would have voted for them and not for their ticket leaders, if that were possible. (I had the same feeling in 2000; my reaction to the VP debate in that election was that either candidate would make better a president than either of their ticket leaders. Had Cheney been on top of the GOP ticket I would have voted for it.)
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:11 pmLet’s see what Jill’s net worth is. Then we can talk.
Gazzer (6a76d0) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:12 pmHe’s dumb, but not that dumb. I assume he’s got a fortune squirrelled away somewhere. Your link gives an intriguing hint as to where it might be. Which raises some interesting questions about conflict of interest in the administration responses to the recent disturbances there.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:14 pmI have it on good authority that Biden financed his hair plugs…
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:21 pmMy understanding was Slow Joe was bought and paid for by the credit card companies in Delaware.
Gazzer (6a76d0) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:21 pmAren’t his investments supposed to be in blind trusts?
nk (dbc370) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:28 pmHence all the mutual funds.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:33 pmBiden was attempting to mislead people, but he wasn’t lying about the facts he asserted, and he wouldn’t have told such an checkable lie, except he could have made a genuine mistake about the federal credit union if that is called a savings “account”
Nobody has caught him in blatant lie, much as you might like to think so.
Of course it is meaningless that he doesn’t have a savings account – he just has a whole bunch of checking accounts, some of which could pay interest, and maybe do pay interest (of something like 0.005% a year if you’re lucky – I think TD bank pays a bit more, maybe 0.01%) or they wouldn’t be listed, and he has bank certificates of deposit totaling between $50,000 and $100,000, not to mention mutual funds.
His net asset value could be higher than you might guess from the financial disclosure statement, as as the financial disclosure form only includes assets held for investment or the production of income that had a fair market value of over $1,000, or produced more than $200 of income.
Jewelry, houses, flat screen TVs, furniture, cars and appliances would not be included. And maybe not copyrights. Or some estimate of money he could earn in the future from speeches, appearances, books and corporate directorships. It’s only what he’s getting now and from whom.
He didn’t assign any value to his Delaware state pension defined benefit plan, saying the value is not readily ascertainable.
Sammy Finkelman (9257c5) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:45 pmAnd Fannie and Freddie (which Mr. Koskinen ran) & the ‘Norwegian Blue’ Lehman Bros, and AIG
narciso (3fec35) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:47 pmI see from the video that Billy Jeff and Shrillary (nicer to call her that than Val Jar’s “Hildebeast”–although I’ve used that moniker as well) ate “Poor Pittiful Me” up. Gets right to the core of those folks, doesn’t. And proving that the lying roadapple doesn’t fall far from the family manure pile, Ms. Chelse claims she could never get excited by money (and why not? Her parents have a $10.5 million pad in Chappaqua, and a $5 million house in Washington D.C.–and Chelsea her own little self gets $600K a year for not much). To top it off, Chelsea says “I’ll work harder than anybody”. Common Chelsea, join the common folk and come out to California and spend a day with a short handled hoe along a Latino farm worker–and lets see if you are still spouting that B.X.
Skeptical Voter (12e67d) — 6/23/2014 @ 4:55 pmIn the ’90s I would always call her Lady Macbeth. When she moved to NY I started calling her the Wicked Witch of Westchester.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/23/2014 @ 5:15 pmBiden has no savings?
askeptic (8ecc78) — 6/23/2014 @ 6:28 pmWell, I guess that explains why he and Dr. Jill are such cheapskates when it comes to charitable giving; or, his mentor on this is AlGore.
I can’t think of one conservative who’s lied and bullshitted as much as has been done by people like Hillary and Biden, and the horror in the White House, etc, etc, and not created a huge stir or backlash, both in the media and amongst all the saps throughout the public (per opinion polls) who fall for the line of, well, at least his/her heart is in the right place. This is a good illustration of why things become so naturally, intrinsically corrupt, in various ways, when people of the left get their grimy paws onto things.
Mark (d0a45a) — 6/23/2014 @ 6:38 pm“Sometimes, Jerry, less is less.”
Mojo (00b01f) — 6/23/2014 @ 7:17 pm— Linda Ronstadt
“I was a small white boy from Pennsylvania and then somehow one day I became a Senator from Delaware then the Vice President of the United States. I never had no money, though,” said Joe Biden.
These people are not serious anymore.
Ag80 (eb6ffa) — 6/23/2014 @ 8:01 pmHave most of them ever been?
askeptic (8ecc78) — 6/23/2014 @ 8:07 pmJoe Biden to Hillary: “if I told you I wasn’t a rich man… would you hold it against me?”
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 6/23/2014 @ 8:21 pmDefine “it”?
askeptic (8ecc78) — 6/23/2014 @ 8:24 pmAll I’ll say, askeptic, dollars to donuts is that “it” is partially supported by pelvic mesh…
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 6/23/2014 @ 8:30 pmYes, he did. You need to learn how to read. It says quite clearly, “J – United States Senate Federal Credit Union – Savings”.
Two lines below, he lists and account as “Suntrust Bank – Checking”.
The only possible explanation is that Biden listed the credit union account as a savings account.
