Hillary Clinton is long on experience, short on trust

It is ironic that in an era when public trust in government is at historic lows, the Democratic Party has nominated a candidate whom many Americans see as not forthright, transparent or honest.

Despite her best efforts to run a campaign built on high-minded policy proposals, Hillary Clinton has been plagued by scandals — both real and imagined — leading to the inescapable fact that people just don’t trust her.

For that, she has mostly herself to blame, and only she can turn the ship around.

Clinton has been a fixture of the federal government for more than two decades.

As first lady of the United States, a senator from New York and secretary of state, she has amassed a vast amount of knowledge and experience in domestic and foreign policy, head and shoulders above her opponent in that regard.

During that time, she has also exhibited a shocking amount of poor professional judgment and hubris.

Some of her decisions as secretary of state, in particular, call into question not only her judgment but her character.

Clinton has been widely praised for her service at the State Department, where she helped shape policy in the Middle East and Asia.

But her use of a private email server during her tenure without the approval of department management has cast a pall on Clinton’s service, and deservedly so.

It’s true the Federal Bureau of Investigation cleared Clinton of any criminal wrongdoing in her use of the server. Still, Director James Comey did not mince words when he called Clinton’s handling of classified information on an nonsecure server “extremely careless” and “the definition … of negligence,” and chastised her as someone who “should have known” better.

In a peculiar development, the FBI recently released notes from interviews with Clinton and her colleagues that indicate that a significant number of personal emails were permanently deleted shortly after The New York Times published an article about her use of the unapproved private server.

Yet it’s her relentless insistence that she has been completely “truthful” with the American people that is so maddening. Even Politifact rated this claim as “pants on fire.”

Clinton also has questions to answer about her family’s foundation.

An analysis of State Department records by The Associated Press found that “more than half the people outside the government who met or spoke by telephone with Clinton during her tenure as a Cabinet secretary had given money — either personally or through companies or groups — to the Clinton Foundation.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean Clinton was engaged in quid pro quo, but it does give the strong impression that the people she was meeting with believed she was. And it further feeds the perception that Clinton plays above the rules and the law.

As a candidate with her experience, financial backing and campaign organization, Clinton is well-positioned to win the election.

But in winning the public trust, she has her work cut out for her.

She must start by being more straightforward and honest with voters between now and Nov. 8.

This story was originally published September 9, 2016 at 6:16 PM with the headline "Hillary Clinton is long on experience, short on trust."