Reply #54: You are reading more into this than I meant or believe [View All]

First I did not say that I thought "Hope" was all Obama offers. Clearly it isn't. I was writing you a short note in reply to your heart felt OP responding to the theme you yourself highlighted. I was sharing personally with you Frenchie, trying to respond in a tone that corresponded with yours. You mentioned your personal decision making path, and I mentioned mine. My reply was never meant to be a political debate on the reltive qualifications and/or assets that either candidate brings to our common table. I had no interest in using your OP to start a political debate between us on this, and I am sorry if my intentions were unclear or misunderstood.

For the record Frenchie I do not believe either Hillary or Bill Clinton wanted John Kerry to lose in 2004. Whatever others may think of Dean, I do not think that either Clinton offered the limited support that they did to Clark in 2004 when they did because they were afraid that Howard Dean was our strongest candidate who would thus deprive Hillary of a chance to run in 2008 unless someone stopped him. They didn't have to offer Clark any support at all if they wanted Dean to win the nomination, it then looked like he was going to be the nominee. They may not have helped Clark much but I have no doubt that they could have talked him out of running if they wanted to, giving Dean a clearer path to the nomination.

Before twisting ourselves into paranoid theories I have a much simpler explanation for what I wrote. Hillary Clinton no doubt believed Al Gore was going to win in 2000. I think she was always hoping to run in 2008, if things worked out, after Gore's two terms in office were up. When she ran for her first term as New York Senator in 2000 she made a pledge to New York's voters that she would finish that full term in office. She couldn't know then that Gore would lose. That would have taken her through 2006 as a Senator. Hillary already had to deal with a element of "carpet bagger" criticism by moving to NY to run for that seat. She honestly would have looked like an unprincipled opportunist if she broke that pledge to NY's voters after making that pledge to them, after they accepted her as their Senator. Hillary kept that pledge and I certainly hope no one here is going to damn her for that.

Hillary is still young enough that she could have run for President in 2012 had Kerry been elected in 2004. That is just 4 years from now and Hillary would just be completing her second term as a U.S. Senator then.

Honestly Frenchie I was trying to be emotionally supportive toward you in my post, because you seemed depressed that Clinton will become our nominee. I wasn't trying to slam Obama or talk you into Hillary. Because of your reaction I am sorry I posted on your thread. I still hope you do not lose hope, either because Obama wins or because you find some other reason to hold onto it.