Looking at it from the point of view of political ignoramuses (most of the public) her shrewish personna was well-hidden. She came across as a well-educated, friendly, suburban lady. A sham, for sure, but one that will make her more likeable to the general public.
She is going to go as far as she can with these scripted, limited access appearances, and the media WILL NOT CALL HER ON IT. They will simply re-broadcast whatever appears on her web site.
Here is another thing: I bet she refuses to debate, and no one will call her on that, either.
Conventional wisdom (such as redictricting will make it impossible for the dems to take Congress) is more and more not reliable. With the advent of web sites, You Tube, a totally co-opted mainstream media, and a unique personality (a former first lady running for president) we are in totally uncharted waters.
I wouldn't underestimate her chances, especially if we spend all of this year fighting about how crappy all of our candidates are.
Unfortunately for her, she long ago established her public persona as a shrew and a droning scold.
It is not simply a matter of creating a persona. She has to undo the existing one first.
And she has to hold the new image intact for almost two years through a brutal campaign.
I think she'll be throwing ashtrays and letting her medusa hair down long before she gets to the finish line.
And based on the last election we still don't really know much about how to navigate against Democrats, post-Bush. They are taking advantage of Republican splits.
Ms. Clinton seems confident and she is probably situated exactly where she wants to be. She probably has some cards hidden also.