Requiem for a Campaign. R.I. P. Hillary for President 2008
I know I've touched on this theme several times but very few things surprise me anymore. I'm almost 35 years old and even if I haven't seen it all, I've seen quite a bit.
Earlier this year, the Giants won the Super Bowl. I never thought that would happen. I also thought that would be the biggest upset I would see all year. It's not.
Hillary Clinton not being the Democratic nominee for President in 2008 is the biggest upset of the year. By far. And regardless of what happens in November, I'd have to say this has to go down as one of the biggest upsets in political history.
Hillary Clinton's campaign for most of 2006 and all of 2007 practically printed its own money. She had been planning this at least as far back as the end of her husband's administration and probably much longer than that. She had the benefit of drawing upon an experienced team of poltical consultants. James Carville is probably the most brilliant campaign manager in my lifetime (Karl Rove couldn't hold a candle to Carville) and he was one of Hillary's consultants. All the signs were pointing towards a Hillary Clinton nomination followed by a 2nd Clinton administration. The fact that it didn't come to pass is nothing short of astounding. And yes, the press did turn on her. Big time. Alot of it was her own fault, some of it wasn't.
I've said that she didn't expect a nomination, she expected a coronation. But some of that expectation was due to the fact that the press was on her side at the beginning. But after Obama beat her in Iowa, the tide turned. Even after she won New Hampshire, there was still a buzz for Obama. And when Obama won more delegates on Super Tuesday, (despite Hillary winning the bigger states) it was as Ray called it "Barack and roll."
I was as surprised as anyone that the press turned on her as much as they did. I thought back to something Weekly Mail co-editor Karl (The Ace) Ludwig said to myself and Weekly Mail Legal Counsel Mary McGarvey-DePuy. "You know, people say that don't like Hillary, but they don't know why." Of course I started listing my reasons why only to have them shot down by Ace and Mary. He said that just proved his point. At the time I thought he was wrong.
But he wasn't. He was right. But there something else. There are people who LOVE Hillary Clinton and have no idea why they do. Richard Cohen, the brilliant liberal columnist for the Washington Post, once said that he asked some people why they supported the war in Iraq and they responded "because Saddam Hussein attacked the World Trade Center." His point of course was how naive people were.
It's the same thing with Hillary. Many people said they voted for her because she voted against the Iraq War (She voted for it) and that she supported immediate troop withdrawal (she doesn't). But you hear some of her speeches and you might get that feeling. It wasn't even that she flipped-flopped (ala John Kerry and Mitt Romney) it's that she tried to maintain two positions depending on her audience. I'd like to say that the press finally picked up on this, but I think in their case, it was just Clinton fatigue.
Whatever it was, I'm just glad she's out. Had she won, and heaven forbid won twice, we would have had 28 years of Bushes and Clintons in the White House. Didn't we fight the British to avoid all that?
Earlier this year, the Giants won the Super Bowl. I never thought that would happen. I also thought that would be the biggest upset I would see all year. It's not.
Hillary Clinton not being the Democratic nominee for President in 2008 is the biggest upset of the year. By far. And regardless of what happens in November, I'd have to say this has to go down as one of the biggest upsets in political history.
Hillary Clinton's campaign for most of 2006 and all of 2007 practically printed its own money. She had been planning this at least as far back as the end of her husband's administration and probably much longer than that. She had the benefit of drawing upon an experienced team of poltical consultants. James Carville is probably the most brilliant campaign manager in my lifetime (Karl Rove couldn't hold a candle to Carville) and he was one of Hillary's consultants. All the signs were pointing towards a Hillary Clinton nomination followed by a 2nd Clinton administration. The fact that it didn't come to pass is nothing short of astounding. And yes, the press did turn on her. Big time. Alot of it was her own fault, some of it wasn't.
I've said that she didn't expect a nomination, she expected a coronation. But some of that expectation was due to the fact that the press was on her side at the beginning. But after Obama beat her in Iowa, the tide turned. Even after she won New Hampshire, there was still a buzz for Obama. And when Obama won more delegates on Super Tuesday, (despite Hillary winning the bigger states) it was as Ray called it "Barack and roll."
I was as surprised as anyone that the press turned on her as much as they did. I thought back to something Weekly Mail co-editor Karl (The Ace) Ludwig said to myself and Weekly Mail Legal Counsel Mary McGarvey-DePuy. "You know, people say that don't like Hillary, but they don't know why." Of course I started listing my reasons why only to have them shot down by Ace and Mary. He said that just proved his point. At the time I thought he was wrong.
But he wasn't. He was right. But there something else. There are people who LOVE Hillary Clinton and have no idea why they do. Richard Cohen, the brilliant liberal columnist for the Washington Post, once said that he asked some people why they supported the war in Iraq and they responded "because Saddam Hussein attacked the World Trade Center." His point of course was how naive people were.
It's the same thing with Hillary. Many people said they voted for her because she voted against the Iraq War (She voted for it) and that she supported immediate troop withdrawal (she doesn't). But you hear some of her speeches and you might get that feeling. It wasn't even that she flipped-flopped (ala John Kerry and Mitt Romney) it's that she tried to maintain two positions depending on her audience. I'd like to say that the press finally picked up on this, but I think in their case, it was just Clinton fatigue.
Whatever it was, I'm just glad she's out. Had she won, and heaven forbid won twice, we would have had 28 years of Bushes and Clintons in the White House. Didn't we fight the British to avoid all that?
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