Goodbye Hillary, Hello Obama
Posted on June 12, 2008 - Filed Under U.S. Elections
Hillary is the only First Lady ever to run for president. And we have her to thank—as well as Obama—for the renewed energy American voters have for politics.
We also have Hillary to thank for putting issues of gender and power back into American politics.
As an intelligent and formidable opponent to Obama, Hillary brought the debate to a higher level.
I’ve enjoyed every minute of the debates between Obama and Hillary—all the mud slinging aside.
But why didn’t the most qualified person for the job become our Democratic nominee? Sexism alone can’t explain it all.
Did She Just Say That?
Strategic blunders and hurtful, sometimes stupid remarks—did she have to invoke Bobby Kennedy’s assassination?—did nothing to make her likeable to voters.
And the misspeak about her helicopter landing in “sniper fire” in Bosnia? And why did Bill liken Obama to Jesse Jackson? In the last eighteen months, the Clinton campaign sometimes felt like nails on a chalkboard, even for the staunchest of Hillary supporters. Make them stop!
Bush Clinton Bush Clinton
History has not been on her side either. When Nixon resigned from office (Bush II’s popularity is not much better than Nixon’s right now), the country wanted change. When Bush leaves office, the country will again want a sense of change.
The proposition of Bush Clinton Bush Clinton is not something many Democratic voters can stomach. Hillary was fairly or unfairly dubbed part of the “Clinton machine”—which brought little comfort to Democratic voters, despite how similar her policies were to Obama’s.
The Power of the Web
Hillary failed to gather the viral power of the Internet like Obama did, and as a result, lost with a lot of younger, more Web-saavy voters. (Her frequent request at the end of speeches to log on to her Web site: “Go to www …” sounded hollow and might not have resonated with younger voters. It’s a minuscule point, but no one under the age of thirty-five says “www” aloud anymore.)
Media Bias
The media’s obvious dislike of her had a snowball effect, too. The bias against Hillary got bigger and bigger as the months wore on. A Gallup poll suggests that many voters felt the media was harder on Hillary than Barack or John. In the last two months, the media kept telling her it’s time to quit and resented her defiance. (If the tables were turned, I doubt the media would have pressured Obama to quit.)
The nation’s major newspapers, blogs, and mainstream television networks have little love for Hillary. Some voters bristle at a powerful woman, too—if you’re too soft, you’re considered weak and if you’re too hard or aggressive, you’re considered a bitch. Powerful women are always walking a tightrope, no matter how qualified and deserving of the job.
Moving On
But it’s time to move on. As Obama becomes the Democratic nominee, pundits are talking furiously about where Hillary’s eighteen million supporters will go as if we voters are disinterested little children who will wait and be told which line to get into. The pundits will tell us that feminists are angry that she did not win and that we women will then vote against Obama. Ouch!
Perhaps there is a small minority of Democratic women who are disinterested in the issues and will vote for McCain instead, but the majority of Hillary supporters are apt to vote for Obama now.
I can’t imagine that anyone seriously interested in Hillary would suddenly rally around an anti-choice Republican who does not seem concerned about the forty-seven million uninsured Americans or the rising numbers of American soldiers who are committing suicide.
The assumption that even a sizable segment of Hillary supporters are pissed off and will vote against Obama—or worse, will need the security of McCain in an age of terrorism—is patronizing at best, misguided at worst. We Hillary supporters are not so mercurial.
Hillary’s female supporters are practical. And although many of us—myself included—were invested in seeing the first qualified woman run this country, we’re not so stubborn to leave the Democratic party in the dust, are we? Barack Obama’s platform is very similar to Hillary Clinton’s. We’re excited about Obama—but more important, we’re hopeful of our nation’s future, too.
Source: divinecaroline.com
Democratic primary winners & losers
Posted on June 12, 2008 - Filed Under U.S. Elections
By virtue of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s suspension of her campaign, Barack Obama is now poised to become the undisputed winner of the Democratic presidential nomination.
But he’s not the only victor to have emerged after the grueling, six-month primary season. Members of Congress and governors who took high-profile roles in the campaign are also drawing widespread recognition as winners — and they stand to reap the political dividends of backing the right candidate.
For some, it might mean a choice post in a prospective Obama administration. For others, betting on the right horse will translate into increased clout within the party or a virtual guarantee their calls will be promptly returned from an Obama White House.
A few, namely those who took to the television airwaves as surrogates, will benefit from the burnished name recognition back home and in Washington. Read more
GOP Congressional Group Says It Won’t Back McCain
Posted on June 11, 2008 - Filed Under Political News
At least 14 Republican members of Congress have refused to endorse or publicly support Sen. John McCain for president, and more than a dozen others declined to answer whether they back the Arizona senator.
Many of the recalcitrant GOP members declined to detail their reasons for withholding support, but Rep. John Peterson (R-Pa.) expressed major concerns about McCain’s energy policies and Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) cited the Iraq war.
