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Don't Overestimate Hillary
Opinion Journal ^ | April 18, 2005 12:01 a.m. EDT | JAY COST

Posted on 04/18/2005 6:06:12 AM PDT by Huck

Pollster Scott Rasmussen has begun publishing a regular "Hillary Meter." The purpose of this is to track Sen. Hillary Clinton's movement to the political center by determining how much of the American public considers her to be middle-of-the-road. I find this to be a fascinating story, because it says quite a bit about Hillary and her political skills--or lack thereof. It is, of course, gospel that Hillary Clinton is a political genius, or something to that effect. She is so brilliant that potential Democratic opponents are warned by pundits everywhere that she will work her secret devil arts on the poor fool who dares cross her. She is that good. Ostensibly, the only hope that humble conservatives have to keep her from being the first female president is some tawdry book by Ed Klein. I have never understood this.

(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: crusty; hillary; hillary2008; hillarymeter; neverwillbepresident; pantsuit; rasmussen; seahag; shrill; witch
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Huzzah!
1 posted on 04/18/2005 6:06:14 AM PDT by Huck
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To: Huck

It's an old story - you can't beat somebody with nobody. That is exactly how the Democrats have stayed in control of Chicago for about a century.

NY State is a special case. Upstate is nowhere nearly as conservative as, say, Montana, but it is definitely overbalanced by the power of New York City.

If you are not known in NYC, your chances in the state as a whole are between zip and none on a statewide race. Whom do the people in the city know better than anyone?

Rudy Giuliani, of course. It was a problem with health at the time that took Rudy out of the race in 2000, but with the added stature of standing up to the events of September 11, 2001, Rudy has an entry on his resume that Herself cannot possibly match.

Will Rudy do it?


2 posted on 04/18/2005 6:12:11 AM PDT by alloysteel ("Master of the painfully obvious.....")
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To: alloysteel

The same stupid people who elected slick willy not once, but twice, will be a big factor.

If we nominate another Bob Dole, we will lose. The Republicans who could beat her, are not conservative enough, are not well like etc., etc., etc.

But then, it looked like Gore was going to win it all when along came GWB. My point is, we are going to have to reach inside and make the decision to either vote Republican no matter who runs, or take the chance of Hillary for President. I hope the fear of another clinton presidency drives all Republicans to the polls in vast numbers.


3 posted on 04/18/2005 6:19:17 AM PDT by sarasotarepublican (Politicians are like diapers. They both need changing regularly and for the same reason.)
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To: Huck

Thanks to the MSM she is the smartest woman on the face of the earth.


4 posted on 04/18/2005 6:19:25 AM PDT by Piquaboy (22 year veteran of the Army, Air Force and Navy, Pray for all our military .)
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To: alloysteel

We can only hope that Rudy will not overestimate himself and run for President in 2008 instead of the Senate in 2006 (or for NY Governor).


5 posted on 04/18/2005 6:19:31 AM PDT by thoughtomator (Now that I'm in the DC area I can see where all my tax dollars have been going)
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To: Piquaboy

That's an insult to all women everywhere!


6 posted on 04/18/2005 6:19:57 AM PDT by thoughtomator (Now that I'm in the DC area I can see where all my tax dollars have been going)
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To: alloysteel
Will Rudy do it?

I sure hope so.
With Condi as his v.p.

7 posted on 04/18/2005 6:21:35 AM PDT by starfish923 (Iohannas Paulus II, Requiescat in Pacem)
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To: thoughtomator
We can only hope that Rudy will not overestimate himself and run for President in 2008 instead of the Senate in 2006 (or for NY Governor).

As Dick Morris has said, Hillary does not need to run in 2006, and will likely drop out if faced with significant competition.

8 posted on 04/18/2005 6:23:43 AM PDT by montag813
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To: Huck
It is, of course, gospel that Hillary Clinton is a political genius

Relatively speaking, Hillary is a political genius because she will listen to Bill. But of course this is in comparison to Al Gore and John Kerry, two complete bufoons who came within a few votes of being President. If either Kerry or Gore had moderated their social positions, they would have won. If you don't believe Hillary has a good chance, you haven't been paying attention.

9 posted on 04/18/2005 6:25:16 AM PDT by Always Right
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To: sarasotarepublican

The same stupid people who elected slick willy not once, but twice, will be a big factor.
=====
Yep, the problem is not Hitlery or any other unqualified, power-crazy Marxist like her...its the Kool-Aid drinking morons that actually will vote for WHATEVER AND WHOMEVER has the Dem label pinned on them....


10 posted on 04/18/2005 6:25:33 AM PDT by EagleUSA (Q)
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To: alloysteel

Rudy has too many skeletons in his closet, as does anyone from NY! He'll be destroyed right quick, if not by the Rats, then by the media.


