It seemed last night that the party would go on forever. So much has been made of the fact that Hillary was intending to take the fight all the way to the convention, if not the credential committee's meeting. People were pissed, especially when last night was supposed to be Obama's big night to declare victory and look towards the upcoming general. But she instead decided not to make any decisions, and the Democratic pundits on CNN were screaming for blood...except for James Carville, who spent the night trying to think of some reasonable justification for Clinton's remaining in the race. He was more quiet than I'd ever seen him.
But that appears to have changed today. Various news outlets have reported that Hillary Clinton will officially end her race on Friday and throw her support behind Obama. I'm assuming she's going to drop out, but a lot can happen in the next 36 hours. People tend to think about these things, and then they tend to change their minds. So let us hold our collective breaths, and pray for the sanity of Bill and Hillary.
But let's just assume for now that the good senator from the state of New York will throw in the towel. I would like to be the first (actually nowhere near the first) to say a few words about the dearly departed. I get the feeling that Hillary came to a realization several weeks ago. Her tone towards Obama had become pretty nasty, and there was discussion as to whether the two would ever stand a chance of reconciling. It was pretty obvious that Hillary was willing to burn down the entire town just to save it (in her mind). She would have lost anyways, and we would have had that deeply divided party that so many have been dreading over the past months.
But at some point, she decided to take the high road, and I couldn't have been happier. I have always respected Hillary Clinton. I don't really think she's a great person, and she's probably tied up in that evil machine that we all like to bitch about, but resignedly accept every four years, but she was one of the good ones. She's a progressive liberal who genuinely wants to do good for our country. But I also feel that she lost sight of that in her election. She became nasty when she realized she wouldn't be nominated, and like anyone with a sense of entitlement who doesn't get what she wants, Hillary got nasty.
It wasn't easy for her, because how do you attack the man of hope? But she tried anyways, and it didn't do anything for her. But that has changed, and there's now a good chance that we can come together as a party. I wouldn't have said so a week ago. That woman has some hard core fans, and they are unwavering in their support of Clinton. They talked about Obama as if he would be the death of the party, if not the republic. They protested when Hillary wasn't given Florida and Michigan on a platter. Those most outspoken of fans were the type to hang out outside of abortion clinics with signs more offensive to the eye than the actual killing of a child (different side of the ideological spectrum, of course). Every side has fans of such ilk. I know Obama's will come out of the woodwork, and in droves. But there was something openly hostile about Hillary's crazies. I don't know why, maybe we're at our nastiest when we're losing.
When we hear one side of the story, we get caught up in the fury. We only hear what we want, and we block out the rest. It's how genocides are started. But I digress.
Hillary turned it around, if not her fans. She started running a straight up campaign, and it didn't help her at all, but it was for the best of all of us. Anyone who has been following the race from its inception will not question her devotion, and one can't help but be impressed by her gumption. She fought hard, relentlessly, sometimes dirty. But that's politics baby and she played it as well as anyone. There just wasn't enough women. I'm finished now, and you're probably wondering why I even bothered with this entry. Well fuck you, I just felt I should say something. Why are you reading this anyways. You should have given up a few paragraphs ago. I'll try to do better next time. Goodnight.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
And The Beat Goes On...
On a night that has probably seen the victory of Barack Obama as the democratic nominee for the 2008 presidential election, things could not be murkier. Hillary has just given a speech in which she refuses to concede, and claims to be meeting with top officials, after which she will make a decision. This is bad news for Obama who is probably preparing right now to declare victory (this is another "live blog" if you haven't gathered already).
It's been an interesting week. The Democratic party's leadership met on Saturday to decide what to do about what's becoming a very sticky situation. They gave half of Michigan and Florida to Clinton, which apparently wasn't good enough for the Clinton supporters who picketed outside the meeting. The Sunday shows were flooded with disgruntled Clinton employees who were aghast and offended at the idea that the Democratic party would half-assedly enforce their punishment of two states who were repeatedly warned not to move their primaries forward.