A handful of other Republicans on Capitol Hill made the distinction between “endorsing” and “supporting,” adding that while they have not endorsed, they do support McCain.
In recent weeks, much of the discussion and debate about party unity has been on the Democrats’ side, amid their protracted presidential primary. Yet achieving harmony is a concern on both sides of the aisle this year. Read more
Election 2008: Bush vs. Carter?
Posted on June 11, 2008 - Filed Under Political News
Republican John McCain responded to charges from Democratic presidential rival Barack Obama that he represents a continuation of the unpopular Bush administration by comparing Obama to former president Jimmy Carter.
“Senator Obama says that I’m running for a Bush’s third term,” McCain said. “Seems to me he’s running for Jimmy Carter’s second.” (MSNBC)
McCain has a few “good reasons to tie Obama to Carter,” said Jonathan Martin in Politico. First, he has few other “convenient and resonant Democratic bogeyman”—Ted Kennedy and he are friends, and he’s courting Hillary Clinton’s “disaffected supporters.”
And Carter is “recalled by conservatives (and others)” in connection to “high gas prices, weak national security, and a perception of favoring Arabs over Israelis.”
McCain’s Carter retort is “pretty cute,” said Alex Koppelman in Salon’s War Room blog, but the problem is that there are lots of voters “who might not get the joke as fully as McCain would like.” Read more
Bush says diplomacy is 1st choice in Iran standoff
Posted on June 11, 2008 - Filed Under Political News
President Bush, in a fresh warning to Tehran, said Wednesday he favors a peaceful resolution to the nuclear standoff with Iran but has not ruled out the possible use of military force.
Bush spoke at a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, but his words were aimed at Iran. Bush warned Iran against dragging out the dispute to run the clock out on his presidency.
“My first choice is to solve this diplomatically,” said Bush, who is rallying European allies to back tougher sanctions against Iran. But he also said: “All options are on the table,” a phrase he has repeatedly used in reference to a possible military strike against Iran, even as a last resort.
Iran, which says it is enriching uranium for peaceful purposes, had a message for Bush on Wednesday too.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Bush’s presidency was over and the president has failed in his goals to attack Iran and stop its nuclear program. Addressing thousands of people in central Iran, Ahmadinejad described Bush as “wicked,” and said that Bush was targeting Iran after dispatching the U.S. military into Iraq and Afghanistan. Read more
Obama Tries Stand-up Comedy
Posted on May 8, 2008 - Filed Under U.S. Elections, Video
Feeling confident with his current momentum in the campaign, Senator Obama takes the mic and tells some jokes about the Clintons.
Obama Exclusive: On My Faith And My Church
Posted on March 14, 2008 - Filed Under America, Political News, U.S. Elections
The pastor of my church, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who recently preached his last sermon and is in the process of retiring, has touched off a firestorm over the last few days. He’s drawn attention as the result of some inflammatory and appalling remarks he made about our country, our politics, and my political opponents.
Let me say at the outset that I vehemently disagree and strongly condemn the statements that have been the subject of this controversy. I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies. I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it’s on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Rev. Wright that are at issue.
Because these particular statements by Rev. Wright are so contrary to my own life and beliefs, a number of people have legitimately raised questions about the nature of my relationship with Rev. Wright and my membership in the church. Let me therefore provide some context. Read more
It’s Official - Raul Castro becomes Cuba’s leader
Posted on February 24, 2008 - Filed Under Political News
Nearly 50 years of rule by Fidel Castro ended in Cuba on Sunday as parliament chose his brother Raul to replace him — a transition that leaves the island’s communist system unshaken.
The new president proposed consulting with the ailing 81-year-old Fidel on all major decisions of state, and parliament approved the proposal.
The vote came five days after Fidel said he was retiring, capping a career in which he frustrated efforts by 10 U.S. presidents to oust him.
The transition was not likely to bring a major shift in policies of the communist government that have put it at odds with the United States. But many Cubans were hoping it would open the door to modest economic reforms and improvement in their daily lives Read more
George W. Bush Is President Of Africa
Posted on February 22, 2008 - Filed Under General, Political News
George W. Bush has been having so much fun in Africa that he took up the Africans’ offer that he remain forever, as their President King.
Here’s the former U.S. chief executive at his new “executive mansion in Monrovia, Liberia.” Join us for an AP Photo Tour of Bush’s crazy African vacation. Read more
Election count begins in Pakistan
Posted on February 18, 2008 - Filed Under International, Political News
Ballot counting has begun in Pakistan after a key election which it is hoped will help end the country’s crisis.
The parliamentary poll was delayed after the killing of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, and is intended to complete a transition to civilian rule.
Polling stations officially closed at 1700 (1200 GMT), and initial results are expected within hours.
BBC correspondents reported many irregularities in voting, and some incidents of violence.
However, there were none of the major bomb attacks which overshadowed the run-up to the elections. Read more
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