Hillary in Limbo
Instead of being asleep last night, I was up until 1:30am listening to Dan Abrams and a rotating cast of reporters discuss the evening's events. Once I knew Rachel Maddow was going to be part of the team, I was automatically sucked in. Who better to make Tucker Carlson mind his P's and Q's -- just as Donna Brazile had done with Lou Dobbs earlier on CNN.
I definitely needed some help in sorting out what had transpired. I watched Hillary's speech. What started off with laudatory words exclaiming the honor to have been in the race with Obama and the statement, "I recognize him and his supporters for all they have accomplished," ended up on a totally different course. The path of, "I'm committed to uniting our party...with the best interests of our party and our country leading the way," morphed to "I will be making no decisions tonight; I will consult party leaders in days to come; and referencing the 18 million people who voted for her.
Then Obama spoke. He said, "Senator Hillary Clinton has made history in this campaign. I congratulate her on her victory in South Dakota, and on the race that she has run. Hillary will be central to the victory for universal health care... Our party and our country are better off because of Hillary Clinton."
The networks had declared Obama the presumptive nominee. Clinton had invited her supporters to e-mail and tell her what to do next (is this a plot for a new reality show?). Earlier in the day I had seen a YouTube clip of a woman screaming about how she was "being treated as a second class citizen" due to her gender, and that she wasn't going to shut up about it. She identified herself as being from Manhattan.
There was a quality to everything that felt like a cross between a Greek tragedy and a theater piece built on dysfunctional relationships, displacement of emotional issues, and murky psychology as its underpinnings.
From the beginning, women have been divided into two camps. Those who support Hillary, think it is time for a woman president, and are tired of being dissed by the patriarchy... and those who don't support Hillary, would like a woman president that reflects their sensibilities, and are tired of being undervalued by a male-dominated culture. And so it gets all mixed up.
There are a lot of "what-ifs." What if Hillary was Hillary Rodham and had never married Bill Clinton, coming to the public totally as her own entity, sans baggage? What if Hillary had been an outspoken critic of the war in Iraq from the beginning? What if Hillary could be steely and tough, without talking about "obliterating Iran" and knocking back shots of whiskey with beer chasers? What if women are aching for a female president, but just don't like who Hillary is?
There's so much anger. Passions are strong, tempers are short, and resentments run deep. While there was talk about how historic the night was, seeing as an African-American had won the nomination of his party, every comment was punctuated by the questions about Hillary. On CNN, Gloria Borges said that she had received an e-mail from a viewer writing, "This needed to be Hillary Clinton's night." Jeffrey Toobin's response was that it reflected "the deranged narcissism of the Clintons." Did Clinton put the spotlight on herself and miss an opportunity to advance the cause of party unity? Another talking head suggested, "This isn't the speech of a second fiddle. She's still talking about why she is the stronger candidate." It was noted that in her address to the crowd she spoke about women, but not African-Americans.
When I finally went to bed, the rumors where still flying. She wants to be Vice-President. She doesn't want to be Vice-President... but she doesn't want Obama to take another woman on the ticket. She's sending Bill back to his Harlem office to get him out of the way... she wants job appointments for both herself and Bill. The last word in was that the two candidates had finally connected by telephone.
Who knows what the next scenario (or is it news cycle) will be? Will it be a King Solomon situation, where one candidate suggests that the baby be cut in half, and the other gives the baby up in order to save its life? Too allegorical? Maybe I just didn't get enough sleep, and it's beginning to feel like the movie Groundhog Day.
Follow Marcia G. Yerman on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mgyerman
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Hillary had every right to be congratulated - she won South Dakota and almost every primary since February. Barack finally won it all but if you look at the Pew Polls, he is dead even with McCain... at a time when the Democratic Party should be looking at a clear path to victory.
Stop the personality bashing and the anti-Hillary viciousness (which I equate with anti female power)- Instead we have to beat McCain and the two of them can do it together - united. This is politics- the art of power. GET REAL. Obama and Clinton's policy proposals are very similar - as opposed to McCain who will continue this deadly war, put in more right-wing Supreme Ct. justices (we know we will most probably lose one at least during the next 4 years), cut social security, continue abrogating the Constitutional rights of the individuals amd most importantly continue this deadly war - where more Iraqis and Americans will die or be maimed needlessly.
What other candidate can help propel Obama to victory? Jim Webb? Where is his experience except as Secretary of the Navy....c'
Name one, just ONE other candidate who got bested in a primary who did NOT graciously concede victory to the winner?
Clinton is toxic waste at this point.
Catch up on the news, this whole "dream ticket" it's not happening!
Let Hillary instead concentrate on bringing her supporters under the unity tent, opposed to promoting her own political agenda and that of her husband.
Plus, Hillary has the potential to drive away a lot Independents whose help Obama is going to need to win this election in the fall, not to mention the issues with Bill's finances among other things...
Let's start fresh by letting Obama's new committee find someone who can be effective. Besides how can you parade around preaching a message of change, with the Clintons who represent the old ways right behind you every step of the way.
I am stunned when people don't see what an incredibly BAD idea it would be for her to be on the ticket.
Hillary is plainly trying to manipulate her way into the the vice presidency of Barack Obama.
I think she has too much "baggage" and completely contradicts Obama's message of "Change." I think there are many better choices for Obama to consider such as Jim Webb, or Claire McCaskill if Hillary wouldn't throw a fit.
Yerman brings out some interesting points about the split in the feminist community and in the Democratic party in general.
I just hope the party unites in November. Clinton supporters are making me nervous for the state of their minds and this country.
Lot of confusion here. Reality is: Obama is going to run against McCain. He will win or lose. With or without Hillary Clinton. We'll just let it play out.
Rush Limbaugh is laughing all the way to the Republican convention. He hoodwinked a whole lot of folks with his campaign for Republicans to cross over and vote for Hillary to get her on the ticket with McCain. Even Hillary acts like she believes that she won the popular vote. By the time you count the Republican screw-up-t
She doesn't deserve an appointment as dog catcher...
Marcia, congratulations! You have managed to say nothing in such a large space. Hillary failed because of people like you who continue to live in some drugged out Arnold Schwarzenegger world where might makes right. Simply put: Marcia, you and your ilk failed her by not demanding a fair and level campaign. Instead, you cheered her on while she continued to belittle a candidate that had every intention of keeping it clean and debating substantive policy. Obama could have attacked Hillary on any one of her 50 scandals and yet this noble man rejected those politics out of hand. Marcia, you failed.
Hillary would have been the nominee had she voted against the war and developed a spine to do what was right in Washington. Period! She should have dumped her DLC cronies and run a true progressive campaign. Instead she took the Rovian course that has led to the systematic defiling of the US Constitution and the unnecessary death of hundreds of thousands of people. There is no amount of polish that is going to make that turd shine. Truly, Marcia, you have failed.
OK, time to breathe.
Hello?! Are you reading the same article as everybody else here?!
I think you missed the point...
It's pretty obvious just from the content that Yerman is pro-Obama.
It seems to me that she was outraged by Hillary's behavior and performance last night too, as were many of us.
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