In less than a week, Sen. Hillary Clinton has morphed, in her own mind and in her campaign’s propaganda, from running as the virtual incumbent Sen. Experience to Sen. Change. Immediately after her losing the Iowa vote, Bill Clinton called the senator a “Change Agent.” He quickly amended it to “an agent for positive change.”
In the ABC New Hampshire Debate, Sen. Ratched went off on a rant where she uttered the word “change” ten times in one minute, never once noting any real change she’s ever brought about. Though, she did steal credit for others’ health care efforts–a paltry effort at that, in which she claims to have brought minimal health care to just 9700 New Hampshire residents. At the same time, she stuck to the script that she has “thirty-five years of experience”–a canard Iowans had little trouble rejecting; with New Hampshire residents weighing in Tuesday.
A day before, Sen. Inevitable slammed rival Sen. Barack Obama on Abortion. (Now there’s a change for you: a Democrat in trouble playing the abortion card!) A Clinton mailing sent to New Hampshire voters accuses Obama of failing to take a position on abortion bills seven times while in the Illinois Legislature. The missive claimed that Clinton has a record of fighting “far-right Republicans” to defend abortion rights, while Obama has been “unwilling to take a stand on choice.” Yet, during his eight years in the Illinois legislature, Obama garnered a 100% rating from the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council.
On Saturday, the New York Times published a 1300-word essay on “Comeback Kid: The Sequel,” noting that “One longtime adviser complained that the campaign’s senior strategist, Mark Penn, realized too late that ‘change’ was a much more powerful message than ‘experience.’ ” Hence, the stilted NH debate performance.
Yet as in all its efforts to prop up the homegirl, the NYT fails completely (again) to note the main cause of Hillary’s demise. Hint: Oct. 2002. Yep. That’s 1300 words and not a one of them “Iraq.”
Equally inept at reading the entrails of Iowa is that other “paper of record,” The Washington Post. The Post has East Coast GOP Aristocracy mouthpiece George Will lamenting the rise of the “faux populist,” Iowa winner Mike Huckabee – and for bipartisanship-in-passing, the other one: John Edward; accusing both candidates of “histrionic humility.” Notably, the GOP establishment is upset not with Huckabee’s more hateful, anti-gay, anti-choice, “who’s the true Christian?” meanness; but with his actual Sermon on the Mount Christian concern for the poor, immigrants and prisoners! WWJD, indeed? Will, with his usual histrionic pomposity, boils down the GOP primary contest to righteous “Madisonians” vs. those who want “take back this nation for Christ.” Aw, after pandering to the Religious Right for years, the GOP establishment is blessedly, in terms they all oughta understand, reaping what they sowed.
The Most Gifted Boomer
But the winner of the false analysis sweepstakes has to be Bubba who is sticking to the same nonsense he told NBC a few weeks ago, “When I met her more than 35 years ago, I thought Hillary had the best combination of mind and heart I’d ever seen — and I still do. But it’s going to take every dollar to make sure that Americans get to know the real Hillary, like I do.”
The fawning hubby also told the press that upon meeting his future wife, “I thought she was the most gifted person of our generation.”
Well, Bill. It appears that Americans (at least Iowans) do know the “real Hillary” and have voted based on that knowledge.
But, the bottom line that Hillary backers themselves need to know is this: the “most gifted” (or “smartest woman on earth,” blah,blah, blah,…) has been finally held accountable for her Iraq War votes. Period.
There is no way that one can claim such intellectual accolades while at the same time excusing one’s perfidy with an “if I knew then what I know now” ignorance dodge when tens of millions of us not-so-gifted Americans saw through the Imperial lies from the beginning – without benefit of a Senator’s Briefings. And, how can it possibly excuse her continued war votes?
All that said, I wouldn’t count Sen. Experience/Change out. Not only does she have the support of the media and military elites and Rupert Murdoch’s fund-raising, she has the Clinton attack machine–perhaps the sole “experience” card that matters. On top of that, an independent, anti-war run by Rep. Ron Paul–come on, the whole phenomenon demands it–will be the thing that really puts a Democrat in the White House – déjà vu the prophet Ross “giant sucking sound” Perot. We may very well see another Clinton enter the White House without a majority vote!