Early this morning, it was reported that Hillary would not concede tonight, but would recognize the fact that Obama was going to win the nomination. It didn't take long for Terry McAuliffe to rebut this report, and by noon, the Associated Press projected to Obama win enough superdelegates on the day to win the nomination. CNN has done as much within the past hour (it's 7:00 pacific), and yet Hillary is fighting on. So, is this a joke, or is she really that admirable?
Clinton's speech was not at all inflammatory, and yet, people on CNN right now are offended at her not conceding. She claimed to be winning the popular vote, and thanked everyone and their mother for their help.
Obama is going to speak, but I would like to take a minute to discuss the nature of the Clinton supporter. Most polls taken over the past few months have shown more Clinton supporters to NOT be willing to vote for Obama than vice versa. They show up at this meeting, and reports of shoving, and vile language thrown towards party leaders flood the Sunday shows. These are passionate people. Are these the people who will lose the Democrats the election? It's just a thought. Obama is speaking...
Obama's speech was pretty much exactly what it should have been. He made no bones about declaring victory, making himself the nominee, but only after being over complementary of Clinton. But he didn't talk about his struggle with her, from his declaration of victory he spent the rest of the speech attacking John McCain, and it was more vicious than he ever was to Hillary. He painted McCain as being Bush's crony (surprise) and illustrated how McCain was out of touch with the average American. What remains to be seen is whether and how McCain is able to paint Obama as being out of touch with the average American. It was one of his most energetic speeches, though probably a couple of stanzas too long. Building up to his climax, the crowd suddenly got quiet at the wrong moment.
But make no mistake about it. Obama needed to be clear about his victory, and he certainly did that. Any doubt Clinton's speech may have cast over the landmark obtained tonight was vastly overshadowed by the forcefulness of Obama's speech. For a man who has been criticized for being too wishy washy, Obama nailed this in the ground.
So, where do we go from here? Obama is going to have to win back a lot of upset Clinton supporters who feel their time might be done for good. That of course is bullshit. There will be a female president in my life (barring the unknown), and she will be a great president. She'll have to be because we wouldn't elect her otherwise. But try making this argument to a bunch of women who feel their rightfully won campaign was taken from them. That's what we can look forward to over the next few months, not to mention more bashing of McCain.
McCain is a bad politician, and it will show in the coming months, if it hasn't already. He will come off as grumpy, out of touch, and unwilling to waver on many of the problems we've had over the past eight years that most will agree are problems. He will also come off as a dick, but he's really old, so that can't be helped. Marc Ambinder announced yesterday that McCain had originally intended to stay in office only one term if elected. That would have been his best chance to win. It helps with the age issue, and everyone likes a politician who passes an opportunity to run for something. It goes against their very nature, making them one of us. Cheney used it when running against Edwards as vice president, and there is no response to that. Edwards just had to suck it in, and its resonance struck far deeper than anyone talked about the next day.
But McCain wants to keep his options open, like the rest of us. He wasn't willing to make such a commitment, and it might be that decision that seals the deal before the Democrats even locked down a nominee. It's a young man's world, and Obama is younger in every way. Whenever I hear McCain talk about how he wasn't able to go to Woodstock because "I was on a different kind of trip" I want to tear what's left of my hair out. I understand that he's not going to win over baby boomers who didn't fight in Vietnam, but why refuse to acknowledge their existence? Saying things like that taints his credentials as a Vietnam vet, because he makes it the only way to be. He looks down on us who have not found the call to serve, and no one wants to be told they're not patriotic, especially these days. We had enough of it from the previous administration, and I think McCain would do well to remind us of his service, because it is admirable, but don't hold it over our heads. He won't win any votes like that.
