As long as he decides to deal with Bill Clinton directly he allows pictures and stories like this to dominate the campaign, which is exactly what the Clintons want. When people see a pic like this, and then they see the Clinton name on the ballot, they think they might as well be voting for Bill, handing Hillary another victory. Just like the race argument, which he fell into, which isolates Obama as a single-issue race candidate, Barack Obama has dived right into this new Clinton trap. And if he is going to address Bill directly, he needs to be extremely aggressive. You wouldn’t approach a rapid bull with gentility, now would you?
You are completely spot on in your analysis of how Obama is falling into the trap of appearing like he’s running against Bill. It shows his lack of political savvy and the absolute cunning of the Clintons.
No other commentator I’ve heard is connecting these dots, Tammy. As usual, you’re ahead of the curve.
Indeed. Senator Obama is in a no-holds-barred fight with the twin pillars of ruthlessness in American politics, Bill and Hillary Clinton. Unless he is willing to take them on in kind, he will not only lose the nomination, Senator Obama’s political career will be destroyed. The Clintons take no prisoners. Randy.
I’d love to see some fur fly between these two!!! hissss hissss pssst pssssstt!!
Hillary had to run in order for Bill to get back in the white house and start running things again…the confrontations Bill has with people, whether it’s Obama or the press, will either turn off her supporters, or bring in the fence riders who might not care for her, but LOVED her husband…after all, he’s standin’ by his woman…
It will be interesting to see how Obama handles himself against the enemy…Bill and or the terroists…
Obama could campaign against the Clintons by point out that they are lying, thieving crooks who have perfected the politics of personal destruction and who made a mess of things when they last held power.
But Obama knows that would violate the MSM-enforced omerta. Democrats are not held responsible for their crimes – ever. In fact, Democrats have never committed any crimes.
Obama is no fool, and knows that he stands an excellent chance of not only losing the nomination but his Senate seat as well if he pushes too hard on the corruption angle. Thus, he plays the race card – even though the Clintons are far better at it. It is all that he has left.
The problem is that while Bill Clinton is a worthless slimy self-important douchebag, he is also the most talented politician of his generation by orders of magnitude, and immensely popular. For all self-importance, while they both need each other to temper their excesses, Hillary needs Bill way more than he needs her.
I do not agree with Obama’s politics in the slightest, but I find him very personally likeable, which is why I feel very sorry for what might easily be about to happen to him. The Clintons are the living definition of Machiavellian when it comes to their pursuit of power. God help anyone who crosses them.
For all his faults as a politician – George W. Bush is a very decent, basically kindhearted human being. Bill Clinton is a cynical, vain, and mean spirited bully.
There’s the primary and then there’s the general. If Bill is pulling out all the stops to beat this ‘clean, articulate’ little upstart, then I think he’s –pardon the pun– shot his wad in the primary. Hillary’s soiled with looking weak and unable to control him. Clinton fatigue will ensue and she’ll lose big. He has a much less willing media in 2008 than he had in 1992. Thank goodness for the blogosphere and pundits like Tammy et al. Keep reminding us that the Empress has no clothes. And, if she does, it’s got someone’s DNA all over it.
“Clinton fatigue will ensue…”
Haven’t we been saying that for 20 years now, ever since he upstaged Dukakis with his endless keynote speech at the Democratic convention in 1988? At this point, I’d say we practically have to consign the very idea of “Clinton fatigue” to the wishful thinking bin.
Looking at neck vein bulging Bill Clinton doing down the black man, I’m thinking: isn’t he the ‘redneck’ apotheosis of the poor angry white man we used to hear about?
If Obama wants to stay viable, he should ignore all racial angles and not allow the Clintons to push him into identity politics. Hucklechucle went down the “Im a real evangelical Christian” path and may have locked up the 15% ardent non-smoking, non-drinking, non-gambling core evangelicals, but he scares many other people who are Christians in faith, but do not want a Christian theocracy for one of the three braches of our government.
Hillary will start tieing him up with talk of slavery reparations, or any other Al Sharpton / Louis Farracan speak that devide black voters, and force Obama to do the actual splitting and dividing himself. Obama should point out all the things that Hillary has failed at (like nanny-state healthcare) and promise to get them done, and done right.
I wouldn’t vote for the guy, but I just hate to see the guy play into the Clintonistas hands, and be pushed toward political self-destruction.
I beg to differ…I think this excess of Slick Willie will backfire. Folks will tire of his emotional rants. They will also see it as an unlevel playing field.
That the Clintons are SO desperate to return to power is already transparent to many of us. More people will hopefully figure this out.