Daily Kos is a website I check daily but rarely understand. Who are these people? Occasionally they’ll breakdown some interesting facts on the GOP. Sometimes they write stuff that is objective and progressive. Yet I can’t get over how often Kos-sters sound ideologically undemocratic. Take this post from yest, by “dansac,” on why Hillary shouldn’t be VP.
We’ve all gone through the reasons over and over as to why it’s a bad idea - or, as I prefer to say - a horrible, insane, catastrophic idea.
But let me throw just this one: Obama will be placed into an incredibly weak position if he is unable to make the VP selection for himself. By being “forced” into taking Clinton (and no amount of eloquent speech-making on his part would convince anyone that he was anything other than forced), he will instantly seem smaller, less presidential, and a less powerful figure.
Talk about hyperbole—”insane, horrible, catastrophic.” How would Obama seem less Presidential if he compromised and reconciled with his opponent? Isn’t that politics? Nonetheless, the question remains: Who is a better running mate than a woman (over 55% of Dems are women) with the second largest following in Democratic politics? Bill Richardson? C’mon. Over 50% of Dems support a joint ticket, 35% say no, with 15% undecided. Thus Hillary is the peoples’ choice. But who cares about the will of the people…
Count me as one who thinks the VP nomination is overrated. It rarely hurts a presidential nominee (although, in certain circumstances it can help). But this is a selection that absolutely would hurt our nominee.
First, the VP has become an entirely new position under Bush. Cheney has expanded the office’s power in unprecedented fashion. VP does matter.
Second, using conventional wisdom (VP “rarely hurts a nominee”) in an unconventional race (black man and a woman) is pointless. No one knows how race and gender will play in a general election—it’s never happened before. And what evidence suggests it would hurt Obama? The rate of Hillary voters who say they won’t vote Obama is approx 20%. Bringing them 100% back under the big tent is a good thing, no?
But let us no longer delude ourselves: the Clintons want this. They want on the ticket. This is a fact. And by doing so, they will instantly knee-cap our nominee and in their own special way help the Democratic ticket collapse.
By repeating her claims of disenfranchisement, comparing herself to the abolitionists, and raising the specter of Florida in 2000, she is stoking the passions of her supporters and, in no subtle way, is claiming that she was robbed of this nomination.
She must shut it down. The super delegates must shut it down. And Obama should resist every pressure to put this self-destructive person on the ticket.
Yes, the Clintons are going a bit crazy on FL/MI right now. Retroactively calling to legitimize votes they agreed were illegitimate is a bit much. Still, there’s no evidence that Hillary as VP would hurt Obama’s White House bid. All polling suggests the opposite!
And telling a fellow Democrat to stop running in a close race “because it may hurt Obama” is downright undemocratic. She has every right to run—and lose. Jeff N said it best on this site when all the “sit down Hillary” talk began, mocking, “What does this bitch think this is, America or something?”
I get it: Obama-Kos-sters are upset the Clintons employed their brand of knock-around politics against Sir Hopes-a-Lot. But what did people expect? The Clintons are who they are. They remain the second most popular brand in the land, which is exactly why Hillary should be considered for the number 2 spot.
Sometimes I wonder how this whole Hope thing became (for some) such an absolutist ideology.
TAGS: election, GOP, Hillary, joint ticket, NPR, NSA, obama, Politics, Race
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