Perhaps one of the biggest concerns for Obama in the coming months will be whether he can discount those fears he had to address with Clinton; that he is all flash and no substance. Many points were made about tonight's speeches. Obama tore the house down and was lucky to get out of St. Paul alive. He gave as passionate a speech as he ever has over the past year, and it will be remembered as his victory speech. McCain's was much different. The crowd was smaller, the tone was much more sober, and the discussion was much less interesting. But it was issue based, and McCain came out and said what he believed. Obama did as well, but that hasn't been good enough lately. He hasn't been as specific as people would like to see, and it may be a problem for him later on. I was in Portland when he spoke to 75,000 people. I was not able to get in to the speech, but I was able to see the chaos leading up to it. There was a line waiting to get in several miles long, and this was about ten minutes before he was scheduled to speak. The fishbowl at Tom McCall waterfront park was packed tighter than for any concert or fireworks show I've ever seen. I was originally inspired by the sight. It was like a rock concert, but they were there to see a presidential candidate. Few could inspire such a strong showing, and it made me feel good not only about the future of the Democratic party, but also about the future of political activism. It is why Obama is so great for our country; if for no other reason than he is bringing in millions of formerly alienated youth who may come back to vote not just in November, but also four, eight, twelve and sixteen years from now.
But there was also a part of me that was a little fearful. I have always been and will always be wary of large crowds. They don't think rationally, and I rarely find myself agreeing with them. There is a lot of passion, and little reason in a mob, and we need reason now more than ever.
But, personally I think he has been as substantive as Hillary and McCain, and it's easy to criticize someone for being too flashy (after all, who among us doesn't like to feel like the so(m)ber intellectual, if only every once in a while), so it's been an effective argument. But try giving a speech in twenty minutes whilst getting in to a succinct policy discussion. I didn't hear Hillary doing it tonight. Most of her discussion was about the kind of people she meant on the campaign trail, and that's okay. You're not supposed to talk about policy initiatives on election night.
But I digress. It will be a long race, and there will be many ups and downs. Many people will speak out of turn. Gallup will run a very close tracking poll that will tell us absolutely nothing. Bill Clinton will bitch at the press, on whose behalf it has yet to be determined, and there will be plenty of "surprises."
So on we go. I am back for now, and hopefully ever, bringing you what you need to hear. Have a good night, and I'll see you on the road to Denver.
It's been an interesting week. The Democratic party's leadership met on Saturday to decide what to do about what's becoming a very sticky situation. They gave half of Michigan and Florida to Clinton, which apparently wasn't good enough for the Clinton supporters who picketed outside the meeting. The Sunday shows were flooded with disgruntled Clinton employees who were aghast and offended at the idea that the Democratic party would half-assedly enforce their punishment of two states who were repeatedly warned not to move their primaries forward.
Early this morning, it was reported that Hillary would not concede tonight, but would recognize the fact that Obama was going to win the nomination. It didn't take long for Terry McAuliffe to rebut this report, and by noon, the Associated Press projected to Obama win enough superdelegates on the day to win the nomination. CNN has done as much within the past hour (it's 7:00 pacific), and yet Hillary is fighting on. So, is this a joke, or is she really that admirable?
Clinton's speech was not at all inflammatory, and yet, people on CNN right now are offended at her not conceding. She claimed to be winning the popular vote, and thanked everyone and their mother for their help.
Obama is going to speak, but I would like to take a minute to discuss the nature of the Clinton supporter. Most polls taken over the past few months have shown more Clinton supporters to NOT be willing to vote for Obama than vice versa. They show up at this meeting, and reports of shoving, and vile language thrown towards party leaders flood the Sunday shows. These are passionate people. Are these the people who will lose the Democrats the election? It's just a thought. Obama is speaking...
Obama's speech was pretty much exactly what it should have been. He made no bones about declaring victory, making himself the nominee, but only after being over complementary of Clinton. But he didn't talk about his struggle with her, from his declaration of victory he spent the rest of the speech attacking John McCain, and it was more vicious than he ever was to Hillary. He painted McCain as being Bush's crony (surprise) and illustrated how McCain was out of touch with the average American. What remains to be seen is whether and how McCain is able to paint Obama as being out of touch with the average American. It was one of his most energetic speeches, though probably a couple of stanzas too long. Building up to his climax, the crowd suddenly got quiet at the wrong moment.
But make no mistake about it. Obama needed to be clear about his victory, and he certainly did that. Any doubt Clinton's speech may have cast over the landmark obtained tonight was vastly overshadowed by the forcefulness of Obama's speech. For a man who has been criticized for being too wishy washy, Obama nailed this in the ground.
