Ickes: Obama and Clinton Can't Win

Even as Hillary Clinton and her aides begin the official effort to rally around Barack Obama, the Republican National Committee (RNC) is circulating past attacks on Obama from the Clinton Campaign. Is this the cost of the long, sharp primary that worried so many Democrats? A new RNC press release urges reporters to recall that senior Clinton adviser Harold Ickes once completely wrote off Obama -- it even comes with a YouTube recording. "The fact is -- he is not going to be able to win the general election against John McCain," says Ickes. But if this is the best pushback Republicans can do during Unity Week, they're in for a long campaign.

Ickes, a hardscrabble strategist who has worked for Democratic figures from Gene, Ted and Jesse to Bill and Hill, is well known for his decisive declarations. (See his testimony at last weekend's DNC meeting, for example.) In fact, Ickes issued a similarly gloomy forecast for his own boss, Hillary Clinton, when speculating on her prospects in 2004. "I'm one of the few in the semi--inner circle who don't think she can win," he told Time. "It would be a brutal, bruising fight. It would make this year's race look like kindergarten," he added. (Now if Ickes just declares that McCain can't win, all the bases will be covered.) For the record, Ickes has already begun walking back his remarks, stressing on Tuesday that Obama can indeed win:

Anything that I said regarding that [Obama] could not win, and anything following from that, was a misstatement[...] I've been saying to superdelegates all along that I think that Obama can win...

And who cares about a losing campaign's predictions about an opponent losing, anyway? Very few people, I'd bet, which makes this one of the few benefits of our strategy-saturated campaign discourse. The RNC is trying to drudge up an intraparty "attack," but it sounds more like warmed-over punditry. And if the upset victories of this year's nominees prove anything, it's that voters still exhibit a healthy resistance to the pundits' emphasis on polls, strategy and electoral predictions.

Photo credit: Acaben

Ari Melber is the Net movement correspondent for The Nation, where this post first appeared. Check out the Net Movement Politics Facebook Group.

Comments

[OregonCoaster]

Ickes was a principal architect of Clintons's disastrous campaign. His understanding of what is possible or not comes from past experiences. That past may have its useful insights, but it clearly didn't guide him well with respect to Clinton's 2008 campaign. Not only did she fail to gain the prize, she tarnished her image in ways that may not be reversible. Advice like she got is advice to run away from.

[JackLivigni]

What America needs to see again is the 2004 Republican National Convention. They need to see McCain and every other speaker, including the now completely irrelevant Zell Miller (recently replaced by Joe Lieberman)... We should judge McCain's ability to lead based on his judgment on past decisions and how they harmonize with what has proven good and bad. McCain comes up seriously wanting having contributed in great measure to America's current situation.

[thebirdstheword]

I'm sure the dems could find plenty of anti-mcflip-flop comments from romney, huckabee, etc. from the rethug primary if they want.

the once-mighty gop is looking more and more pathetic and weak by the day. woo-hoo.

[Bettysdad]

And we care what Ickes says because...?

[lbrillante]

This is from the man who confidently said on Sunday 'SHE WILL BE THE NOMINEE'. Two days later Senator Obama became the presumptive nominee. Ickes never wanted to acknowledge the fact that the DNC ruling effectively tampered with the primaries of Florida and Michigan and this made it impossible for the results to be a 'true and fair representation of the voters' of either state.
He does not seem to connect with some aspects of reality.

So I can confidently state, Yes He Can!

I am looking forward to the uplifting moment of President Barack Obama being sworn into office and I am certain it will be felt all over the world.

[thecanadian]

That poor deluded Man. Does he really think anyone cares what he thinks?
He has ruined his name and any chance of respect anytime soon with his
tirades.

[FlowerGirl]

Here is what I think of Mr. Ickes' predictions: I hope he will predict that Obama won't choose Hagel as his running mate. Because I think Chuck Hagel would be a great VP for Obama. He would help in the election by showing how serious Obama is about a new kind of politics. And he would be aan enormous help in governing the country.
Obama/Hagel 08

[midwestdoc]

Hagel has very reactionary views on most domestic issues, especially economic ones. it wouldn't make sense to have him as VP, since he'd either have to do a massive flip-flop or undermine most of the message.. As Secretary of Defense, however, especially announced soon after the convention, he'd be a great choice.