Chuck Bartkowksi (ad54b9) — 6/23/2014 @ 9:11 pmOh, he’s got plenty of savings. Just no savings account. At least not one called that. His stinginess is typical of his class; rich lefties who think the poor are the government’s responsibility, not theirs. Conservatives, especially religious ones who believe their success is due to God’s help, are naturally more generous givers. 0bama actually seems to be an exception in this regard; his contributions as a percentage of his income seem to be more typical of Republicans than of his fellow Democrats.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/24/2014 @ 12:40 amCredit unions use different terminology from banks. I don’t know what terms the Federal Credit Union uses, but technically the credit union equivalent of a bank savings account is called a share account.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/24/2014 @ 12:43 amand semantical bullship is semantical bullship.
you’re the only one buying what you’re selling, so you can cease & desist with the relentless ad campaign. Slow joe got caught lying, and you can’t change that, no matter how hard you try.
redc1c4 (abd49e) — 6/24/2014 @ 1:30 amThe fact is that he didn’t, and you can’t change that. He used the literal truth to create a false impression.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/24/2014 @ 1:50 amI used to be a loan officer for a credit union.
All credit unions rely on the ‘normal’ terms the public understands to communicate what its shares are. What is actually a Term Share is called a CD. What is actually a Prime Share is called a savings account. What is actually a Share Draft is called a Checking Account. This is no different from calling an Automobile a car.
The NCUA (the equivalent of the FDIC) uses the term share account to describe shares. Generally.
Go to page 11 and read section 8 of the NCUA’s basic guide.
See how the federal agency uses “Savings Account” to define what a regular share of a credit union is? It would be silly to have money in a share account with a credit union and deny that is a savings account. There are exactly zero credit unions in this country that wouldn’t give you a regular share if you asked for a savings account (assuming you qualify for membership).
It’s hard for me to see a larger point beyond the integrity problem, but the big picture problem really is cultural. Why promote a culture that is proud of being irresponsible? Biden has been a very well paid man for a very long time. The Clintons were similarly extremely well compensated in several jobs. Why on Earth would they want people to think they had not preserved some of that wealth? That would be a shameful failure. Not only does that show a lack of budgeting skill sorely needed at the federal government, but it promotes the idea that it’s OK for those making far, far less to not save money, which produces dependency, misery, and a less stable economy. Of course it also produces a lot of beggars who are easier for a politician to please.
Dustin (7f67e8) — 6/24/2014 @ 3:03 amOh, and you can’t have a membership with a credit union without having this savings account. Your stake in the ‘union’ is your “Prime Share”, which as I showed above is defined by the federal government as a savings account (because that’s what it is).
Dustin (7f67e8) — 6/24/2014 @ 3:08 amIt doesn’t matter what terminology credit unions use in this instance. I said, “Biden wrote on his asset disclosure form that the Credit Union account was a savings account.” And it’s very clear that Biden did, indeed, write that.
You’re wrong on this issue, Milhouse. Be a man and admit it.
Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 6/24/2014 @ 6:49 amMBNA bought him lock, stock and barrel, this is how he avoided six attempts to get rid of him, and when there were unwarranted speculations about O’Donnell, that she might be corrupt, when her only real failing, was believing you can make a difference in this world, money is not the be and end all,
narciso (3fec35) — 6/24/2014 @ 6:55 amthe dog trainer as usual, does not dissapoint, meaning it does;
http://freebeacon.com/blog/ellisons-must-read-of-the-day-mississippi-senate/
narciso (3fec35) — 6/24/2014 @ 7:10 am18. 54. Chuck Bartowski (11fb31) — 6/24/2014 @ 6:49 am
It doesn’t matter what terminology credit unions use in this instance. I said, “Biden wrote on his asset disclosure form that the Credit Union account was a savings account.” And it’s very clear that Biden did, indeed, write that.
It’s almost certain that his lawyers or accountants wrote that, not Biden, and he just signed it, without studying every line.
And while the word “SAVINGS” is there, the word “Account” is not. (It isn’t there by what are undoubtably called checking accounts, either, though)
Sammy Finkelman (9257c5) — 6/24/2014 @ 7:27 amBiden was attempting to say he was almost in financial trouble – but maybe was saved by his high salary as Vice President, and his pension. And he hadn’t bought a top of the line suit. He was implying he hadn’t been able to save any money.
Sammy Finkelman (9257c5) — 6/24/2014 @ 7:36 amMe, I’m waiting for Plugs McDoofus to use the “I was born a poor black child in Mississippi” line.
Trust me, it’s coming.
Mojo (fe0c83) — 6/24/2014 @ 11:22 amThe spinning by Milhouse and Sammah is giving me nausea.
JD (e5a0fa) — 6/24/2014 @ 11:26 amTake a double shot of Mezcal, and sleep it off.
askeptic (8ecc78) — 6/24/2014 @ 11:44 amNo, he didn’t. It doesn’t say “savings account”, it just says “federal credit union – savings”. If put on the stand he’d swear up and down that it wasn’t a “savings account”, and technically he’d be right, though it functions exactly like one, and, as Dustin says, informally everyone calls it that.
Similarly, if for some reason my brother wanted to give the impression that he was not paid for his work for the Colorado legislature, but without actually lying, he could truthfully say that he never got a cheque for it. He didn’t, he got a warrant, which functions exactly like a cheque, and I’m sure the people who deal with them all the time call them cheques, but that’s not what’s printed on them.
Milhouse (b95258) — 6/24/2014 @ 1:57 pmAbsolute, noncontextually dependent, flat ou, eternal truth: If Biden says it, it’s a lie.
David (d8f992) — 6/29/2014 @ 6:05 pm