An increasing number of commentators are coming to the realization that it is almost impossible for Hillary Clinton to win the Democratic nomination. The superdelegates are not going to overrule the pledged delegates, and they never were going to. The New York Times' David Brooks suggested on Meet the Press on Sunday that Hillary Clinton should begin to run as Mike Huckabee eventually did, staying in the campaign until North Carolina even though there is little chance of winning, while avoiding attacks on the presumptive nominee and building goodwill among Obama supporters. Whether or not Hillary Clinton takes Brooks' advice, it's clear she is going to lose, and its clear she ran a nasty campaign. Despite the nastiness directed at him, however, Obama should be thanking Bill Clinton for one thing: his campaign nomination is unthinkable without him.
It was not so long ago--just twenty years, perhaps even less--that race was arguably the central political issue in American life. From the L.A. riots in 1990 to the O.J. Simpson trial, race dominated the headlines and the concerns of every American. In the 1988 election, race was pivotal in the notorious Willie Horton ads, which featured the African-American Horton being let out of prison and going on a raping and killing spreed--and the Democratic nominee Michael Dukakis being responsible for his crimes. As Thomas and Mary Edsall described in their classic 1991 book Chain Reaction, instead of discussing race outright, the Republican Party was focusing on America's crime and drug problems. Since blacks committed crimes at higher rates and had higher drug abuse rates than whites, the Republicans were stoking racial hostility as well. The GOP used code terms like welfare, affirmative action and big government in order to whip up fears of blacks among white Americans.
To a large extent, Bill Clinton was responsible for, if not entirely neutralizing, then at least weakening, the effectiveness of such racist appeals. Clinton was the Governor of Arkansas and hence trusted in a way the Northerners Dukakis and Walter Mondale had not been. More importantly, he had read Chain Reaction, and he had learned from the failed George McGovern campaign (which he worked on). As chair of the Democratic Leadership Council, Clinton had understood how crucial fiscal restraint and crime-fighters were positions for the Democrats to reclaim. By marrying tough-on-crime action with welfare reform and pledging to fight big government, Clinton rendered traditional Republican appeals to race largely ineffective. Unlike Republicans, though, Clinton made no nods in the directions of racists, and had an unprecedented relationship with black voters. Toni Morrison famously called him the first black president, though no doubt many blacks would disagree with such a statement now (if they didn't then).
Both Frank Rich and Paul Krugman have argued there is a declining significance of race in American politics. Obama surely agrees with them--he believed before many others that he could actually capture the nomination. To the extent that he is right, and America is a more colorblind country, Obama--and all of us--have Bill Clinton in large part to thank.
Continuing nonsense in the minds of a select few Clinton supporters of the 90s who think blacks should constantly fall down on their knees and thank the Clintons. Cause things were so great in inner-city L.A. after those riots and through the rest of the 90s right? Gang violence disappeared. Poor people in all of the major cities were miraculously uplifted, welfare moms disappeared over night because the media said so and "crack babies" who we were told had life-long problems magically disappeared? And we quit massively over-incarcerating young African-American men for minor drug offenses in the 90s right, thus continuing the cycle of an entire generation in jail and children born out of wedlock. Oh wait, that didn't happen. The Clinton 90s were not the dream, especially for African Americans, you're making them out to be.
Look I know this was an honest and well-meaning column, I'm not at all charging it with any racial superiority or stereotyping, but it is to say the least patronizing. Well-meaning, but patronizing.
entitelment of the worst kind.
Bill Clinton Owes Obama a thank you it was Obama that was running voter registeration in Chicago in 91-92 when Bill was running for president.
And Americans will go on listening to the talking heads who told us how Bush was comfortable in his skin and Gore is not. Now Hillary's character is being destroyed daily and she is being blamed to ruin the Democratic party.
When people hate they can't think straight.
It feels like this country, which has voted nearly 50/50 for decades has started to shift to a 25/75, and the democratic party is rapidly vaporizing.
What I see in Obama is not the kinder, gentler America that he is trying to sell. Who else tried that one? We don't know who he is, the contradictions between who he says he is and what can be proven about him ring way too familiar to the past 7+ years. He doesn't know who he is; if he discovers people like another person's ideas better, he tries to quietly slide into their position and hope everyone believes it was his idea first. This country needs to wake up before it's too late, and it would be really nice if more people in the media would take responsibility for researching this candidate and reporting what they find straight up honest, and accurate.
Obama owes his family and people in the Civil Rights movement who fought for equality. If Bill is part of that movment then he is part of that movement. As far as owing him when he was President I guess I saw things differently. Since Bill Clinton is supposedly such a champion of AA since he was presumably according to Morrison the first Black President you would think that he would be Proud of Obama instead Bill Clinton basically said he is NOT qualfied. Obama doesnt owe him anything. I personally was hoping at that debate when he was asked that question OBama would have said NO he is not our first Black President.
Carol
He owes him for constantly sticking his foot in his mouth.
He owes him for teaching Shrillary how to campaign like Karl Rove
He owes him for an inability to count.
Yeah, I guess he owes Bill an awful lot and next year after his innauguration he can have him over for a big ol fish fry!!!!
We have to imagine change before it becomes possible.