In the context of officially lengthening the Presidential campaign news, commentary and propaganda cycle by a year, it will probably make MSNBC, Fox News and Meet the Press a lot less enlightening to watch (and talk radio a lot more unpleasant to hear); it will make her and all the other Prez candidates less effective legislators because they're now accountable to more people than just their state and/or Party, and they're making semi-permanent gov't policy with only a one-and-a-half year timeframe in mind. Also, the fact that most of the major candidates who have announced early are all Democrats might be a good talking point for conservatives to use against them ("hungry for power," "scared to lose", "they just won Congress and they're more concerned about winning White House than about running the country"). But if the Republicans can elect a draft-dodging recovering alcoholic failed businessman (as opposed to a draft-dodging adulterer) just because he an evangelist and a Bush, then Democrats should feel no guilt about getting 50% of population (women and mothers) their first President in 220 years who's also a Clinton. If the Limeys and Krauts (and pretty soon the Frogs) can elect a female leader, we should be able to also.
You could say that about every President since after Eisenhower; family connections and freak incidents are the life blood of Presidential elections/appointments: from Joe Kennedy's fortune to Sirhan Sirhan's clear shot to pissed off Iranian students to Ross Perot to Monica Lewinsky.
Agreed. Edwards is the best Democratic candidate. Hillary is the worst. I'm undecided on Obama until he goes through the fire for a while. If Obama can answer the question: "Where's the beef?" he may be their best candidate.
Who the hell would vote for her? Would she even get 5% of any southern state? Elizabeth Dole would probably win against her. Heck, I would win against her in a general election and I'm just a random idiot. McCain or Giuliani would make the final tally real ugly.
She doesn't need to win in Alabama or Georgia. She needs to win every state Gore won and either Ohio or Colorado. Or every state Kerry won plus Ohio. It's possible...but still a long way to go.
Man, how the landscape has changed recently... Hillary used to be the one with the highest negatives... now it's W and Cheney fighting for that honor and nobody else, including Hillary, is even in the ballpark... so, it's not just about Hillary anymore (as much as Rush will try to make it so)... a big part of it (as seen in the last election) is going to be W and Iraq and I don't see either one of those improving greatly before the primaries start and I'd be surprised if it gets any better by the election. The primary reason to vote for Hillary (from my perspective) is that she knows the Executive Branch, she knows policy, she understands the pressures and decisions demanded of the office, and of all the candidates currently in, she'll be the best Chief Executive. The next President absolutely has the skills to clean up the mess that the government has become under the current administration. Now, whether she'll be the best campaigner, best debater, best leader, etc. remains to be seen. She has a lot going for her though, and any of the major Dem candidates will be infinitely better than what we have now or what we could get with the Republican nominees. By the way, I saw on Media Matters that the right (through the Washington Times Insight rag) is claiming that the Obama Muslim rumors are all coming from Hillary's camp. This is setting up as a bonanza for the Repub Dark Arts types... they can spread any unAmerican racist/sexist crap they want about a woman, a black, or a Hispanic and claim that one of the others started it. It's going to be even more brutal than the last Prez election.
I have a Republican friend that drools at the thought of Hillary vs. Obama. He also blames all of the anti-Obama stuff spewing out on Hillary. If either Hillary or Obama get the Dem nomination, we will have the ugliest sewage-fest of a presidential election in history, by far. It will make what the Republicans did to Kerry seem like a pillow fight.
That would be working under the assumption that she is popular in those blue states that Kerry won. I doubt she could win NY against Giuliani. All those swing states like Ohio, PA, Fla would not go for her if better candidates like Kerry and Gore couldn't carry them all before.
It's a different world from 2004 and very much different from 2000. No way NY goes Republican. In 2006... Clinton won 67-31 Spitzer won 69-29 Of the 25 House contests (4 Dems were unopposed)... 16 Dems got higher than 60% 11 got higher than 75% 1 Repub cracked 60% The other Repub winners got: 52,52,51,56, and 57 (that's 6 Rs out of 29 seats)
I don't know. Obama is candid, articulate and charismatic. His unorthodox approach will be his ticket or his downfall. Personally, I find it refreshing. I would hope that the voters will see past his color and name and listen to what he has to say. He has 2 years to win over the moderates and I would not underestimate the power of moderates in the coming election. His voting against the war in Iraq will gain him a lot of support over Hillary or any eventual Republican candidate. I think he has a strong chance to be the next president as he brings a novel and sincere attitude. People want a change and Hillary only propels the current party bickering, and we'll see more of that from Hillary through the primaries. How Obama reacts will be instrumental. IMO, Hillary's saving grace is Bill's presence. I typically vote as an independent but I will register as a democrat just to have a say in these primaries.
Is Affirmative Action an important or increasingly important issue in 2008? Will Obama have to answer to questions about appointing Supreme Court Justices who are in favor of or against AA? Will his own University applications and admissions be reviewed for any racial preferences? I think he'll be a decent running mate if he or Hillary doesn't win the nomination. (I don't think I'd want both on the ticket, unfortunatey, as Eleanor Clift said on McLaughlin a while back that might be "too much history making for one election," especially in Dixie.) All in all I'm pretty comfortable with the three major Democratic nominees and looking forward to the conversations they'll end up having during debates and interviews, electable or not. I'm morally opposed to standing in long lines after work; but I just might have to in order to cast a vote for any of these three.
