Posted on 02/21/2005 8:32:45 PM PST by Libloather
Clinton's Popularity Up in State, Even Among Republicans
By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ
Published: February 22, 2005
Remember Hillary Rodham Clinton and the conventional wisdom about how polarizing a figure she is? Well, think again.
Recent polls have shown that Mrs. Clinton, the junior senator from New York, may have turned a corner politically, sharply reducing the number of voters in the state who harbor negative views of her.
Pollsters say the change is remarkable for a woman who has long been shadowed by a seemingly implacable group of voters - commonly referred to as Hillary haters - who dislike her, no matter what she does, and who pose a potential obstacle to any presidential ambitions she may harbor.
A measure of how far Senator Clinton has come was on display Sunday when Senator John McCain, Republican from Arizona, said on "Meet the Press" that he thought Mrs. Clinton, a Democrat, would make a good president, although he said that he would support his party's nominee. She returned the compliment, saying when asked by the program's host, Tim Russert, that Senator McCain would be a good president.
The changing view of Mrs. Clinton coincides with a period following the November election in which she offered a series of speeches filled with references to faith and prayer, while putting less emphasis on polarizing social issues like gay marriage and abortion.
The result of these comments has been an emerging image of Senator Clinton that is far different from the caricature that Republicans have painted of her: that of a secular liberal whose stances are largely at odds with a public that they say is concerned about the nation's moral direction.
Political analysts say the themes Senator Clinton has emphasized - combined with the hard-working image she has sought to project - appear to be causing large numbers of voters to re-evaluate her in New York, although not nationally, where the number of people who disapprove of her is still high. In a Marist poll last fall, roughly 4 in 10 Americans had negative views of her.
Her progress appealing to once skeptical New Yorkers was illuminated by a New York Times poll released last week that showed that 21 percent of New Yorkers had an unfavorable opinion of how she is handling her job, down significantly from the 29 percent of voters who expressed similar sentiments in October 2002.
(In two recent back-to-back surveys, pollsters for Quinnipiac University, in Hamden, Conn., also found a notable decline in the number of New York voters who expressed a negative view of Mrs. Clinton.)
At the same time, Senator Clinton's job approval rating has increased to 69 percent from 58 percent in October 2002, according to the Times poll. That is higher even than the 63 percent approval rating of Charles E. Schumer, the senior senator from New York who was re-elected last year to a second term with a record 71 percent of the vote and who is known for his attention to upstate concerns.
The new attitudes toward Mrs. Clinton may be forcing Republicans to reconsider how to deal with an opponent they had until now viewed as an enticing target because of the depth of negative feelings she inspires among large numbers of New York voters.
Independent political analysts say her strong standing may give pause to any big-name Republican thinking about challenging her in 2006, chief among them Rudolph W. Giuliani and Gov. George E. Pataki. In fact, a Quinnipiac poll released earlier this month found that Mrs. Clinton would defeat both Mr. Pataki and Mr. Giuliani in head-to-head contests.
"There isn't a long line of opponents forming to take her on in 2006," said Lee M. Miringoff, the director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
But New York Republican leaders say that they are eager to challenge Senator Clinton, especially since Republicans from around the country will almost certainly provide plenty of money and other campaign support to defeat her, as they did in 2000.
New York Republicans also say that the senator has had a free ride so far and that her opponent in the campaign will have an easy time driving up her negative ratings - and halting her rise in the polls - by pointing out what they describe as her poor record of accomplishment and her liberal ideology.
Will someone please tell me what the Senatrix from NY has actually done? What important legislation has she actually authored (not co-sponsored)?
Most people think doing a good job as Senator consists of showing up at public events, making feel good speeches, and not getting caught in a scandal (or in this case, a new scandal).
And don't hold your breath waiting for the Democrats who foam at the mouth at any mention of the "Bush Dynasty" to express the same outrage over the prospect of Clinton II.
Or Hillary Guevara.
Mr. Raymond Hernandez is a very naive reporter to have drawn the above conclusion from Senator Clinton's remarks. He fails to take in consideration she is a "Clinton" and a manipulator extraordinaire and as such chooses her words carefully.
Senator Clinton did not "say" that Senator McCain would be a good president. The actual quote follows.
"MR. RUSSERT: Senator McCain, a serious question: Do you think the lady to your right would make a good president?
SEN. CLINTON: Oh, we can't hear you, Tim. We can't hear you.
SEN. McCAIN: Yeah, you're breaking up. I am sure that Senator Clinton would make a good president. I happen to be a Republican and would support, obviously, a Republican nominee, but I have no doubt that Senator Clinton would make a good president.
MR. RUSSERT: Equal time, Senator Clinton. The gentleman to your left?
SEN. CLINTON: Absolutely."
Yes
Read first two sentences. Then looked at source. Stopped and exited.
Just think of all those executive orders she can dream up and sign in the middle of the night if she should win.
Nothing but lipstick on an old, stinking PIG.
It would be a disaster
Remember this is the NYT. I dont believe a word from them but I will agree they are trying to set the stage for her run. I hope the GOP puts a formidable and CONSERVATIVE candidate who cares about upholding values otherwise christians will not come out in the numbers they did in 2000 and 2004. Are you listening GOP??????
I live in NY. I will tell you, the GOP here are much worse than the RATS. The GOP in NY is a disgusting bunch of socialists who sell us down the river and then pat themselves on the back about what a good job they are doing.
I do not care for Hillary, but her popularity here is understandable.
"MSM Requiescat in fracta!"
Do you think if we took out a full page ad on what I posted at #150 the NY Times would print it before the 2008 election?
You wouldn't want to make a sizable side bet on that would you? Hmmm?
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