Posted on 03/05/2004 7:55:27 AM PST by Tumbleweed_Connection
Uber Democrat Sen. Hillary Clinton is warning all-but-certain presidential nominee John Kerry to back off if he's thinking about replacing party chairman Terry McAuliffe before the election. Asked about rumblings that the Kerry camp wanted to toss McAuliffe over the side, Clinton told the New York Times on Friday, "Terry has helped the Democratic Party move into the 21st century to compete against the incredible interlocking institutional powers of the other side." "A lot of plans have been laid, a lot of infrastructure put in place, and I want to see us follow through," she insisted. The disagreement over McAuliffe's future could be just the tip of the iceberg of a growing rift between the Clintons, who, through McAuliffe, still control the party's machinery - and Sen. Kerry's political team, which now sees itself in the driver's seat. Sen. Clinton, for instance, reminded the Times that her husband did not replace the party chairman when he became the nominee in 1992 - a none too subtle hint that she expects Kerry to follow suit. Still, the Kerry camp is reportedly bristling over McAuliffe's antics, such as his decision to publicly allege that President Bush went AWOL from the National Guard. That stunt put the spotlight on parts of Kerry's past that he preferred not to discuss - such as his decision to team up Jane Fonda for anti-war protests in the 1970s. Another sign of the growing rift between the Kerry and Clinton teams came late Tuesday, when Sen. Clinton offered an unenthusiastic endorsement to Kerry as the party's inevitable nominee, and did so on Japanese TV - a venue where few Americans were likely to notice. Strategists for the Massachusetts Democrat are said considering different ways to curb McAuliffe's independence - a move that would certainly limit the influence wielded by Sen. Clinton and her husband in upcoming campaign decisions. Still, Kerry strategists, aware that alienating the Clintons could cost their candidate in more ways than one, have to be careful not to ignite an internal civil war. Even without McAuliffe, for example, Sen. Clinton controls the Democratic Party's presidential media fund through her right hand man Harold Ickes, who has the backing of Bush-bashing billionaire George Soros. And other Democratic groups that will play critical roles in the 2004 election include Americans Coming Together, founded by Hillary ally Ellen Malcom, and the Center for American Progress, run by former Clinton White House chief of staff John Podesta.
Hey, projection is one of our most valuable tools in the battle against the leftists. If you want to know what they're up to, just see what accusations are spewing from their lackeys.
At the moment, for example, we're informed that the Republicans are planning to run a really, really dirty campaign. See? Piece of cake.
And when Mrs. Clinton gets angry......
PEOPLE DIE !!!
Verrrry interesting post, T_C. Actually, I suspect there's a good chance an internal civil war may well ignite in the DNC, and possibly soon. This would be a battle royale between the Clinton and the Kennedy factions.
Hitlery desperately wanted the DNC Convention for New York City; Teddy beat her on that question, and so the convention comes to Boston. (She is not used to being "beaten" like this....) McAuliffe, of course, is a Clinton factotem, and as such is deeply resented in certain quarters of the party.
It gets really dicey when Hitlery makes not-so-veiled threats against Kerry -- especially since I sincerely believe she would like the Veep slot this year -- from which to undermine Kerry's presidential bid, and position herself for a "coronation" at the Convention this summer.
Hitlery wants the White House and means to have it by hook or by crook; she just will not compete for it: She wants to be drafted, swept into the nomination on a wave of mass party adulation. After Ickes works Kerry over good from behind the scenes, Kerry would be toast. (It has been suggested that the leak about Kerry's "intern problem" came out of the Clinton camp.) He's really quite a weak candidate anyway, all things considered....
Of course, Teddy Kennedy stands firmly with his man, Kerry. One senses there is little love lost between Kennedy and the Clintoons. This could be a very interesting year!
Monica again?
He is necessary to feed the beast.
-PJ
Kerry HAS to pick this fight now, and he has to win it, or he is a political eunuch headed for a total wipeout in November. Aside from McAuliffe's obvious loyalty to the Clintons, which is enough reason to sack him, McAuliffe is simply a horrible DNC Chairman. He was a freaking disaster for Al Gore during the 2000 campaign and especially during the recount. He has already hurt Kerry immensely with the AWOL stuff. He has no clue about how to beat George Bush, and no intention of coordinating message with the Kerry campaign. Bush has an absolute loyalist and sharp political operative at the RNC in Ed Gillespie, along with Karl Rove at the White House. To go up against these guys with only Terry McAuliffe is truly like bringing a knife to a gunfight. I think it could also be Kerry's "Sister Souljah" moment if he can get McAuliffe sacked.
Go back and read Zell Miller's book if you really want to understand what a disaster Terry McAuliffe has been for the Democrat party.
Pray for W and The Election
Separated at birth.
He really does appear to be a very weak candidate. My suspicion is that is not an accident.
Don't forget, McAuliffe knocked himself out "front-loading" the primaries schedule to get a Dem candidate as early in the year as possible. Kerry is the result.
So, what's he supposed to do between now and November? Argue with President Bush? Of course, this does leave him hanging out there as a target for a longer period than ever before in presidential election history. Plenty of time for the Clintoon Cabal to give him a good working over...leaning on people and leaking behind the scenes, of course.
What with that braying, whiny voice of his, plus his arrogance, the disgrace of the Winter Soldier interlude, his whiplash-inducing policy reversals, tendency to speak out of both sides of his mouth at once, and disgraceful voting record in the Senate, my prediction is that most folks will be sick of him in no time.
And then, when Clintoon factotems like Chris Lehane and Harold Ickes get done with him, he'll be a twitching corpse bleeding on the floor -- and Hitlery will step over the body in her haste to get to her "coronation"....
Kerry would have to be certifiably nutz to put her on the ticket with him: She would upstage and undermine him at every turn. But then, I really do believe she wants the Veep slot, and right now! (Which means she's probably going to get it, by hook or by crook.)
"People just love me, and I can raise a ton of money," saith the Goddess: In the end, it may all come down to money. The size of Bush's campaign war chest is giving the Dims fits. Bush will have the luxury of leaving the vilification of his opponent to folks inside the Dim party and spend his ample cash running a clean, idea-driven and policy focused campaign.
Well, that's my speculation, for whatever it's worth. Who knows if it's true at this point? We'll just have to wait and see how this charming little intramural struggle plays out....
I still think she'll wait until 2008 to face off against whomever, when she will have greater distance between her candidacy and the Republican-core-energizing x42 legacy, AND be able to face a "lame-duck successor". It won't be VP Cheney, however, but some younger surrogate.
I think DM pursues some other agenda when he opines about a Hildabeast run, though I don't know what it may be. He may simply be needling her. I know there's no love lost there...
Regards.
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