Scott Tibbs
blog post
August 24th, 2005
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While I am on the subject of Democratic prospects in future elections, here are some thoughts about Hillary Clinton's Presidential ambitions.
Some Republicans are concerned about Mrs. Clinton. I am not. Yes, her husband managed to get elected President twice. However, Mr. Clinton won in 1992 despite the fact that 57% of the voters voted against him. In 1996, 51% of the voters voted against Mr. Clinton. Think about that. A sitting President was re-elected despite 51% of voters choosing someone else.
Yes, Mr. Clinton was a masterful politician. He had a natural charisma that allowed him to connect with people. Mrs. Clinton does not have her husband's natural charisma. (Neither did John Kerry, for that matter.) Furthermore, Mrs. Clinton does not have her husband's temperament. Howard Dean may have killed his 2004 campaign with his "scream", but I imagine Mrs. Clinton's scream will be worse. I think she's likely to have a major meltdown at some point during the campaign.
Hillary Clinton is, in my opinion, a dream candidate for the Republican Party. Yes, she will have the party machine behind her. The same minds that managed to hide Mr. Clinton's radical left-wing agenda behind a facade of moderation are already working hard to do the same with Mrs. Clinton. That will be difficult to do, though, because Hillary Clinton is tied much more closely to her party's left wing in the public's eye. The health care task force (tax force?) fiasco will provide ammunition for Republicans, just as it did in 1994.
Could Hillary Clinton be elected President? Sure, it is possible. However, Republicans would have to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory for that to happen. If Indiana's primary was not completely irrelevant to who gets the Democratic nomination for President, I would be tempted to vote in the Democratic primary in 2008 in hopes of having Mrs. Clinton as the opposing candidate.