Hillary Clinton

This year has been one most interesting election years in my years of voting. The primaries with divervse views represented by Dennis Kucinich, Joe Biden, John Edwards, Mike Huckabee, and Ron Paul. The contest for the nomination between Hillary and Obama. The resurrection of McCain in the Republican race. The emergence of Sarah Palin. This election season has gone through so many twists and turns. I’m excited by these elections because the Obama, Clinton, and even Palin candidacies are breaking down barriers of racism and sexism. These candidates have faced their share of racism and sexism to break down these barriers and these reactions show how far America has to go to be rid of these vices.

I voted for Hillary during the California primaries, but I have to admit that I didn’t have the same fervor that some of my friends had for Clinton. My mom, sister in law, and several close friends were Hillary enthusiasts and they were deeply angry at the way Hillary was treated during the primaries. I’ve always wondered, “How was she treated that would cause such anger among these women?” An article in the September 13th edition of the Economist titled “The Triumph of Feminism” wrote:

As the Democratic primaries roll on and the fight for the nomination between Hillary and Barack becomes more strident, many people are rightfully worried about how the negative turn in the primaries may affect the eventual Democratic chances for winning the White House this coming Fall. I share some of that worry, but I also feel that the primaries are an important time to test the qualities of both Hillary and Obama to know if they have the political savvy to counter political attacks and push their message through to the American people. Other worthy Presidential candidates over the past 30 years have floundered because they did not have the political savvy to overcome sudden political crisis and controversies that drowned out their messages, intelligent and otherwise capable candidates like Gary Hart, Michael Dukakis, John Kerry, Al Gore, Jesse Jackson, and Joe Biden.

The negative campaigning of these recent weeks has cast a pall somewhat on both Obama and Hillary, but I personally think they're both good candidates, and think either would be better President than McCain, whom I respect but I disagree with on many issues. As the primaries have progressed these past couple of weeks, it seems like Obama and Hillary have opposite weaknesses.

Yet Again, Keith gets its right!!!

As my choice for the best Democratic candidate for President was Joe Biden, I can’t be as passionate as others are in the battle taking place right now between Clinton and Obama. Though I now support Hillary, I think both candidates are good and would be happy to have either one face off against McCain. So I’ve looked towards the oncoming Democratic convention. The convention is the time to show off the Democrats best face, and I think it would be a good opportunity to show how large a tent the Democrats have as compared to the Republicans. Here’s my own wish list of speakers.

Well, another set of losses for Hillary, another night of classless politicking. Yet again Hillary refused to congratulate the person that beat her fair and square or the good people from her pary that voted in the election.

I wish it stopped there. As we've seen throughout the campaign the attack dogs are out. Clinton surrogates are out tearing down Obama. As an introduction to Hillary Clinton last night, he barely said anything about Clinton.  Instead, he decided to spend his whole speech attacking Obama.  Listen to this history vitriole.

MSNBC VIDEO: Clinton supporter Tom Buffenbarger attacks Sen. Barack Obama during a campaign event in Youngstown, Ohio.

There's no way Hillary can distance herself from this talk as it was her introduction and therefore sanctioned.  Calling Obama a "thespian" and comparing him to the two raced Roman god Janus, and calling him a shadowboxer who doesn't show up for tough times falls so far outside the bound of civil discourse and represents what people hate about politics.   

He saves his worst for Obama's supporters: 

When I was in college I checked out from the library a book by Hedley Donovan, a renowned political reporter, entitled Roosevelt to Reagan. It was written in the 1980s, and it described his experiences with 9 Presidents. Based on that experience, Donovan made a list of 32 qualities that he looked for in a person that was running for the Oval Office. I photocopied that part of the book and kept it all these years, looking at it in every Presidential election since 1988, a useful guide to judging the candidates during the primaries. As a liberal Democrat, I’ve always gone for the Democratic candidate during the general elections, but I’ve learned about political leadership qualities that I admire even from Republican Presidents whom I strongly disagreed with. Like Donovan, I would like to reflect upon the qualities that make my favorite Presidents.

Written just after Reagan was reelected to a second term, Donovan gave this evaluation of the 9 Presidents that he presided over:

One of my favorites liberal columnists is Marie Cocco. She writes with none of pretentiousness of Frank Rich, the gender-obsessed anger neither of Maureen Dowd nor of the factual ineptness of Richard Cohen. Instead, she writes about liberalism doing what it’s supposed to do: improve people’s lives by helping them to become self-sufficient.

To that end, she has written a great piece that explains Hillary Clinton’s strengths. At the heart of it is what I’m beginning to define as a blue-collar liberalism, the liberalism of FDR and Harry Truman. It is a message of hope not found in lofty but unspecific rhetoric, but in plain, practical language.

In today’s column, she first asks a question that goes directly to the souls of liberalism and the Democratic Party:

Hillary and the War
By late 2003 I knew whom I wanted as the Democratic challenger to President Bush’s reelection bid. My choice was Senator Bob Graham of Florida.

Graham, a mainstream liberal, was a perfect fit for me. On numerous issues, such as economics, he followed the legacy of the New Deal. He believed in a strong military that would be used with great discretion. On medical research he was a champion, being one of the first Senators to embrace federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. But more importantly, he voted against the 2002 legislation authorizing President Bush to use force against Saddam Hussein. Then serving on the Senate’s Intelligence Committee he studied the National Intelligence Estimate on the potential Iraqi threat. He concluded none existed.

When Graham’s candidacy evaporated, I gravitated towards Wesley Clark, a man who had command and diplomatic experience in the military. Like Graham, he opposed the Iraq War from the outset. After Clark withdrew I wound up voting for John Edwards in the New York Primary and then had to settle for John Kerry.

Of Camelot and Issues of Inspiration and Experience

I have nothing but the greatest respect for Caroline Kennedy. Throughout her often painful life, President John F. Kennedy’s daughter has carried herself with a grace and dignity in a life that is often focuses on the better angels of public service.

As we are all aware, this past weekend she has chosen to endorse Senator Barack Obama for president. In recent op-ed endorsement entitled, “A President Like My Father,” she acknowledged that the Democratic frontrunners both have similar policy positions, but it was Senator Obama’s ability to inspire that made the difference. His style reminded her of her father’s urbane manner.

But as both the triumphs of FDR and the shortcomings of Jimmy Carter have proven, the ability to win elections with lofty words is not a guarantee of the ability to effectively govern;it requires the necessary companion of experience. With that said, I must respectfully disagree with her choice. Senator Obama’s oratory may be magnificent, but his experience simply does not approach that of Senator Clinton—nor of her father when he ascended to office. In fact, it is even difficult to discern that ability at this point in his career.

Yes, experience matters a great deal.