US Politics

California Dreaming!

The Reality

While the death throes of the Clinton campaign appear to be imminent, this suggestion is hotly disputed by those on Clinton’s payroll.  One can only speculate as to why they continue to be engaged in further fundraising unless it is to pay outstanding and current bills from a replenished war chest previously emptied by poor financial planning and management.

The agony of Hillary Clinton evidenced by her mood swings and aggressive behaviour, is now being channeled to a diminishing number of her supporters.  Theirs is a different kind of agony, it lies in the waiting, the wondering, the despairing for what is, and for what might have been.  Their hopes turning to ashes.  Though not as bad a losing an NBL or Superbowl final I imagine?

The Demands

Second place delivers no happy endings in the game of politics.  History reminds us. It is the ultimate blood sport. Imagine for a moment, you are a candidate trying to keep a failing campaign afloat while hoping for a miracle. To begin with, consider the campaigning itself and what that entails, the endless travel, a different bed in a different town nearly every night, the feel good, but often unrealisable promises you have to make, the millions of never to be seen again faces, the information overload about the campaign, its financing, its marketing and its progress and having to deal with all types of media, the internal campaign rows, and to top it off, the multiple daily speeches in which you deliver the same repetitive mind numbing rhetoric [the stump speech] while across the street the media is highlighting the many thousands more attending your opponents rallies. OK you can relax now. Your campaign is finished. Hands up those who still wants to be a politician?

That sinking feeling

As the possibility of losing begins to dawn on the troubled candidate the dynamics of their campaign undergoes real change.  Initially what appeared to energise and at times inspire an audience no longer seems to move or appeal.  The same words feel less potent, less appealing and even lack motivation. Without a completely new approach, you realise now is the time to stop. Most don’t.  No one wants to be called a quitter.

The emotional drain 

The fear of failure can grip a candidate like a paralysis.  The pressure is tiring and everything becomes harder mentally and physically. Dashed hopes are soul destroying and the body reacts in sympathy. One’s confidence level ebbs and flows like the tide.  It’s like tilting at windmills.  The words you started out with, the one’s which had early audiences on their feet now fail to strike an accord, all at once your words seem hollow and without meaning. That is when you know you are running on empty. From the walls of the arena your final words seem to echo ” It’s over, it’s finished, no one is listening any more, go home. It is then you know. The hope train has departed. 

A form of Flattery

Returning now to the Clintons.  Earlier in the campaign Hillary tried to avoid using the words ‘hope or change’.  She didn’t want to remind people of her opponent. Then when she saw how well they resonated in her opponent’s campaign, she and just about everyone else including the Republicans, began using them.  All  except the former Governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney.

Mr Romney said ‘change’ and not much of it, was all people would have left in their pockets once Obama got hold of the economy. Comedy isn’t his strong suit.  Neither apparently is campaigning.  After a  failed attempt to buy the Presidency with between $30 to $40 million of his own money, he dipped his lid to John McCain, said a few nice words to save face and then left for parts unknown. The Caribbean maybe? “Airport, please driver, private jet terminal if you will”. Billionaires can do that.

Meanwhile Hillary wasn’t shy about changing tactics to try and catch up with Obama. She injected lots of ’hope’ and bucketfuls of ‘change’ into her stump speech.  The rationale being that no one should have a monopoly on great political words and besides once she had gotten the nomination who other than Obama would really care. Probably true. But I bet she wished she’d used them first. No prizes for second.  

Annoyance

Then there was the other matter. Clinton appeared extremely annoyed that the  MSNBC  mediator in Ohio would not accept her complaint at the beginning of the debate about having to respond first, to the first question. The debate couldn’t proceed while she raised the argument.  Judging by the audience reaction, they were not impressed. It was another example of an attempt by Clinton to take control of the agenda. It had occurred in the previous CNN debates.  This time she failed. However with her repeated attempts to have second bites after each Obama response, the first question took up 16 minutes of the allotted 87 mins, before the mediator had to intervene. Senator Clinton then made matters worse by complaining that the media had not examined Barack Obama nearly as much as she had been over the years. By a strange coincidence Bill was out trying to sell that idea elsewhere as well.  That’s real team work.