Seems Hillary will do whatever it takes to win. http://www.insightmag.com/Media/MediaManager/Obama_2.htm Hillary's team has questions about Obama's Muslim background Are the American people ready for an elected president who was educated in a Madrassa as a young boy and has not been forthcoming about his Muslim heritage? This is the question Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s camp is asking about Sen. Barack Obama. An investigation of Mr. Obama by political opponents within the Democratic Party has discovered that Mr. Obama was raised as a Muslim by his stepfather in Indonesia. Sources close to the background check, which has not yet been released, said Mr. Obama, 45, spent at least four years in a so-called Madrassa, or Muslim seminary, in Indonesia. "He was a Muslim, but he concealed it," the source said. "His opponents within the Democrats hope this will become a major issue in the campaign." When contacted by Insight, Mr. Obama’s press secretary said he would consult with “his boss” and call back. He did not. Sources said the background check, conducted by researchers connected to Senator Clinton, disclosed details of Mr. Obama's Muslim past. The sources said the Clinton camp concluded the Illinois Democrat concealed his prior Muslim faith and education. "The background investigation will provide major ammunition to his opponents," the source said. "The idea is to show Obama as deceptive." In two best-selling autobiographies—"The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream" and "Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance"—Mr. Obama, born in Honolulu where his parents met, mentions but does not expand on his Muslim background, alluding only to his attendance at a "predominantly Muslim school." The sources said the young Obama was given the name Hussein by his Muslim father, which the Illinois Democrat rarely uses in public. His father was black and came from Kenya. Mr. Obama’s mother, the daughter of a farmer, came from Wichita, Kansas. Mr. Obama's parents divorced when he was two years old. His father returned to Kenya. Later, Mr. Obama's mother married an Indonesian student and the family moved to Jakarta. Mr. Obama returned to Hawaii when he was 10 to live with his maternal grandparents. The sources said the background check concerned Mr. Obama's years in Jakarta. In Indonesia, the young Obama was enrolled in a Madrassa and was raised and educated as a Muslim. Although Indonesia is regarded as a moderate Muslim state, the U.S. intelligence community has determined that today most of these schools are financed by the Saudi Arabian government and they teach a Wahhabi doctrine that denies the rights of non-Muslims. Although the background check has not confirmed that the specific Madrassa Mr. Obama attended was espousing Wahhabism, the sources said his Democratic opponents believe this to be the case—and are seeking to prove it. The sources said the opponents are searching for evidence that Mr. Obama is still a Muslim or has ties to Islam. Mr. Obama attends services at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago’s South Side. However, he is not known to be a regular parishioner. "Obama's education began a life-long relationship with Islam as a faith and Muslims as a community," the source said. "This has been a relationship that contains numerous question marks." The sources said Mr. Obama spent at least four years in a Muslim school in Indonesia. They said when Mr. Obama was 10, his mother and her second husband separated. She and her son returned to Hawaii. "Then the official biography begins," the source said. "Obama never returned to Kenya to see relatives or family until it became politically expedient." In both of his autobiographies, Mr. Obama characterizes himself as a Christian—although he describes his upbringing as mostly secular. In “The Audacity of Hope,” Mr. Obama says, "I was not raised in a religious household." He describes his mother as secular, but says she had copies of the Bible, the Koran and the Bhagavad Gita in their home. Mr. Obama says his father was "raised a Muslim, but by the time he met my mother he was a confirmed atheist...." Mr. Obama also describes his father as largely absent from his life. He says his Indonesian stepfather was "skeptical" about religion and "saw religion as not particularly useful in the practical business of making one's way in the world ...." In the book, Mr. Obama briefly addresses his education in Indonesia. "During the five years that we would live with my stepfather in Indonesia, I was sent first to a neighborhood Catholic school and then to a predominantly Muslim school; in both cases, my mother was less concerned with me learning the catechism or puzzling out the meaning of the muezzin's call to evening prayer than she was with whether I was properly learning my multiplication tables." Mr. Obama graduated from Columbia University and Harvard Law School; he became the first black editor of the Harvard Law Review. He later settled in Chicago, joined a law firm and began attending and helping local churches. Mr. Obama is married to Michelle Robinson and they have two daughters, Malia and Sasha. In 1996, he was elected to the Illinois state Senate. Eight years later, he became a U.S. senator from Illinois. The sources said Ms. Clinton regards Mr. Obama as her most formidable opponent and the biggest obstacle to the Democratic Party’s 2008 presidential nomination. They said Ms. Clinton has been angered by Mr. Obama's efforts to tap her supporters for donations. In late 2006, when the Illinois senator demonstrated his intention to run for president, the Clinton campaign ordered a background check on Mr. Obama, the sources said. Earlier this week, Mr. Obama established an exploratory committee, the first step toward a formal race.
