Obama Hires Solis Doyle: A Bad Omen For VP Hillary

The Obama campaign announced today what had long been suspected: Hillary Clinton's former campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle was going to work for the Illinois Democrat. What came as a surprise was Solis Doyle's title, "chief of staff to the vice presidential candidate."

The move was seen as shrewd but potentially controversial. Solis Doyle was let go by Clinton because of what was widely regarded as poor campaign and financial management. But she still is a prominent Hispanic figure with ties to the former first lady -- attributes that could endear Obama to a sought-after political constituency.

One thing the move does suggest, insiders believe, is that Hillary Clinton's chances of being tapped for the vice presidency are now slim to nil.

"This alone means that Hillary won't be the V.P. choice," wrote one.

According to two close Clinton confidantes, the Senator and Solis Doyle have not spoken since her firing months ago. And there is a sense that bad blood lingers between the two. Some officials in Clinton's orbit were disappointed, if not angered, by the fact that Solis Doyle had been in touch with the Obama campaign about possibly coming on board. Solis Doyle, meanwhile, is rumored to have felt particularly scapegoated by her firing.

Said one individual with knowledge of the Clinton campaign's political leanings: "It would be pretty awkward if Hillary Clinton were picked as vice president and Patti was there to be her chief of staff."

Indeed, while on the surface it may seem that hiring Solis Doyle would provide a soft landing for Clinton to be brought in as V.P., others see her hiring as simply a logical political move.

"Patti knows that world certainly and knows the kinds of things the vice president would do because she saw it so much in the White House," said a source. "She is from Chicago and she knows all those folks. I knew she had visited with them and she wants to get on with her life too."

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But time does heal wounds and in politics a shared objective like, say, the White House, could compel Obama to reunite Clinton and her former campaign manager.

Update: Jason Horowitz over at the New York Observer reports the following: "A former bundler to Hillary Clinton just called in to tell me that Barack Obama's selection of Patti Solis Doyle as chief of staff to the campaign's eventual vice presidential nominee is the "biggest fuck you I have ever seen in politics."

[snip]

"Either one of two things happen," said the bundler. "Hillary is selected as vice president and they fire Patti, or Hillary is not going to be the vice president."

Later Update: A source with knowledge (though not direct) of Sollis Doyle and Clinton's relationship writes in to dispute the idea that they haven't spoken since her firing. Though, he adds, the move by Obama seems likely to shut the door on the idea of Clinton as VP.

Comments

[Indubio]

Wonder why Huffington Post's "Bad Word" filter didn't delete this post because of bad language? Am I the only one who thinks Huffington Post is getting a little too heavyt handed with their efforts at censorship? Probably a sure sign that Huffington Post is seeking status as a mainstream media outlet...

[purplestategal]

Of course it's a signal. This isn't the first indication of his decision but only the latest and strongest. True to form, Obama isn't afraid that he won't win the general election without Clinton on the ticket'--he's afraid that he'll win with her on the ticket. (Many of her supporters agree that she would not be a good fit for the vice presidency position, which would again leave her in a secondary role, with an even more ambiguous role for Bill.) The only question was, how and when he was going to break the news to her most ardent supporters.

[DXP]

Clinton probably does not want veep. She is much much more powerful in the senate, especially now. So why would Obama do something that is seen as such a "f**k you" to a huge segment of voters he is trying to win over? Really makes no sense. If Doyle had done a good job that would be one thing. If he wants to do politics in a new way then why hire her and send that message? Would not a vp candidate want to bring in his or her own people and not have to work with a pre-selected person? As far as I can tell it no candidate has ever made a move like this before. Very odd.

[jrterrier]

i don't think the problem is that he hired her. it's that he hired her to be the chief of staff for the yet-to-be announced VP. that's what sends the message and makes no sense. better to have come out and said, i have considered it and decided hillary would not be my VP. that would have been classier. sending a "message" in this fashion is, to borrow his words "low class" and politically tone-deaf for someone who claims that he is trying to unite the party and mend fences with hillary supporters

[purplestategal]

My thoughts on why he did this? First, it had to be done. There was no way to do it withougtmaking a lot of disappointed Clinton supporters angry, but there's no way around it. Second, timing is everything. Sooner is much better than later. A strong signal shortly after the primary season is done and plenty of time before the August convention, so the anger has some time to process. Third, it has to be done before Clinton starts to campaign in earnest for him, which would really anger a lot of people, and rightly so. It's cleanest if she knows she's not campaigning for the veep slot but for the party's sake or for preserving her own legacy. You mention that no candidate has ever made a move like this before. I can't recall any other election where voters were threatening to bolt to the opposition if their losing candidate isn't selected as veep. But I could be wrong--any corrections?

[Swift2]

I have no idea what it means. Neither does Sam Stein or any of the other elegant fops who call themselves political reporters, but are really glorified gossip columnists. Is Britney okay, do you think? How about Lindsay? Now that's on Stein's career path.

[mesmerize]

Why do so many people feel like the Clintons can't be crossed? Why do anyone have to be loyal to them? I think that is the biggest problem with the Clintons. People are so use to catering to them that when someone like a Obama come along and go against the grain her loyalist just fall apart. People need to get over the Clintons and move on.

[Newspaperbrat]

If Obama is as smart as he appears he may have already signaled her appointment to the SCOTUS, a win win if ever there were one. It would leave Bill speechless for a pleasant change, provide Hillary with an opportunity to become the first female Chief Justice in our history.The media would finally STFU on all things Clinton including her hapless husband. If not she can always divorce the rascal.

