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A recent piece in the Times (of London) Online suggests that Hillary Clinton may back out of her presidential bid.
I find this plausible. I think she is unlikely even to win the nomination.
To begin with, she is in the difficult situation of being the early frontrunner. Democrats hate frontrunners, and almost always eat them alive. This perhaps has to do with their self-perception as champions of society’s underdogs.
At least as deadly, in her strategic move to the centre in order to make herself more electable, she has painted herself into a hawk, particularly on Iraq. And she, and we, have just seen Joe Lieberman go down to defeat in his own party’s primary on this issue. She is now going to be, at best, a divisive figure even within her own party. The field is wide open for another Democratic candidate to pillory her on this from the left.
Polls suggest she now has more negatives than any other major candidate on either side. If she won the nomination, it might be a Democratic bloodbath on the order of Chicago in ‘68. For the sake of the party, she should probably stand aside.
***
I note that, in a recent issue, The Economist has promoted Jean-Marie Le Pen, whom they used to formulaically refer to as a “thug,” to “that wily old trooper.”
It is all reminiscent of Ionesco’s play, “Rhinoceros.”
I find this plausible. I think she is unlikely even to win the nomination.
To begin with, she is in the difficult situation of being the early frontrunner. Democrats hate frontrunners, and almost always eat them alive. This perhaps has to do with their self-perception as champions of society’s underdogs.
At least as deadly, in her strategic move to the centre in order to make herself more electable, she has painted herself into a hawk, particularly on Iraq. And she, and we, have just seen Joe Lieberman go down to defeat in his own party’s primary on this issue. She is now going to be, at best, a divisive figure even within her own party. The field is wide open for another Democratic candidate to pillory her on this from the left.
Polls suggest she now has more negatives than any other major candidate on either side. If she won the nomination, it might be a Democratic bloodbath on the order of Chicago in ‘68. For the sake of the party, she should probably stand aside.
***
I note that, in a recent issue, The Economist has promoted Jean-Marie Le Pen, whom they used to formulaically refer to as a “thug,” to “that wily old trooper.”
It is all reminiscent of Ionesco’s play, “Rhinoceros.”
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