WP, E.J. Dionne: Hillary Hobbled by Hubby

Hobbled by Hubby
By E. J. Dionne Jr.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008; Page A19


Bill Clinton stumps Saturday for his wife in Independence, Mo. (Charlie Riedel/AP)

....Over the weekend, loyalists spoke with feeling about what they see as a tragedy that has engulfed Hillary Clinton, whose comeback in New Hampshire after her defeat in Iowa was entirely her own doing. It was the product of an intense work ethic and a moment in which she finally conveyed personal passion about the purpose of her candidacy.

In one town meeting after another, she showed her mastery of the issues the next president will confront and was especially effective in conveying her concern for voters who had suffered from economic setbacks. This bolstered her core theme: that she was more prepared than Obama to be president. And even as her husband's positive campaigning reminded Democrats of why they liked him, Hillary Clinton came across as her own person.

Bill Clinton's heavy-handedness in South Carolina undercut her achievement. "She was moving," said one Clinton veteran now inclined toward Obama, "and then he got in the way." As a result, said an adviser still loyal to Hillary Clinton, her campaign will need to spend the next week refocusing attention on her own ideas and experience -- and encouraging her husband to return to a supporting role.

In truth, Clinton and Obama both face electoral obstacles that would naturally confront any candidate seeking to break barriers of race or gender....But the South Carolina struggle may have shifted the balance of risk in a way that favors Obama. His candidacy has created excitement that Clinton's has not, and that was palpable at yesterday's rally in Washington, where several members of the Kennedy family offered him their political blessing. As the Kennedy endorsements underscored, Obama has the potential of mobilizing new energies among African Americans, and among young and well-educated voters generally. Ted Kennedy's campaigning could also bolster Obama's standing among Latinos, who have favored Clinton.

In the meantime, Democrats worry far more than they did even two weeks ago that Hillary Clinton will have great difficulty in escaping the negative aspects of her husband's legacy....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/28/AR2008012802338.html?nav=hcmodule

So boiling his article down amounts to...less Bill, more tears.

Sounds like a winning platform to me.
:eyes:

She didn't win just because she teared up but because she was the candidate, she did well with her crowds and it was her, showing her strengths. What happened in South Carolina distracted from all that and to the detriment of her effort.

I go to another board that deals with entertainment, not politics. In fact, if politics are mentioned, we have to put up a warning, because many there don't want to even discuss it! Well, someone started a Politics thread back before the SC primary, and people are still posting on it. Two folks who say they are independents remarked that they felt Mr. Clinton's actions hurt his wife. Interestingly enough, the one poster who has stated they are for Obama said nothing negative at all about Mr. Clinton.

I'm not reporting this to start a flamefest. I'm reporting this to show that even amongst those not as politically involved as we are, Mr. Clinton's actions were noticed, and not in a positive light.

He sure loves him some Obama.

Like all of the pundits - watching them express their love of Obama has become very uncomfortable. Its like walking into your parent's bedroom at the wrong time - you really wish you hadn't seen it and hoped they didn't really do it.

I am proud to be an American, notice the absence of the disrespectful spelling.

He was told after his surgery that bi-pass surgery can sometimes affect mental faculties, to greater and lesser degrees. I think he said the term he heard to refer to people such as this are Popheads.

If Clinton's remarks were as some say, heavy-handed, it's not a stretch to say that he just may not be as sharp as he once was. Anyway, could be a factor in all of this.

that his thinking was different after bypass surgery, although it seemed to affect him most in the areas of attention, and mathematical figuring. It distressed him quite a bit.

That is so true. After NH, Hillary really had momentum and could have really all but wrapped up the nomination.

Instead, this has turned into a horse race with rumors of a brokered convention.