Posted on 11/17/2003 7:24:52 AM PST by presidio9
Des Moines - In the chilly mist outside the arena, campaign workers had taped and staked hundreds of placards. Since most were a similar shade of blue, as in patriotic red-white-and, the sea of them created a sense of unity. But it was an illusion for a Democratic Party that hasn't been as fractured since the Vietnam Era.
Inside, where nearly 8,000 converged for a raucous fundraiser that signaled the final stretch toward Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucus on Jan. 19, the crowd clapped and screamed as if it were at a rock concert or college football rally. The energy and enthusiasm, which startled many old party hands, turned the cold, damp auditorium white hot.
But when a candidate would send the crowd to its feet, the cheers would disintegrate into a cacaphony of factions competing to outshout each other. It was only different when one person entered and spoke to the warring minions, dominated by busloads of volunteers for Howard Dean, John Kerry, John Edwards and Dick Gephardt. It was only different for Hillary Rodham Clinton.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsday.com ...
No argument from me there.
She will announce this week. I stand by my tag-line.
You lose me there. There's no way she can go a full year without having to answer at least some questions, and no way she can go a full year without being caught in some moment that isn't totally choreographed, controlled and rehearsed by her handlers. Anytime Hillary is caught in an unscripted moment, it has disastrous results for her.
The only way she can hope to have a chance is to set up her nomination from the floor at a "brokered" DNC convention (I put brokered in quotes because this, while appearing to be a grassroots "Save us Hillary!" move, will be as carefully calculated and rehearsed as anything else she does). The last minute insertion of Frank Lautenberg in the 2002 NJ Senate race showed the Rats that, for them at least, the election "laws" are merely suggestions.
By going the brokered convention route, she's only a "candidate" for a little over a month. Again, this is a sham. She's really a candidate right now, but since the media's pretending she isn't they can avoid giving her the candidate treatment.
Even with all that, I still don't think she can beat Bush. But she can certainly delude herself into thinking she can.
The only way I could see Hillary agreeing to any kind of debate with Bush would be if the debate were something like that ridiculous "Rock the Vote" fiasco the Rats participated in. IOW, an event at some college in a hall packed with angry campus lefties asking questions written by the liberal network sponsoring the debate, said questions having been pre-screened by Hillary's people, of course.
And if the 'Rats cut the legs out from Dean by voting the superdelegates in a block against him, especially if they do so in favor of a Clinton, it will signal the beginning of the final destruction of the Democratic Party. Not a bad outcome, that...
Who in his right mind would choose Hillary! as Vice President? The President's life expectancy would best be measured in hours...
I don't really think Hillary! considers herself to be Vice Presidential timber. There is no power in the position that has been characterized accurately as not being worth a bucket of warm spit. She had more power as First Lady.
And if she did become a successful Vice Presidential candidate, she would be shut out of a run at the Big Chair until 2012. She'll be, what, 108 years old by then? This is not acceptable...
Besides, a female VP candidate is not an historic "first". The Democrats did this before, with Geraldine Ferrarro running with Walter Mondale. That ticket got creamed, even with all the buzz about potentially having a woman a heart-beat away from the Presidency. Hillary! as VP would only serve to galvanize the opposition and would not bring sufficient support to overcome this disadvantage.
The other possibility is that Hillary! signs on as VP on what will be a doomed campaign in order to keep Dean from stomping out Clintonism and to position herself for 2008. When the ticket goes down to inevitable defeat, she can blame Dean, who will be unceremonially dumped by the 'Rats, leaving Hillary! as the undisputed head of the Democratic Party. The plus side for the Pubbies is that the electoral slaughter in 2004 will make 2002 look like a squeaker.
This last scenario has some merit. If she doesn't announce tomorrow, it will be my next leading theory. All of this is irrelevant, however, because Hillary! will announce tomorrow.
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