Get prepared for a massive attack on Obama. Not just the hoary Clintonian tactic of appropriating their opponent’s strengths while misappropriating their own weaknesses onto the opponent, as well. Not silly efforts like hiring P.I.’s to track down and quiz Obama’s Kindergarten teacher. Not ineffectual attacks on past drug use (at least Obama knew the whole point was to inhale!). And certainly not non-starters like lying about Obama’s pro-choice record.
No, we’ll be seeing much worse. First we’ll probably see an alliance of convenience with John Edwards used as surrogate to go after Obama (with a v-p slot on the ticket as proffered payment). And, right now, Clinton Deputy Campaign Manager, Bob Nash, the guy who wielded the pink slips for the Hillary-led sacking of the White House Travel Office personnel, will undoubtedly be mining the responses to dirt-digging e-mails such as this one he sent out a month ago (don’t they have spell-check and lower case type at Inevitability HQ?):
From: Bob Nash
To: ****
Sent: Sun Dec 09Subject: BARACK
HOW ARE YOU ?? I AM FIGHTING HARD >
SECOND ARE YOU PEERSONALLYAWARE OF TH EWORK BARACK DID ON THE SOUTH
SIDE WITH COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION S , ETC ./.BOBWHAT DI DHE DO AFORE HOW LONG AND WITH WHO ??
PLS TELL BOB HELLO BOB
Bob J Nash
Deputy Campaign Manager
Hillary Clinton for President Exploratory Committee
4420 N. Fairfax Drive
Arlington, VA 22203
What about Obama?
Now Obama, though the beneficiary of the anti-war vote now tied to Hillary like the proverbial millstone, is himself suspect as to real anti-war credentials. He wasn’t in the Senate, so we’ll never know if he would have followed Hillary’s crass, ambitious lead in keeping her options open. But during the same NH debate, he reiterated his stance that he would attack Pakistan if he had “actionable Intelligence” that Osama bin Laden was hiding in the Pakistan mountains. Amazingly, this position garnered unanimous support from the top Democrats at the debate, despite their also unanimous claim that faulty or fraudulent Intelligence was used to get us into Iraq–a useful claim now to absolve them from their pro-war votes.
Obama also has a slew of odious Foreign Policy advisors, claiming he has 47 such advisors who hail from the Clinton Administration alone (Hillary immediately countered with her own list of 83). Obama’s group of neo-lib, Imperial factotums includes Zbigniew Brzezinski, Susan Rice and Tony Lake.
Obama’s playing the generation card used to annoy me; not least of all because he, himself, is a Baby Boomer. But, I’m with all those young Iowans who voted for Barack over Hillary 60%–17%. This Boomer is embarrassed and angry that my g-g-g-generation has produced the likes of so many misleaders as the Clintons, Bush, Cheney, Rice, Gingrich, Feinstein, Pelosi, Powell, ad nauseam and the odious henchmen they rode in on – Carville and Rove. The entire culture has been infected by ambitious, ruthless, humorless misleadership after a couple decades of Boomers in the White House, including most groups that should be a bulwark of opposition to Imperial depredations. Have you seen the grant-portfolio-first management of most non-profits these days?
Fasten Up! We’re in for a Wild Ride.
A couple of those misled non-profits – the collective Peace Movement and the Green Party sacrificed themselves on the mindless altar of ABB four years ago. But, Iowa Democrats and the rest of the 70+% of Americans who oppose the Imperial wars have spoken. Independent voters gave the Democrats a chance two years ago to end the wars, defend the Constitution and impeach the perps. They failed completely. Indeed, they voted for Bush’s escalation, for a torture apologist for Attorney General and took “impeachment off the table!” Torture alone will be the definitive stain my generation takes with us as we pass through history – from Woodstock to Waterboard Nation.
The wheels on the Inevitability Bus are falling off on all sides. Both wings of the corporate pro-war party have a lot to answer for and Iowans served notice that the people are on to them. The Iowa results have sent more than just HRC, the Democratic Leadership Council and the Republican elite reeling. The entire Imperial complex has taken note. It’s gonna be one wild, rough, dirty ride from here on out.
MICHAEL DONNELLY notes that an America that is seriously considering a Black man for president is also considering a woman – “most gifted”of her generation, or not. That monumental “change” is irrefutable. He can be reached at pahtoo@aol.com
