Reply #161: The problem with Hillary is Hillary. She has never taken the time to find out who she is. [View All]

So naturally, she can't let us know who she is.

She writes a book advocating community nurture of each child, "It Takes a Village." Then Lakoff writes about how Republicans want strong father figures and Democrats want a nurturing parent, and suddenly, like Jekell & Hyde, we have this strong woman, this strident authoritative figure. True, she was never a cookie-baker, but she seems to have gone to the extreme in trying to prove that she can be as tough as a man. Hillary is whatever seems to be selling at the moment. It is not just the Republicans who sense that something does not fit. A lot of Democrats are uneasy too. It is one thing for a candidate to change stands on issues. That is understandable and may suggest learning. But to try to sell the public on a new personality, that is a different story.

My biggest personal problem with Hillary (I have quite a few) is her economic viewpoint. We need a president who will put the interests of ordinary Americans ahead of those of big business. Bill did not do that, and Hillary will not do that. They talk populist talk, but they will, as they did before, balance the budget at the expense of the middle class and the poorest among us, make excuses instead of health care law, privatize and deregulate like Republicans, enter into trade agreements that hurt what is left of our industrial base, spend like a drunken sailor on defense in order to please campaign donors, and pursue policies of deregulation and increased immigration that depress wages. We don't need a Hillary Clinton presidency. She is Republican-lite.

Besides, there are the ridiculous and irrelevant rumors going around about her which, fair or not, like it or not, are part of the generally accepted folklore of the country. Just try to persuade an ordinary, opinionated, ignorant Republican that Hillary and Bill were not involved and did not cover up their involvement in the deaths of Vince Foster and who knows how many others. You won't get anywhere because you can't prove a negative.

And then there are the very good, honest reliable Democrats who believe that the Bill/Hillary marriage is a sham. And a certain percentage of the "marriage is a sham" group actually believe that Hillary is a closeted lesbian. They will tell you that they don't really care whether she is. They just talk about that theory because it supports the vague feeling that many of us have that Hillary is not honest about herself.

True, the Republicans will try to demolish the character of any candidate we propose. But, you have to admit, they have a head start when it comes to Hillary. Hillary just cannot win. Her candidacy is not realistic. And if she becomes the candidate and loses in November 2008, the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, the wing we belong to, the wing made up of the supporters of the more electable candidates like Edwards, Obama and/or even the not so obviously electable Kucinich, Biden and Dodd is going to have a hard time sticking with the Democratic Party. So, in addition to being unelectable, there is a very good chance that Hillary's nomination could destroy our party.