US Features
Reconciliation or revenge: What does Hillary want?
Aug 22, 2008, 4:57 GMT
07/10/2008 - Hillary Clinton - Women for Obama Fundraiser Breakfast at the Hilton Hotel in New York on July 10, 2008 - Hilton Hotel - New York City, NY, USA © Janet Mayer / PR Photos
Washington - Hillary Clinton does not see herself as a loser. On the contrary, the closer she gets to the Democratic Party convention that opens Monday in Denver, Colorado, the more self- confident she appears.
A couple of weeks ago, the face of the former first lady still showed the marks of disappointment and the strains of the primary campaign.
However, she is shining once again. Even her laughter sounds clear and triumphant. It is the laugh of a woman who is aware of her own power: if she gives him the thumbs-down, Barack Obama might never reach the White House on November 4.
She and her husband, former president Bill Clinton, will play key roles in the Democratic Party convention in Denver, perhaps to answer what her legion of fervent supporters are wondering: Does Hillary Clinton want sincere reconciliation or belated revenge?
On the outside, the 60-year-old US Senator leaves no doubt of her loyalty to Obama as the nominee of their centre-left party.
'We may have started on different paths, but today our paths have merged,' Clinton has said.
She sounds like a loyal party soldier, and she has even made campaign appearances for Obama. Clinton vows to be doing her utmost to help her former rival reach the White House.
However, columnists warn that the Clintons keep casting doubts about Obama.
'Yes, she can' was a recent headline in The New York Times, a play on Obama's campaign slogan, which was intended to read as 'yes, she can mess things up for Obama.'
'Whatever insincere words of support the Clintons muster, their primal scream gets louder: He can't win! He can't close the deal! We told you so!' op-ed columnist Maureen Dowd wrote.
Dowd described the Clintons' feelings with a German word sometimes applied in English: 'Schadenfreude,' or joy at others' sorrow.
In fact, Hillary Clinton has taken a deep fall. She was once a strong favourite to winning the Democratic nomination and was way ahead in intra-party opinion polls. The couple had already lived in the White House for eight years, and a return seemed like destiny - a new dynasty in US politics.
But then the dream was destroyed, lost to a black candidate who was only elected to the US Senate in 2004.
However, Clinton knows her own power. She keeps bringing up the '18 million men and women' who voted for her in the primaries and made her the first woman in US history with a real chance to reach the presidency.
Such an accomplishment could not be brushed aside so easily, despite Obama's eventual victory in the nomination fight.
According to some opinion polls, as many as one in five of Clinton's supporters in the primaries are threatening to withhold their vote for the Democratic nominee in November. Some have even said they would rather vote for centre-right Republican John McCain over Obama.
The trend set alarm bells ringing within the Democratic Party. Obama finally conceded a major speaking role for the former first lady, who will address the convention on Tuesday night. She will even be allowed the unusual step of hearing her name placed in nomination for the state-by-state roll call vote on Wednesday night.
Thomas Mann, an scholar of US politics at the centre-left Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank, says that Hillary's prominence at the convention should not be a threat to Obama.
'It was a very close contest. She has many supporters at the convention and in the country, a number of whom have taken the loss very hard,' Mann said. 'I would say her presence is quite important.'
Nonetheless, some protests are expected in Denver. One group calls itself PUMA (Party Unity My Ass). Another group plans a parade and rally Tuesday in Denver to celebrate Clinton's accomplishments.
'Hillary will try to show the Democrats they chose the wrong savior,' Dowd wrote.
For some Clinton loyalists, her high profile in Denver has been balm on their wounds.
Mary Boergers, 62, a Maryland state senator who organized for Clinton during the state's primary election, said she had initially felt depressed about going to the convention when it appeared Hillary would be shut out of a major role in Denver.
'I don't remember ever as a delegate feeling bad about being at a convention and supporting my candidate,' Boergers said. Obama needed 'to be pulling people together and not mashing them into the ground.'
But when she heard that Hillary would allow herself to be nominated, 'it was the first I got excited about going.'
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By Joel Mowbray (Abridged)
Barack Obama - whether knowingly or not - provided false information about a controversial abortion vote he made in the Illinois Senate in 2003.
After his nationally televised interview with Pastor Rick Warren on Saturday night in Orange County, Calif., Mr. Obama sat down with Christian Broadcasting Network's David Brody and went on the attack against pro-life activists, whom he said were 'lying' about his vote to kill a bill protecting babies born alive following botched abortions.