[mom2sons]

Let's focus on winning the GE. Get rid of all bad feelings, celebrate this weekend, go to Barack's website and sign up to volunteer and donate some money! Bond with Clinton supporters, they need to know we care for real.

[DHGallegos]

Amen to that. And also to let them know that if Obama does not win the White House because Clintons people wont support, they are not supporting her. With Obama in the WH she will have the ability for her legislation to pass without the Idiot Veto.

[not2plato]

Ickes is an icky liar. He is the past. He is not a progressive and he is useless to the future of our movement.

Go Obama, GO!!

[KillTheMessenger]

Ickes disqualified himself last week. No need to use his "comments" for anything but the daily feeding of the paper recycling bin. But that is probably where the Republicans are getting all of their "strategy" from these days...

[4wehttam]

Ickes, McAuliffe, Wolffson, Davis, B.Clinton, Penn.............these are ALL solid reasons not to give Hillary the VP slot.

Give her another post in your cabinet, Barack. Just not VP.

[glorysong]

It is so terrible that the RNC is going to use Hillary own words to cause trouble in the party. But Hillary should have ran a better campaign. How she did Obama Was a shame. What goes around come back around. I am happy he is looking for others VP for his running mate. She does not need to be his VP. Sorry, but I do not trust her. He would have to have eyes in the back of his head to keep a watch on her.

[sf94127]

Obama has huge uphill battle in the swing states where the level of mistrust is very high for him. He could spend the next 20 weeks trying to get over this hump alone.


Also, the economy is turning a corner (positive) and I crude oil will be at $90 or less by October.
So this takes a lot of the wind out of Obama's sails. For icing on the cake things might improve in Iraq.

[ImlayinMyRearViewMirror]

Some states popularly regarded as swing stated just aren't---Florida, for example. A turnaround in the economy that comes too close to the election almost certainly won't help the Republican candidate. Historically, the time frame that really matters is what the economy looks like six months before the general election.

[ImlayinMyRearViewMirror]

Some of the states called swing states, such as Florida, really aren't. Democrats simply can't win there, so why waste the time and the money? A late turn around in the economy almost certainly won't help McCain. Historically, the time frame that matters is six months before the general election.

[bgregs]

So, whose daily notes are you reading? Rove's? O'Reilly's, I know, Cheney's!!!!

[KillTheMessenger]

Pssst.... it's not opposite day today. Didn't they tell you in the daily troll telecon?

[RickO]

McCain can tell that to his supporters at his next Days Inn Conference Room rally, unless they're all at the stadium to hear Obama speak.

[ImlayinMyRearViewMirror]

One must have to be utterly starved for stimulation to attend a JMc speech. Hand pumping air into a deflated tire would be more pleasurable.

[OverIt]

Sad pushback indeed.

Especially since a good number of people who voted for Sen. Obama in the early contests didn't think he could win either. Not the primary and certainly their minds hadn't even traveled as far as the general election. From Iowa to New Hampshire to Nevada to South Carolina, thousands cast their vote not for who they thought was a shoe in for the win, but who they thought SHOULD win!

As he has marched on this incredible journey these past few months, Sen. Obama has proven to us that he CAN win! And we are all fired up and ready to go for November! Especially if this is the best that the Republicans have in their treasure chest. Harold Ickes previous statement regarding Obama's prospects is a testament to the monumental accomplishment he has achieved in earning the presidential nomination for the Democratic Party!

YES WE CAN!

[KillTheMessenger]

Since Iowa I knew he would win. There is something very powerful about the people in the heartland having the heart to vote for real change. It gave me tremendous hope. Thank you, Iowa!

If you build it, they will come! You built it... and they came.

[timm0]

"But if this is the best pushback Republicans can do during Unity Week, they're in for a long campaign."

THAT is an understatement. After watching mccain for a few days this week and reading about this, it's almost like their strategy is to go for the pity votes. Where the hell did their A-Team go??? They are sooooooooooo toast if "your sister's friend says you're stinky" is the best they can do.