So, where do we go from here? Obama is going to have to win back a lot of upset Clinton supporters who feel their time might be done for good. That of course is bullshit. There will be a female president in my life (barring the unknown), and she will be a great president. She'll have to be because we wouldn't elect her otherwise. But try making this argument to a bunch of women who feel their rightfully won campaign was taken from them. That's what we can look forward to over the next few months, not to mention more bashing of McCain.
McCain is a bad politician, and it will show in the coming months, if it hasn't already. He will come off as grumpy, out of touch, and unwilling to waver on many of the problems we've had over the past eight years that most will agree are problems. He will also come off as a dick, but he's really old, so that can't be helped. Marc Ambinder announced yesterday that McCain had originally intended to stay in office only one term if elected. That would have been his best chance to win. It helps with the age issue, and everyone likes a politician who passes an opportunity to run for something. It goes against their very nature, making them one of us. Cheney used it when running against Edwards as vice president, and there is no response to that. Edwards just had to suck it in, and its resonance struck far deeper than anyone talked about the next day.
But McCain wants to keep his options open, like the rest of us. He wasn't willing to make such a commitment, and it might be that decision that seals the deal before the Democrats even locked down a nominee. It's a young man's world, and Obama is younger in every way. Whenever I hear McCain talk about how he wasn't able to go to Woodstock because "I was on a different kind of trip" I want to tear what's left of my hair out. I understand that he's not going to win over baby boomers who didn't fight in Vietnam, but why refuse to acknowledge their existence? Saying things like that taints his credentials as a Vietnam vet, because he makes it the only way to be. He looks down on us who have not found the call to serve, and no one wants to be told they're not patriotic, especially these days. We had enough of it from the previous administration, and I think McCain would do well to remind us of his service, because it is admirable, but don't hold it over our heads. He won't win any votes like that.
Perhaps one of the biggest concerns for Obama in the coming months will be whether he can discount those fears he had to address with Clinton; that he is all flash and no substance. Many points were made about tonight's speeches. Obama tore the house down and was lucky to get out of St. Paul alive. He gave as passionate a speech as he ever has over the past year, and it will be remembered as his victory speech. McCain's was much different. The crowd was smaller, the tone was much more sober, and the discussion was much less interesting. But it was issue based, and McCain came out and said what he believed. Obama did as well, but that hasn't been good enough lately. He hasn't been as specific as people would like to see, and it may be a problem for him later on. I was in Portland when he spoke to 75,000 people. I was not able to get in to the speech, but I was able to see the chaos leading up to it. There was a line waiting to get in several miles long, and this was about ten minutes before he was scheduled to speak. The fishbowl at Tom McCall waterfront park was packed tighter than for any concert or fireworks show I've ever seen. I was originally inspired by the sight. It was like a rock concert, but they were there to see a presidential candidate. Few could inspire such a strong showing, and it made me feel good not only about the future of the Democratic party, but also about the future of political activism. It is why Obama is so great for our country; if for no other reason than he is bringing in millions of formerly alienated youth who may come back to vote not just in November, but also four, eight, twelve and sixteen years from now.
But there was also a part of me that was a little fearful. I have always been and will always be wary of large crowds. They don't think rationally, and I rarely find myself agreeing with them. There is a lot of passion, and little reason in a mob, and we need reason now more than ever.
But, personally I think he has been as substantive as Hillary and McCain, and it's easy to criticize someone for being too flashy (after all, who among us doesn't like to feel like the so(m)ber intellectual, if only every once in a while), so it's been an effective argument. But try giving a speech in twenty minutes whilst getting in to a succinct policy discussion. I didn't hear Hillary doing it tonight. Most of her discussion was about the kind of people she meant on the campaign trail, and that's okay. You're not supposed to talk about policy initiatives on election night.
But I digress. It will be a long race, and there will be many ups and downs. Many people will speak out of turn. Gallup will run a very close tracking poll that will tell us absolutely nothing. Bill Clinton will bitch at the press, on whose behalf it has yet to be determined, and there will be plenty of "surprises."
So on we go. I am back for now, and hopefully ever, bringing you what you need to hear. Have a good night, and I'll see you on the road to Denver.
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