At issue is an Illinois bill in 2003 called the Born Alive Infants Protection Act that Mr. Obama voted against, which was modeled on federal legislation enacted the previous year declaring that in failed abortions resulting in a live birth, the baby must be given normal medical treatment. This was in response to a gruesome practice whereby abortions involving induced labor were resulting in unintended live births - and those infants were simply being left to die. It had passed the U.S. Senate without any dissent.
Mr. Obama contended that he 'would have been completely in, fully in support of the federal bill that everybody supported,' but that he voted against the 2003 Illinois bill because 'that was not the bill that was presented at the state level.' Except that it was.
As it turns out - and as even Mr. Obama's campaign admitted Monday to the New York Sun - the National Right to Life Committee wasn't lying; Mr. Obama was. The specific difference cited by Mr. Obama in the CBN interview was that the Illinois bill didn't contain the federal legislation's language explicitly stating that it would not 'undermine Roe vs. Wade.' (This was not merely off-the-cuff, as the campaign had issued a written statement to CNN in June offering the same rationale.) Not only did the bill contain the exact provision from the federal bill, but Mr. Obama voted in favor of adding it as an amendment. After the state bill was changed to be almost identical to the unanimously passed federal law, Mr. Obama voted against it.[...]
Regardless of the reasons for his vote, Mr. Obama cannot say that his critics are lying. He did oppose a bill virtually identical to the one unanimously passed in the U.S. Senate. And now, five years later, he might end up paying a political price for that decision.
Barack Obama as next President of The United States of America
The die is cast and for reasons that only a privileged few know, you Sir, will be the next President of the United States of America. Your next 4 years will be a turning point in US history and planet earth. CHANGE, your advisors and high stake investors offer the nation will undoubtedly be the same rhetoric and empty promises that make up a political campaign, that campaigns for appointment for any public office in America.
The White House will be the Black House to some, the Aryan Brothers of America will not be so happy, but yet will blame you and your staff if you fail, which will reinforce their belief that the Aryan Nation is the true leader for America. The religious zealots will be busy bees making nests to survive the onslaught of lies, corruption and deceit. Business enterprises and other competing nations will capitalize off of your inexperience in the art of corruption and murder. The organized crime organizations from different nations including our own will benefit from the lack of control over national crime.
Military governments including our own will test your tolerance to pain and deception and trick you into needless and profitable domestic and international conflict. You will no doubt attempt to colorize your staff to soften the race conflict once in office.
As President you will be President. Nations will respect you only for your title of office. Americans will soon see after your appointment as President that your intentions were manipulated by those that make the rules. You will fill the spot in history as planned, and nothing more.
You will never while in office be able to pull the troops from conflict in any land we are engaged in. As a matter of fact we as a nation will be engaged in a new conflict of war, which will galvanize Americans to seek a different form of government and a different and honest Congress.
You will attempt to shore up Americas problems with false promise and lies, because you cannot directly affect the CHANGE you promised.
Your frustration will be your downfall while in office, and your co-dependence on those that you trust will also add to your demise.
Our Armed Forces in rank will respect you as good soldiers they are, but those under them will not, and for good reasons, that only a good soldier knows.
America will not be America until its government respects the People, and tells the truth. America is a Republic, not a Democracy or Fascist Government or is it?
Until you can walk thru the streets and neighborhoods of America unaided by Secret Service or any other law enforcement agency you will not be respected by the many, only by the fearful and selfish few. Americans can protect their leaders if they are honest and respectful of the people they were elected to serve. Our Government has forsaken us for many hundreds of years, and now we will wait until your 4 years are finished for us to come to fruition.
CHANGE FOR AMERICA FOR AMERICANS!
The American Republic
A Sovereign Republic
DITTO!
...we do too!
Revenge! I'm positive!
Wouldn't it be wonderful to kick 'patriot''s ass?
Because, after all, Hillary has such a full Resume':
White Water cover-up
FBI records scandal
Travel Office scandal
Mr. Hsu fund raising scheme
influence for sale through the Clinton Foundation
Puerto Rican terrorist Pardon for her Senate Run
Sandy Berglar pimping senate vote for $$
Lost Law Firm records
Greasy Commodity Trades
Why do you think Barak won't ask her to be VP? See the above list.
again Sp4.
...does not make wrong...even if I were waffling.
Also, the libnazi press all but outed Hillary as getting passed up by Obama for VP because of the Clintons 'creative' foundation work i.e. influence selling of her Senate vote. The word around the campfire was that they could not pass a V.P. backround check if they audited the foundation doners list.
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HRCAug 22nd, 2008 - 08:16:53
I hope she takes the convention away from him in a floor fight. The democrats would have a real candidate then.
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