The Media Vultures

With years of practice, Washington watching media vultures by instinct can scent when a campaign is nigh on finito.  Armed with their laptops and blackberries they’ll descend on Texas and Ohio on March 4, like a disturbed nest of angry hornets. Should Clinton happen to lose either of the big states their front page reports will sting just as badly. 

For Hillary Clinton next Tuesday’s result won’t exactly represent her career Ides of March but the pain of a major loss by her campaign at this point will be just as sharp as if struck by a Brutus dagger. In private, I am sure she realises that the Obama Vs Clinton debate in Ohio, was probably her campaign’s final curtain. Of course last campaign rites are perhaps premature, however it does appear that her campaign’s condition is terminal.  They can change campaign tactics, but they can’t change the real Hillary. Which one is that by the way?

NB.  Scenes in this brief video speak volumes about Senator Clinton’s fitness to occupy the most important office in the free world. Judge for yourself.

Final Words

Senator Clinton only has only herself and her husband to blame for the conduct of her campaign. It reminds me of the old saying ‘Everythings bigger in Texas’. If the people of Texas and Ohio decide for Barack Obama next Tuesday many around the world will applaud. 

The advantages Hillary Clinton had enjoyed coming into the campaign were enormous. World wide name recognition, a former First Lady, a sitting US Senator with the benefit of having a campaign adviser in her husband, a former US President. At the beginning of the primaries hardly anyone in the DNC heirarchy appreciated what an amazing new talent was emerging to challenge the status quo, until Barack Obama broke through to win 11 states straight after Super Tuesday.

Up till then Clinton was regarded as certain to take the nomination. No one else was really on the radar. The mood in the Clinton Camp was quite cavalier. However like the underlying power of an early developing tsnami something important had been missed.  Political pundits could see Clinton leading.  So what, they thought. What they couldn’t see was the emerging and continually growing force of a massive people’s movement which constantly re-funds itself in Obama’s name.  In many ways similar to a stealthy military force like the elite SAS, living off the land while always advancing.  

Once the former Republican Senator Bob Dole woke up to what was happening he snidely suggested on MSNBC that the Obama movement appeared to be a cult led by a sort of Pied Piper. That sort of attitude only encourages opposition. So much for his kind of political experience.

When the history of this campaign is written, it will record that Hillary Clinton’s campaign for which she has been entirely reponsible, has displayed a paucity of  skills in a number of important areas.  Including a lack of communication skills, financial management skills and a campaign which has failed tactically and suffered from a lack of direction and consistency post Super Tuesday.  Hardly a resume for  someone wishing to occupy the Oval office. Destination WPB.

In contrast with all of the other Democratic candidates, including the Republicans, Barack Obama’s leadership has walked away with all of the awards for campaign management in all areas. Most funds raised by donation, most individual donors, most new young voters, largest attendances, best advertising, most diverse range of voting support. etc.

In the eyes of many, Clinton’s failing campaign has been less about policy difference and more about her judgement and personality traits when compared to Obama.  Matters such as her voting for the war in Iraq, her demeanour under pressure and her often aggressive attitude and choice of words has cost her dearly.  Her dramatic mood swings have been widely ridiculed in all quarters. I was more reminded of the 1957 Academy award winning movie, the ‘Three faces of Eve’ which starred Joanne Woodward [Best actress award], playing a woman with three distinctly different personalities.  In stark contrast with Hillary Clinton people appear to be very impressed with Obama’s persona and the calm reasoned intelligenge he displays in dealing with policy positions while still extending politeness and courtesy to his opponent.

Should Barack Obama win the Democratic Party’s nomination his achievement in overcoming all of the imposing advantages his opponent enjoyed may one day be compared to Democrat Harry S Truman’s surprise defeat of Republican Thomas E Dewey in 1948.  As yet, still regarded as the biggest upheaval in American political history. A record sure to be eclipsed if Barack Obama manages to make it to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave in January 2008.  Go Obama yes we can.

Email: john@tellingthoughts.com
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