[purplestategal]

I'd been thinking of that option myself. SCOTUS would great place (and safe) for her to land (although from the angle of constitutional law expertise Obama trumps her skills easily). I would never bet that the Clintons would divorce, by the way. For whatever reason, they're an extraordinarily durable couple although the dynamics confound most of us. Maybe it's why they are such close friends of Matalin & Carville. Who knows?

[Bettysdad]

Mrs. Bill Clinton has never tried a case. She has never written a brief. She has had nothing to do with Constitutional law.

Now, exactly what are her qualifications to be on ANY appeals court?

It's not a consolation prize.

[ROBOT8]

GOOD LOOKIN'!

[jazzifay]

I don't see anything wrong with "the boss" choosing his team.

[purplestategal]

Nice and pithy observation. I also see a lot wrong with "the boss" not being able control his/her veep. (See Cheney, R.)

[jlgcox]

I am curious about this hire. She was awful during the Clinton campaign according to the media, but who knows she may have been the scape goat for Penn and Company. Clearly, the management of her campaign did not improve after the exit of Solis.

Fellow Democrats: Please remember we are democrats! Bashing Clinton or Obama does not help our cause during the general election. I cannot tell you who how many Mothers are concern about mandatory draft if McBush is elected!! So much is at stake (war; economy; supreme court; etc.).

We need to get that in mind when Obama give Clinton kudos for her campaign (which she deserves!). BTW, I am Obama supporter.

[shela88]

It is unlikely. but still possible, that Senator Obama will choose Mrs. Clinton as his running mate and she will accept and they will live happily after..If they are able to leap over the massive hurdles before them and team up, having Solis Doyle on his staff will be the least of their problems.

[Keith52]

I will be truly broken hearted if Barack makes her his VP. She is a Democrat but the similarities end there. She said more than a few times on the record and in prepared remarks that she thought John McCain was better qualified to be POTUS. She put Bobby Kennedy's assasination out there at least three times as an example of "something that could happen" that would change the reality of her numbers. Rachel Maddow had a great quote on that: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBsbwK306yg
Hillary is Old Washington with baggage, over 50% of Americans dislike her inspite of her popularity among Democrats. There are so many reasons to be shocked by a decision to make her VP. Barack is getting a healthy percentage of her 18 million voters and the others will learn to live with it after seeing McCain in action.

[Ksisay]

I totally agree with Keith52! Hillary in no way deserves VP and was hypocritical enough, after all the race-baiting and assassinat­ion-baitin­g to refer to Barack Obama as "my friend'!

Also, I don't think Patti Solis Doyle was all of a sudden so incompetent after decades with the Clintons. I suspect she was dumbfounded by Hillary's foot-in-mouth prowess...

[pupbayer]

I think it is more than unlikely. I see NO way Clinton will be the VP nominee.

[Melissa]

I really hope it is not offered to her, or if it is, she rejects the offer. Either way, as much as I love Hillary, I will not vote for the ticket.

[markj757]

This is one of those decisions when you simply have to be on the inside to understand the reasoning behind it. I don't understand it, but he has made some very good decisions overall on his senior staff, so I have to have confidence that this is a good one as well. I'm not as concerned as much with the choice, as I am with the timing. It's imperative we have Hill on board with some enthusiam as she decides how will she campaign with him to help him get elected, and he may be preparing her folks with a subtle message to not get your hopes up for her as VP, but I don't think now was the best time to do it, if that was his intent.

[Alfannell]

Could Chuck Hagel become Obama's VP? It's a long shot but it could happen.

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2008/06/17/hagel_veep/index.html?source=yahoo

[Ergon]

Rhett Butler (Obama) to Scarlett O'Hara (Clinton):
"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn".

[Tblack]

Just what I was thinking

[pogoman11]

The two should be re-united on a new TV show, coming the fall on fox: http://www.thepoliticaljerk.com/

[SantaFeStars]

I have complete faith in Obama's ability to select his VP. Along with his many competent advisors, he will select whomever he feels can carry the ticket to victory. Personally, I would love to see a OBAMA/BIDEN ticket!

[WFV]

Me too, but I think Biden wants Secretary of State.....

[speakingtruth2power]

For the thought that this is a pro-DLC move, I have one comment;

NNNNOOOOOO­OOOOOOOOOO­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!

[azcamp]

Good for Obama. He will hire people based on what they can bring to his team instead of punishing those who were Clinton allies. This is a good example of the new politics that his campaign practices. Solis-Doyle is being hired, not as a campaign manager or strategist but as a chief of staff. I trust that her true skills are in that area and that she will do a great job.

His decisions are not about Hillary, they are about winning the White House. The primary is over so now the general election organization is taking shape. He will select a VP who shares his message of change and who can help him govern the nation with integrity and vision.

[MadMadamMin]

This seems as though he's putting the cart before the horse, unless . . .

Patti IS his choice! Would we call her Patti or Ms Solis-Doyle?

[cooolandrew]

Anyone wary of the financial thing can always opt to donate to move on . Who are doing stunning adverts and work for senate seats too. If donating to them email them to back merkley and franken. Every senate seat counts. Alos the main reason he cannot pick a senator for VP we have stuff to fix.

[speakingtruth2power]

Great points. Two months ago I posted my dream Team

and after comments from Huffposters that we can't use

Senators to fill Cabinet positions, I have come to agree.

How about WC@VP, BR@State, CH@Def. & JE@AG?

[purplestategal]

I got the JE and CH but please spell out BR and WC.