11 posted on 04/18/2005 6:26:02 AM PDT by AmericanChef
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To: AmericanChef
Rudy has too many skeletons in his closet, as does anyone from NY! He'll be destroyed right quick, if not by the Rats, then by the media.

Bill Clinton had more skeletons in his closet than Saddam and he won. Skeletons in the closet are not an issue for the swing voters.

12 posted on 04/18/2005 6:28:07 AM PDT by Always Right
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To: Huck
The Kool-Aid drinkers could possibly muster 45% of the vote for the beast at best.

Game, set, match.
13 posted on 04/18/2005 6:28:43 AM PDT by TheForceOfOne
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To: montag813

Dick Morris kept saying that Hillary would not run in 2000, so what does he know? I'm far from thinking that Hillary is a genius, but she has a great (unpaid) pubicity machine in the MSM. She is also a lot more nimble verbally than Kerry, and look how close he came. I hate to say it, but I think McCain would be the strongest candidate against her in '08. His image is reassuring to the voters. (You have to know McCain to really dislike him, alas.)


14 posted on 04/18/2005 6:30:37 AM PDT by joylyn
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To: Huck
Good read. Thanks.


This should get the Freeper nervous Nellies decending upon this thread like it was a Walmart article.

Popcorn time! ;)

15 posted on 04/18/2005 6:34:24 AM PDT by G.Mason (I post to amuse myself ... why do you post?)
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To: Huck

I am already sick to death hearing about this idiot. I cannot abide having anything or anyone so intensely touted to me and this is way over the limit of my tolerance.


16 posted on 04/18/2005 6:34:52 AM PDT by SMARTY
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To: sarasotarepublican; alloysteel
The same stupid people who elected slick willy not once, but twice, will be a big factor.

Clinton was never the master politican that everyone gave him credit for being. Think about it. He never won a majority, won only because confronted with two conservative candidates in each election and was a totally ineffective president.

And Hillary ain't Billy. Although loved by a bunch of Clintonistas she is hardly the darling of the lefty loonies and is a lightning rod for any consrvative anywhere.

The Republicans do need a good candidate. And they have them but the weight of the issues and the tide of history is on our side.

17 posted on 04/18/2005 6:40:32 AM PDT by An Old Marine (Freedom isn't Free)
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To: sarasotarepublican
we are going to have to reach inside and make the decision to either vote Republican no matter who runs,

Not a popular view, but GWB has been and continues to be a disappointment to many of the 'faithful'. Yes, his major plus has been his WoT. But many of his other positions and policies have been less than stellar. He is leaving a bitter taste with many.

The GOP needs a stellar candidate for '08, but none of the known-names are that. They all come with too much baggage -- either not conservative enough, or previous political damage, etc.

Like it or not, Hillary will be difficult to defeat. She will pocket the MSM who fawn over her at every chance even now. And nearly everyone who voted for Kerry (simply because they pull the D lever, no matter who the candidate is). She would easily take most of the states Kerry won, so the battle is still in those few 'battleground' states: Florida and Ohio, principally. But a few others could also swing one direction or another. Kerry, like Gore, tried to change positions several times during the election cycle. Hillary is smart enough to know that smacks of hypocrisy; so, she is positioning herself to the center even now -- years before the 08 election cycle -- so she has a record of centrist positions. And, she is from the mid-west; thus not an elitist northeasterner like Kerry was.

A big negative coming for the slickster Pubbies, who crammed that Medicare Pill Bill through, will be even more revelations of its outlandish price tag (benefitting drug and insurance companies and not providing near the benefits to recipients that the costs can justify) -- because it doesn't even really kick in until 2007 (just in time for the Dems to beat the GOP over the head with its cost for the 2008 election cycle).
18 posted on 04/18/2005 6:40:35 AM PDT by TomGuy
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To: montag813

The only person who could knock out The Witch next year is Rudy, and he wants the White House. I don't think Pataki could beat her as he's just as wooden as she is. If I were Karl Rove or Dubya, I'd be pushing Giuliani hard to go for her seat, because it would likely scare her out of running.


19 posted on 04/18/2005 6:42:06 AM PDT by ABG(anybody but Gore) (From Roe v Wade to Terri Schiavo, the RATS have become a death cult...)
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To: sarasotarepublican
"The same stupid people who elected slick willy not once, but twice, will be a big factor."

 The people who elected Clinton were the people who voted for Ross Perot both times. 




20 posted on 04/18/2005 6:42:56 AM PDT by sinclair (An idiotic initial assumption leads inevitably to a pointless and idiotic conclusion.)
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